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Liverpool Crush Man United With Historic 7-0 Win That Puts Them on Course for Top-Four Finish

Liverpool recorded their biggest win ever against Manchester United with a 7-0 humiliation of their traditional rivals at Anfield.

Goals from Darwin Nunez (2), Cody Gakpo (2), Mohamed Salah (2) and Roberto Firmino took Liverpool to win three points of the top four, but they also put an end to suggestions that third-place United could yet win the Premier League. The defeat means United have now scored just once on their last seven visits to Liverpool and haven’t won at Anfield since a Wayne Rooney winner in January 2016.

Liverpool Hit Man United With a Reality Check and Close in on the Top Four

Sunday’s game at Anfield turned out to be must-see TV, with the Reds’ remarkable 7-0 victory putting Jurgen Klopp’s team firmly on course for Champions League qualification.

A week after ending their six-year trophy drought by winning the Carabao Cup — a success which prompted talk of a quadruple this season — United were humiliated by their biggest rivals at Anfield. Two goals apiece from Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah, plus a late goal from Roberto Firmino, lifted Klopp’s team to fifth position, three points behind Tottenham but with a game in hand, and cemented Liverpool’s status as favourites to finish fourth.

The irony for United was that they had controlled much of the first half and wasted good chances before Gakpo put Liverpool ahead in the 43rd minute. From that point on, United collapsed — it was 3-0 by the 50th minute — and they ended up suffering an even bigger defeat than their woeful results against Liverpool last season, when they lost 5-0 and 4-0.

United have now scored just once in their last seven games at Anfield and haven’t won away to Liverpool since 2016. This was supposed to be the day when they faced their old rivals on a level footing for the first time in years, but it ended as the same old story. By the end of the game, Liverpool’s fans were chanting “we want eight” to hammer home the magnitude of their dominance.

While the defeat will not impact United’s league position of third place, the result is huge for Liverpool. Having looked like missing out on the top four, they are now chasing Tottenham down and seemingly set to climb above Antonio Conte’s team.

Ten Hag Suffers for Rare Tactical Error

Erik ten Hag has rightly won plaudits this season for transforming Manchester United with his tactical awareness and decision-making from the touchline, but he made a costly tactical mistake at Anfield. By starting with Marcus Rashford as a lone striker, Bruno Fernandes wide on the left and Wout Weghorst as a No. 10, the United manager let Liverpool off the hook, particularly by allowing Trent Alexander-Arnold’s defensive weaknesses to go untested.

Fernandes is a natural No. 10 and the Portugal international is best when given that role to create chances for those further ahead of him. But he lacks the pace to play out wide, and his presence in that position meant Alexander-Arnold had one of his easiest games of the season. Had Rashford played out wide, it would have forced Alexander-Arnold to deal with somebody running at him and the spaces that he often leaves behind him.

And while Weghorst has played the position before, by using the Netherlands forward in that position, Ten Hag took Fernandes away from where he could be most impactful.

Furthermore, there was no logic to Ten Hag’s tactics. They made United less effective and gave Liverpool an unexpected bonus in the sense that they made life easier for the home side to defend. By the time Ten Hag changed the approach in the second half, it was way too late, as United were 3-0 down by that stage and heading for an even bigger defeat.

Perhaps the defeat will ultimately work in Ten Hag’s favour. Some of his team’s weaknesses were exposed at Anfield — namely their lack of a proper centre-forward and a reliable right-back — so perhaps it will bring some realism back to United to counter the optimism of a new era at the club.

Gakpo and Nunez Show That Liverpool’s Future is Bright

Nunez and Gakpo have both struggled to make an instant impact at Liverpool following their arrivals this season, but their performances against United showed that their future is bright at Anfield.

Gakpo, 23, has now scored four goals in his past six games for Liverpool after failing to find the net in his first six weeks at the club since his Jan. 1 move from PSV Eindhoven. Nunez, also 23, now has four goals in his last four games for the club after enduring a difficult period following his club record £85 million transfer from Benfica.

The two forwards are both raw and yet to fulfill their potential, but they are clearly talented players who will be a big part of Liverpool’s future. Both are strong and quick with a determination to go for goal that, at times, can see them rush decisions and miss good chances. But those rough edges are being smoothed off with every performance, and it seems that playing alongside Mohamed Salah, one of the best forwards in the world, is accelerating that process.

Gakpo and Nunez are different players to those they have been signed to replace in Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino, but don’t bet against them enjoying the same success for Liverpool in the years to come.

The post Liverpool Crush Man United With Historic 7-0 Win That Puts Them on Course for Top-Four Finish was originally published on ESPN.

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