United claim bragging rights over Liverpool: 3 things we learned
By Liam Bekker
The Premier League’s prized fixture took center-stage on Saturday, when Manchester United pipped Liverpool to come away with the three points.
Manchester United hosted Liverpool at Old Trafford on Saturday in the Premier League’s early kickoff. Marcus Rashford’s first-half brace lit up the stage before an own goal by Eric Bailly in the second half saw the match play out in nail-biting fashion. Here are three things we learned:
Old demons come back to haunt Liverpool
For all their attacking quality, Liverpool can’t seem to shake the defensive fragility which has plagued them in recent years. The mega-money arrival of Virgil van Dijk and the promotion of Loris Karius has seen marked improvement in recent matches, but the defensive errors returned to prove costly once more against their arch-rivals.
The Reds seemed incapable of dealing with United’s direct approach. Both of the opposition’s goals on the day were conceded as a result of a failure to deal with Romelu Lukaku’s aerial threat and the second ball which flowed from it. Liverpool dominated possession and performed better in the second half, managing to pull a goal back, but the damage had already been done.
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Marcus Rashford is the darling of Manchester
Marcus Rashford was the star man for Manchester United on Saturday afternoon. His clinical finish in the 14th minute was a product of brilliant movement to skin Trent Alexander-Arnold and put United in a commanding position early on. Ten minutes later he netted his second and made it comfortable for United to revert to their defensive default.
His performance, watched by England manager Gareth Southgate, illustrated more than just the quality of his finishing ability. He exploited the channel between Alexander-Arnold and Dejan Lovren expertly, and was unafraid to run in behind or beat his man. He was less lively in the second half but his match-winning performance will have given Southgate something to think about ahead of the upcoming World Cup.
Ashley Young puts his hand up for a World Cup spot
Much like Rashford, converted wing-back Ashley Young took his chance to impress Gareth Southgate. Up against Mohamed Salah, the joint-top goalscorer in the league, he delivered an immense performance to nullify the threat of the pacey Egyptian. He frequently cut off the supply-line to Liverpool’s biggest attacking threat and matched his runs with impressive vigor.
England have struggled in the left-back position since Ashley Cole’s departure from the international scene and the position remains unfilled. With Danny Rose and Luke Shaw out of sorts, and Ryan Bertrand struggling at Southampton, Young put his hand up for a spot on the plane to Russia.