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Manchester United remain second in the Premier League after losing two matches on the bounce. The Red Devils were beaten by Leicester City on Tuesday and suffered defeat once again at the hands of arch-rivals Liverpool on Thursday.
In both games, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side were clearly distracted and not up to their usual high standards. Liverpool wanted the win more and they deservedly left Old Trafford with the three points.
Goals from Diogo Jota, Roberto Firmino (brace) and Mohamed Salah were enough to secure a 4-2 win for the Merseyside club, ensuring the strikes from Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford were a mere consolation.
Errors cost Manchester United against Liverpool
Manchester United were clearly fatigued and distracted when they faced Liverpool and their woes were compounded by some schoolboy errors at the back.
Liverpool’s first goal came as a result of Eric Bailly’s failure to clear a loose ball while poor marking from Paul Pogba allowed Firmino to score the Reds’ second. Another mistake from Fred and Luke Shaw led to Liverpool’s third goal while a lack of awareness by Lindelof emboldened Salah to put the game beyond reach with a fourth.
Manchester United are still likely to finish second in the Premier League. However, they will have to fix these errors before their crucial Europa League final against Villarreal.
The Red Devils missed Harry Maguire against Liverpool
A key reason for Manchester United’s defensive shambles was the absence of skipper Harry Maguire, who is nursing an ankle injury. The England centre-back has now missed two successive games after playing every minute of Premier League football since joining the club two years ago.
"Harry [Maguire] has been really important for us so, of course, we're going to miss him. But he's out so we have to deal with that," Solskjaer admitted, as quoted by Goal.
"It's about regrouping and building our own confidence again as we have two games and a final. We need to find ourselves straight away. We need to build that momentum and confidence. We should go into that final ready," Solskjaer added.
It is clear that Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly are not solid enough at the back and it will be a huge loss for United if Maguire doesn’t recover in time for the Europa League final.
