MATCH REPORT: Lacklustre Liverpool play out scoreless stalemate against Man United

Premier League football has served up its fair share off thrillers this season. Goalfests, VAR controversies, late comebacks - we’ve seen it all. But Super Sunday’s prime time showdown between England’s most storied clubs proved anything but. 

In essence, the spectacle Anfield expected between Liverpool and Manchester United never arrived, with the hosts’ profligacy in front of goal a far cry from the potency which saw them put their old foes to the sword in the same fixture last season. Having been blown away by Bournemouth in their last league outing and dumped out of Europe in midweek, the point will be a welcome reprieve for a beleaguered Erik ten Hag, whose position as United boss has been questioned in recent weeks. 

He would have been desperate to avoid a repeat of last season’s 7-0 ignominy; but had to do so with a depleted squad, pairing Raphael Varane with Jonny Evans - his ninth centre-back partnership of the season. Without recourse to club captain Bruno Fernandes for the first time in 41 league games, United started with Sofyan Amrabat and teenager Kobbie Mainoo in midfield, with stand-in skipper Scott McTominay deployed ahead of them. There was still no space in the starting 11 for England international Marcus Rashford. 

Having had the luxury of resting many of his senior players in midweek, Jurgen Klopp’s only change to the side which started against Crystal Palace last weekend was Ibrahima Konate who came in for youngster Jarell Quansah. 

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First half

The battle lines were drawn from the get-go: the hosts - initially shooting towards the Kop End - camped themselves inside United’s half, testing the beleaguered Andre Onana with two tricky set-piece deliveries in the opening couple of minutes. Mo Salah looked to profit from a loose headed clearance but his looped volley could not be directed goalwards by Darwin Nunez at the back post. 

Alejandro Garnacho and Domink Szoboszlai traded long range sighters before Alexander-Arnold stood a delightful cross up for Nunez; the Uruguayan unselfishly headed back across goal looking to pick out one of three Liverpool players waiting to pounce at the opposite post, but Onana just about did enough to keep the ball out of his net. 

This season, Alexander-Arnold has often been the architect of Liverpool’s attacks from a central medfield berth, but reminded supporters of his prowess from the right, a position from which he has delivered the majority of his 56 Premier League assists. He swung in a delightful corner midway through the first period, picking out Van Dijk, who’d escaped both Raphael Varane and Luke Shaw, and surely would have scored had his header not been straight at Onana.   

In truth, for all of Liverpool’s possession, 15 shots and 1.29 expected goals in the first 45 minutes, they failed to create any truly incisive openings, with the likes of Szoboszlai misplacing a plethora of passes in the final third. The hosts’ best looks at goal came through hopeful efforts from Salah and Danzell Gravenberch and an Ibrahima Konate header which sailed over the crossbar.  

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Second half

Wins for Arsenal and Aston Villa earlier in the day had seen Liverpool fall to third in the table, a point Jurgen Klopp may have mentioned in any half-time dressing-down, if there was one. Either way, his side came close to opening the scoring soon after the restart when Salah cushioned a Kostas Tsimikas cross into the path of an onrushing Alexander-Arnold who skipped past Amrabat and then Varane before blasting into the side netting from an ever-narrowing angle. 

As banal as United’s play had been, the pace of Garnacho, Antony and Rasmus Hojlund meant they always would always have a fighting chance if their defence could hold out. And it was Garnacho who reminded Liverpool of this fact, played in and bearing down on goal, it took a smart Alexander-Arnold tackle to prevent the Argentinian getting his shot away. 

Blessed with the stronger bench, Klopp was the first of the two managers to blink, replacing a leggy Szoboszlai and injured Gravenberch with Cody Gakpo and Joe Gomez. Alexander-Arnold slotted into midfield as Gomez went to right-back. The changes led to what was the most open period of the match, with Alexander-Arnold coming within a whisker of scoring what would have been an excellent opener as his side-footed effort from distance flew just the wrong side of the post. United then went up the other end and could have scored had Rasmus Hojlund been able to beat Alisson having been played in behind by McTominay. 

Liverpool never gave up the ghost, and saw further chances through Luis Diaz, Joe Gomez and Konate, twice, go begging. The latter of the Frenchman’s opportunities should have been converted. A teasing free-kick from the left just needed the slightest of contacts to find the back of the net, but Konate failed to apply any. There were strong appeals for a handball but replays showed that the ball only struck Shaw’s arm after coming off his midriff. 

There was just enough time for Diogo Dalot to receive a double yellow card for two consecutive instances of dissent after Michael Oliver awarded Liverpool a throw-in. Although the ball did appear to come off Salah last, the histrionic reaction from Dalot was ill-advised.  

Both managers embraced at the final whistle, Ten Hag undoubtedly the happier of the two. The draw sees Liverpool relinquish top spot to Arsenal, while United displaced West Ham in seventh after the Hammers had momentarily leapfrogged them with a convincing win over Wolves earlier on Sunday.  

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Line-ups

Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Tsimikas, Endo, Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Salah, Nunez, Diaz

Substitutes: Adrian, Kelleher, Gomez, Jones, Gakpo, Elliott, McConnell, Quansah, Bradley

Manchester United: Onana, Dalot, Varane, Evans, Shaw, Amrabat, McTominay, Mainoo, Antony, Rashford, Hojlund

Substitutes: Bayindir, Kambwala, Reguilon, Wan-Bissaka, Gore, Hannibal, Pellistri, Van de Beek, Rashford