So Jurgen Klopp joins a long list of Liverpool managers vanquished first time out by Manchester United.
Bob Paisley was the last to win his opening game against them, on
November 8 1975 – United were in Division Two for Paisley’s first season
at Anfield – and Wayne Rooney made sure Klopp wouldn’t even have the
consolation of a point.
Not
that he was in poor company there, either. Brendan Rodgers, Kenny
Dalglish, Roy Hodgson, Rafael Benitez, Gerard Houllier and Roy Evans all
lost their initial encounter with the enemy down the M62 – Graeme
Souness the last not to get beaten, in 1991. So this is a tradition,
although not one that the locals are too keen on upholding.
From
United’s perspective, it wasn’t a greatly deserved victory, but it was
most certainly an important one. Manchester United still resemble one
of those arthouse films where nothing much happens for an hour, then
there is a bit of action, the credits roll and everyone leaves none the
wiser – but this is Anfield, after all. It is not an easy place for any
Manchester United team to come and win, so they deserve credit for that,
at least.
Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney celebrates wildly after firing his team to victory against fierce rivals Liverpool
Rooney reacted fastest to pounce upon the rebound from a Marouane Fellaini header which had hit the crossbar
Rooney celebrates his goal against Liverpool with United team-mate Morgan Schneiderlin after scoring at Anfield
David De Gea leads the United celebrations after his side secured an important 1-0 victory against Liverpool at Anfield
Emre Can led the charge for Liverpool early in the second half but saw his low, left-footed effort turned away by De Gea
Liverpool and Germany midfielder Can reacts after seeing his effort at goal turned away by United stopper De Gea
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was dejected on the sidelines after his side failed to take their chances against United
MATCH FACTS, PLAYER RATINGS, PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE AND MATCH ZONE FROM ANFIELD
Liverpool (4-3-3): Mignolet
6.5, Clyne 6, Toure 7, (Benteke, 81), Sakho 5.5, Moreno 6, Henderson 7,
Lucas 7.5, Can 6.5, Lallana (Ibe, 76) 6, Firmino 6.5, Milner 6
(Caulker, 90).
Subs not used: Allen, Smith, Ward, Teixeira.
Manchester United (4-2-3-1):
De Gea 8.5, Young 5 (Borthwick-Jackson,43), Smalling 6.5, Blind 7.5,
Darmian 7, Schneiderlin 7, Fellaini 7, Lingard 6, (Mata, 66), Ander
Herrera (Depay, 72), Martial 7, Rooney 8.
Subs not used: Romero, Varela, McNair, Andreas Pereira.
Goal: Rooney, 78.
Booked: Smalling, Fellaini
Referee: Mark Clattenburg
Att: 43, 685
United midfielder Fellaini (left) clashes with Liverpool's Lucas in a simmering duel between the two in the first half
Anthony Martial (third right) and Nathaniel Clyne (right) rush over separate Fellaini and Lucas in the match at Anfield
Fellaini of United lies on the ground
after earlier bumping heads with Liverpool midfield player Lucas in the
Premier League game
Jordan Henderson (centre), the
Liverpool captain, watches as he drills a shot wide of goal in the first
half against United at Anfield
Liverpool defender Mamadou Sakho (left) gets across to block an attempt at goal for United by striker Martial (right)
Adam Lallana had Liverpool's best chance in the first half and was denied by De Gea from breaking the deadlock
The
collision looked accidental but Fellaini came off worse and appeared to
take umbrage at this. Not long after, the pair were scrapping again
over by the touchline, with referee Mark Clattenburg required to restore
order amid the standard melee.
Yet,
much like the match, their duel failed to spark and the game took a
predictable slant. Manchester United had a reasonable share of the ball,
but absolutely zero threat on goal for long periods. Liverpool played a
high energy game without the quality necessary to make it count.
They
pressed and harried, but too often finished wildly. David De Gea was
busier than Simon Mignolet but should have been made to work harder.
Jordan Henderson’s contribution was particularly frustrating.
He
got into good shooting positions but was too often wayward. What he did
get on target equated to little more than pre-match practice for De
Gea. Henderson is charged with assuming Steven Gerrard’s mantle at
Liverpool, but it wasn’t just will that made the former captain such a
magnificent player. He had the ability to back it up. Henderson lacks
Gerrard’s range – and in more ways than one.
Still,
Liverpool had the best of the action in the first-half and could have
gone in at half-time ahead. In the tenth minute, Lucas clipped a ball
over the top for Adam Lallana to run free. He outstripped the Manchester
United back line and tried to head the bouncing ball past De Gea, who
blocked, with it running to Roberto Firmino – only for his shot to fly
wide of the far post.
Just
two minutes later, Firmino – increasingly impressive under Klopp –
switched the play to James Milner in a lot of space on the right. His
shot was snatched, however, flying high over the bar – not what watching
England manager Roy Hodgson would have wanted to see.
There
are glimpses of what can be achieved under Klopp’s tuition, though, and
in the 30th minute a passing move involving Lucas, Henderson, Lallana,
Firmino and Henderson again, ended with the England midfielder shooting
wide, a trend that continued in the second-half.
United manager Louis van Gaal look
stressed by his team's first-half performance against Liverpool at
Anfield in the Premier League
Ashley Young went off injured in the 43rd minute for United against Liverpool in the Premier League at Anfield
United captain Rooney (right) takes on Liverpool defender Kolo Toure during the first half, which ended without a goal
Roberto Firmino, again leading
Liverpool's attack after his double against Arsenal, tried to evade a
challenge from United's Daley Blind
England manager Roy Hodgson was at Anfield to see a host of his internationals on display in the Premier League clash
Emre
Can forced a good save from De Gea in the 50th minute, and a superb one
16 minutes later – when he also recovered in time to keep out Firmino’s
follow up – and Mamadou Sakho couldn’t get sufficient purchase on an
excellent cross by Milner in the 73rd minute. Yet all the time, United
were growing stronger – buoyed by the arrival of positive substitutes
such as Depay and Mata.
Anthony
Martial had their first real opportunity after 57 minutes, when Rooney
played back a cross from Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, and maybe one day
Manchester United will have a manager who will play the Frenchman in a
dangerous position through the middle.
If
there is a negative in this result for United it is that Louis Van Gaal
could interpret it as vindication of his ploy to use Rooney as his
centre-forward and Martial wide. Title talk, post-match, from the
manager, suggests this is so.
And,
of course, Manchester United are still in touch and a club with their
resources should never be underestimated; but neither should the
evidence of our own eyes.
This
may have been a title-winners result, but it was not a title-winners
performance. United have had four shots on target in two games against
Liverpool, and scored from them all. It is hard to see how a title
challenge can be maintained with such slender margins. All that can be
said of Manchester United is that they are considerably further ahead in
their rebuilding project than Klopp and Liverpool.
The revolution, for both clubs, is slow in coming. Unfortunately, for the neutrals watching at home, it is always televised.
Phil Jones was in the away end alongside the United supporters to watch his side take on Liverpool at Anfield
United and England midfield player Michael Carrick was also in the stands to watch his team take on Liverpool
Liverpool's injured Brazil international playmaker, Philippe Coutinho (second left) watches on from the stands at Anfield
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