In an electrifying classic, they got the better of , this Saturday (19), in the middle of the Anfield stadium, and celebrated their first victory in nine years at their opponent’s home, 2-1, in the 8th round of the Premier League. The triumph came with a lightning goal from Mbeumo and another from Maguire, when the hosts were trying to come back. The team of Casemiro and Matheus Cunha reached 13 points in the national championship table and interrupted a negative series of ten matches at Anfield, where they suffered humiliating defeats in the period, such as 7-0 in 2023 and 4-0 in 2022. Despite the irregular campaign, Rúben Amorim also gained confidence in command of the Manchester team.
The current English champion extended its worst phase under the command of Arne Slot, with the fourth defeat in a row and four points behind leaders Arsenal – 15 to 19. Liverpool had stumbled against Crystal Palace and Chelsea, in the Premier League, and Galatasaray, in the Champions League.
After spending a fortune on signings at the start of the season, both left their main reinforcements on the bench for the classic. On the side of the current champion, Ekitike, with five goals in ten games since arriving from German Frankfurt, was removed from the attack, while Wirtz lost his position with his fluctuating performances. For United, Sesko made room for other reinforcements, Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, and Amorim’s decision proved to be the right one.
Even though they were under pressure at Anfield, Manchester United only needed a minute to open the scoring. Mbeumo got the better of a split with Mac Allister in midfield and set off at speed to receive the ball passed by Diallo and touch goalkeeper Mamardashvili.
From then on, the team led by Arne Slot began to dominate the actions, however, the goalscorers Salah and Isak lacked skill, whose point-blank shots ended up in Lammens’ defenses, and luck for Gakpo, who hit the post twice. On the other side, the visitors started at speed to try to increase their advantage with counterattacks.
Liverpool’s pressure only had an effect in the 32nd minute of the final stage, when Gakpo’s touch in the area found the net. When Liverpool’s comeback and the end of the drought seemed like a matter of time, five minutes later, Maguire headed in at the second post and scored the winning goal for Manchester United: 2-1.
In the other match this Sunday, Richarlison’s Tottenham took the lead against Aston Villa, in London, with a goal from Bentancur, but was beaten 2-1 by the Birmingham team – Rogers and Buendía scored – and lost the chance to reach second place in the Premier League. With the result, the home team fell three places and occupy sixth place with 14 points, two more than their opponents.
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
Published by Fernando Dias
