One year ago today, Liverpool secured one of the most memorable results in their history. Arch-rivals Manchester United were swept aside 7-0 in an absolutely scintillating display from the Merseyside club. Here is The Sportsman's match report published as it appeared in the immediate aftermath of that historic game.
Liverpool thrashed Manchester United 7-0 in the Premier League at Anfield on Sunday to strengthen their chances of finishing inside the top four this season.
Braces from Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah and a strike from Roberto Firmino capped off a historic triumph in the history of this rivalry as Liverpool recorded the highest margin of victory ever recorded in this fixture. The hosts were brilliant whereas the visitors were very poor and it is hard to process what we have just seen from United given how well they have been performing since Christmas.
Despite coming into the game in form, United were still wary of their recent history at Anfield with their last victory there coming back in 2016. In the eight games they have played there since, United have scored just one goal - and in this latest instalment they didn’t look like they were going to score once. They were shambolic and the scoreline reflected that. It is hard to believe that this team had lifted a trophy last week.
United were heading into this game as Carabao Cup champions and looking to show their rivals how much they have improved under their new boss Erik ten Hag, having beaten Liverpool at Old Trafford back in August. But instead we got a clinical Liverpool performance which we have not seen a great deal of this term but what we have come to know in the Klopp era.
In recent weeks there has been an upturn in results and performances from the Reds and to have delivered this suckerpunch on their bitter rivals at such a crucial stage of the season, it is fair to say that they have rediscovered their rhythm. It was just a matter of weeks ago that you thought they might not have what it takes to qualify for the Champions League next year. Within the blink of an eye they are three points behind Tottenham Hotspur in fourth and also have a game in hand.
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The first half at Anfield had all the components of a derby match despite Liverpool showing more hunger than their opponents.. There were some strong tackles, an electric atmosphere, and attacks at both ends. The hosts started the match the stronger of the two sides with Mohamed Salah looking sharp in the opening stages. Liverpool’s intense pressing which we have come to know so well during the Jurgen Klopp era was used to fine effect in the opening 20 minutes as they nullified United’s threat.
As the half went on, the visitors grew into the game and started to ask some questions of Liverpool’s defence. Antony forced Alisson into a low save at the far post and Bruno Fernandes saw a headed effort fly just past the post. Liverpool were able to weather the storm and managed to find a breakthrough just before half-time. A defence-splitting pass from Andy Roberston set Gakpo away and the Dutchman worked his way into the box before dispatching the ball into the bottom right corner as Anfield erupted.
While United had been the ones applying the pressure, some of their players seemed spooked by the occasion of the derby match as they couldn’t have an impact on the game, including key midfielder Casemiro.
Erik ten Hag knew that something needed to be done in the second half but it was Liverpool who came out the traps flying after the interval. Darwin Nunez doubled the Reds’ lead two minutes after the restart as he nodded home for a simple finish by meeting Harvey Elliott’s cross. The game was then wrapped up three minutes later as Gakpo scored a delightful finish to double his own tally to extend Liverpool’s lead to three.
As United continued to capitulate, Salah fired a rocket past David de Gea before Nunez headed home his second. Salah then came back to torment the Red Devils some more with another strike to establish himself as Liverpool’s highest scorer of the Premier League era, eclipsing Robbie Fowler. And to add the icing on the cake, long-serving forward Firmino added a seventh from the bench in the aftermath of making his intentions clear to move on from the club at the end of the season.
Despite their phase in the first half where they threatened Liverpool, there was something fundamentally off with United’s performance. Perhaps it was a comedown from their Carabao Cup triumph last weekend or the fact that they had not tasted victory inside this stadium in the Premier League since 2016.
While it was a collective disastrous performance from United, take nothing away from Liverpool who did exactly what they needed to do to get the win, even if it didn’t take much due to United simply not turning up. It was men against boys and the gulf in class showed. United have turned a corner in recent months, but this shows that Ten Hag as still got a lot more work to do.
