The spoils were shared at Anfield on Sunday afternoon as Liverpool and much better Manchester United played out a 2-2 draw.
With the two historic behemoths going into the contest in drastically different forms, most expected Liverpool to lose at Anfield. However, United refused to show any of the ineptitude that was on display against Newcastle as they played an excellent first 45 minutes.
They confused the crowd early and quickly got into the competition. The hosts had their moments with Cody Gakpo going their closest in the opening 30 minutes, but United were a persistent threat down Liverpool’s right and twice got behind through Diogo Dalot and Rasmus Hojlund. After Amad Diallo miscued Dalot’s cross, Alisson denied Hojlund one-on-one.
As a result, the two sides went into the break goalless.
UnitedThe momentum continued in the second half and they secured a deserved first goal from an unexpected source. Lisandro Martinez’s finish after a clever return pass from Bruno Fernandes was magnificent, but their lead only lasted a few minutes. The in-form Gakpo leveled the scores with an equally brilliant finish after bringing down Matthijs de Ligt.
De Ligt was again the protagonist of the defense when the Reds made up for the deficit from the penalty spot. The Dutchman’s raised hand after Mac Allister’s header was not seen by Michael Oliver, but VAR intervened and awarded Liverpool a spot-kick. Mohamed Salah was on hand to finish from 12 yards.
However, the impressive visitors refused to go away and restored parity to set up a thrilling finish. After he entered behind the downstairs LiverpoolHe is right again, Amad, one of the most outstanding players under Amorim, coolly scored the equaliser.
The final was completely breathless, and both sides could have won it to the death. Harry Maguire missed a golden opportunity with the last shot. In the end it was just a point for Liverpool, who failed to take advantage of Arsenal’s draw at Brighton on Saturday.
|
Player |
Ratings |
|---|---|
|
GK: Alisson |
5.7/10 |
|
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold |
6.7/10 |
|
CB: Ibrahim Konata |
7.5/10 |
|
CB: Virgil van Dijk |
6.5/10 |
|
LB: Andy Robertson |
6.5/10 |
|
CM: Ryan Gravenberch |
6.9/10 |
|
CM: Alexis McAllister |
7.8/10 |
|
in the morning: Curtis Jones |
6.5/10 |
|
RW: Mohamed Salah |
7.7/10 |
|
ST: Luis Diaz |
6.4/10 |
|
LW: Cody Gakpo |
7.7/10 |
|
UNDER: Darwin Nunez (60′ for Diaz) |
6.4/10 |
|
UNDER: Diogo Jota (60′ for Jones) |
6.1/10 |
|
UNDER: Conor Bradley (58′ for Alexander-Arnold) |
6.4/10 |
|
UNDER: Harvey Elliott (86′ for Gakpo) |
6.1/10 |
Subs not used: Caoimhin Kelleher (GK), James McConnell, Jayden Danns, Wataru Endo, Federico Chiesa, Kostas Tsimikas, Jarell Quansah.
|
Player |
Evaluation |
|---|---|
|
GK: Andre Onana |
6.7/10 |
|
CB: Matthijs de Ligt |
6.2/10 |
|
CB: Harry Maguire |
7.1/10 |
|
CB: Lisandro Martinez |
8.2/10 |
|
RWB: Noussair Mazraoui |
7.2/10 |
|
CM: Manuel Ugarte |
7.1/10 |
|
CM: Kobbie Mainoo |
6.7/10 |
|
LWB: Diogo Dalot |
7.4/10 |
|
in the morning: Bruno Fernandes |
8.7/10 |
|
in the morning: Amad Diallo |
8.1/10 |
|
ST: Rasmus Hojlund |
6.4/10 |
|
UNDER: Alejandro Garnacho (72′ for Mainoo) |
6.0/10 |
|
UNDER: Leny Yoro (83′ for De Ligt) |
6.1/10 |
|
UNDER: Joshua Zirkzee (87′ for Hojlund) |
6.3/10 |
Subs not used: Altay Bayindir (GK), Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen, Casemiro, Antony, Toby Collyer.
Man of the match – Bruno Fernandes (Man Utd)
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