2 years ago
16
ARTICLE AD BOX
Marcus Rashford ended a run of 997 minutes without a goal in all competitions for Manchester United against LiverpoolManchester United produced an outstanding display to defeat Liverpool and give manager Erik ten Hag his first Premier League victory at a thunderous Old Trafford.
Ten Hag took the bold decision to drop captain Harry Maguire and Cristiano Ronaldo and was rewarded with a performance that lifted the mood of crisis around Manchester United and leave Liverpool still searching for a first win of the season.
Jadon Sancho showed superb control and composure to deservedly put United in front after 16 minutes before Marcus Rashford raced clear to beat Alisson from substitute Anthony Martial's pass eight minutes after the interval.
Mo Salah set up a tense finish when he scrambled in a header with nine minutes left but United survived to give Ten Hag just the sort of triumph he needs to make his mark at Old Trafford.
Man Utd rise to the occasion
Manchester United were at their lowest ebb after a 4-0 humiliation at Brentford followed an opening day home defeat by Brighton.
And while thousands protested against the ownership of the Glazers before kick-off and the chants continued throughout the game, United's fans rallied behind a performance of fierce intensity and commitment that left Liverpool bullied for long periods.
New £60m signing Casemiro was paraded in front of the Stretford End before kick-off and how he must have relished the magnificent atmosphere inside Old Trafford as United turned the misery of their abject first two league performances on its head.
Liverpool won 5-0 here last season and 4-0 at Anfield but United mustered more energy and aggression in the first 10 minutes here than in both of those embarrassing performances.
Ten Hag employed pace to take advantage of Liverpool's high defensive line and they should have been ahead even before Sancho opened the scoring, Anthony Elanga hitting the post after racing clear.
United contested every challenge with a fired up Lisandro Martinez setting the tone early on with a robust challenge on Mohamed Salah.
Rashford's form has been indifferent in recent times but his confidence will surely soar after the composed manner in which he scored what eventually proved to be the winner.
And this was a landmark night for Ten Hag, who knew his decision to leave out Maguire and Ronaldo would have brought scrutiny had United lost.
Instead, he enjoyed the sort of night that he will hope gets his Old Trafford reign up and running.
More to follow.
- Live text as Man Utd host Liverpool
- Visit our Man Utd page
- Go straight to all the best Liverpool content
How to play
Rate players out of 10 throughout or after the game. The rater will close 30 minutes after the final whistle.
Rating range key1 = Give it up10 = Pure perfection
Manchester United
Squad number1Player namede Gea
Squad number20Player nameDiogo Dalot
Squad number19Player nameVarane- Squad number6Player nameMartínez
- Squad number12Player nameMalacia
- Squad number14Player nameEriksen
Squad number39Player nameMcTominay- Squad number25Player nameSancho
- Squad number8Player nameBruno Fernandes
- Squad number36Player nameElanga
Squad number10Player nameRashford
- Squad number7Player nameCristiano Ronaldo
Squad number9Player nameMartial
Squad number17Player nameFred- Squad number29Player nameWan-Bissaka
- Squad number34Player namevan de Beek
Liverpool
- Squad number1Player nameAlisson
Squad number66Player nameAlexander-Arnold
Squad number2Player nameGomez
Squad number4Player namevan Dijk
Squad number26Player nameRobertson- Squad number19Player nameElliott
Squad number14Player nameHenderson
Squad number7Player nameMilner
Squad number11Player nameMohamed Salah
Squad number9Player nameRoberto Firmino- Squad number23Player nameDíaz
- Squad number3Player nameFabinho
- Squad number21Player nameTsimikas
- Squad number28Player nameFábio Carvalho
Line-ups
Man Utd
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 1de Gea
- 20DalotBooked at 45minsSubstituted forWan-Bissakaat 86'minutes
- 19VaraneBooked at 27mins
- 6Martínez
- 12Malacia
- 14EriksenSubstituted forvan de Beekat 86'minutes
- 39McTominay
- 25SanchoSubstituted forFredat 71'minutes
- 8Bruno FernandesBooked at 74mins
- 36ElangaSubstituted forMartialat 45'minutes
- 10RashfordSubstituted forCristiano Ronaldoat 86'minutes
Substitutes
- 5Maguire
- 7Cristiano Ronaldo
- 9Martial
- 17Fred
- 22Heaton
- 23Shaw
- 29Wan-Bissaka
- 34van de Beek
- 49Garnacho
Liverpool
Formation 4-3-3
- 1Alisson
- 66Alexander-ArnoldBooked at 24mins
- 2Gomez
- 4van Dijk
- 26RobertsonSubstituted forTsimikasat 85'minutes
- 19Elliott
- 14HendersonSubstituted forFabinhoat 59'minutes
- 7MilnerSubstituted forFreitas Gouveia Carvalhoat 73'minutes
- 11Salah
- 9Firmino
- 23Díaz
Substitutes
- 3Fabinho
- 13Adrián
- 21Tsimikas
- 28Freitas Gouveia Carvalho
- 42Clark
- 43Bajcetic
- 47Phillips
- 72van den Berg
- 95Davies
Live Text
Match ends, Manchester United 2, Liverpool 1.
Second Half ends, Manchester United 2, Liverpool 1.
Foul by Luis Díaz (Liverpool).
Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner, Manchester United. Conceded by Kostas Tsimikas.
Foul by Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool).
Anthony Martial (Manchester United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Fabinho (Liverpool) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Donny van de Beek (Manchester United).
Fabinho (Liverpool) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United).
Harvey Elliott (Liverpool) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Tyrell Malacia (Manchester United).
Attempt missed. Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United) left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Anthony Martial.
Substitution, Manchester United. Donny van de Beek replaces Christian Eriksen.
Substitution, Manchester United. Cristiano Ronaldo replaces Marcus Rashford.
Substitution, Manchester United. Aaron Wan-Bissaka replaces Diogo Dalot.
Substitution, Liverpool. Kostas Tsimikas replaces Andrew Robertson.
Attempt missed. Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the left. Assisted by Mohamed Salah following a corner.
Corner, Liverpool. Conceded by Tyrell Malacia.
- Our coverage of your Premier League club is bigger and better than ever before - here's everything you need to know to make sure you never miss a moment
English (US)