The very least you expect is effort, but there was very little of that as Manchester United were battered for a second time by Liverpool this season.
Ralf Rangnick opted for solidity, playing five at the back with two holding midfielders. It was the ploy of a manager who leads at a team at its lowest ebb in Premier League history, playing against a team at its highest, who had hit them for five on their own patch in their last meeting. The gulf in quality and application between these two sides has never been more in favour of Liverpool.
The plan was a problem. Presumably Rangnick wanted his players to double up on Liverpool’s wide forwards, with one of the three centre-backs or one of the holding midfielders aiding the wing-backs. They didn’t know what to do, and Rangnick should know well enough by now that United plans – even talking or writing about them – are a waste of time, because these players either don’t listen to, don’t care about, or can’t enact them. After just six minutes, the best right winger and best right-back in world football were running onto a through ball with no opposition player anywhere near them. What’s the f***ing point, thought us and Ralf Rangnick watching, and very clearly, the imposters wearing Manchester United shirts.
It was very good from Liverpool – some one touch passing, good runs and perfectly weighted passes – but Harry Maguire had to be tighter on Sadio Mane, who had far too much time to turn and pass, and Diogo Dalot had to track the runs of Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold. United couldn’t afford to give Liverpool an inch to have any chance of getting anything from this game, but the space they granted allowed Jurgen Klopp’s side to, quite frankly, rip the piss out of them.
Thiago was waltzing around the pitch, spraying passes, doing little bits of skill. You could almost feel Roy Keane’s desire from the Sky Sports studio to run out onto the pitch and snap him. Liverpool have…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Football365…