A point a piece in an Anfield thriller, and a dent in Liverpool’s title surge. A 2-2 draw in which Liverpool fell behind, went ahead, and came close to losing it with the last chance of the match, will live long in the memory. Ultimately, it may prove to be a point gained for Liverpool, and in truth, was probably all that they deserved, but it may well be United who take more from what was a pulsating Premier League clash.
The biggest game in English football, never really took after until the second half; Onana having thwarted both Gapko and Mac Alister in the opening fifteen minutes. United also had their chances, with Hojland guilty of blasting his sides best opportunity at Alisson in front of the Kop.
However, if Liverpool expected the chances to easily present themselves, and to be facing a lacklustre United, they were sorely mistaken. The visitors were resilient, focused, and for much of the game, simply more composed than Slot’s men. Perhaps complacency amongst some Liverpool fans, with talk of it being a cricket score, infected the team. Certainly for ten or fifteen minutes, either side of half-time, many in red shirts simply weren’t ’at it’. Too slow to the ball, lazy in their passing, and defensively all at sea. Trent Alexander-Arnold guilty more than most, and in so being, inviting speculation that the rumours whirling about Real Madrid, affected his performance.
If the first half though didn’t quite hit the heights, the second 45 minutes served up the sort of game, that this fixture often promises, but rarely delivers. It was the visitors though who lit the blue touch paper. Martinez hammering past Alisson on 52 minutes. Liverpool guilty of awful defending, and looking likely to concede a second.
Going behind however, perhaps focused the mind, of players and crowd alike. The Anfield atmosphere ratcheted up by the thought of a shock victory, from a team that looked abject, when losing at home to Newcastle less than a week ago. Yet, in a little over ten minutes, Liverpool led. First Gakpo put his compatriot de Ligt on his backside, cut inside on his right foot, and fired past Onana. On 70 minutes Salah did likewise, this time from the penalty spot, when de Ligt was correctly judged to have handled the ball from a deflected cross.
Many watching probably thought, at 2-1, Liverpool would go on to secure the points. Yet, even with the introduction of both Jota and Nunez, Liverpool found themselves up against a United team determined to take something from the game. So it proved, as Diallo, who’d given Trent, and to a lesser extent, the returning Konate, something of a torrid afternoon, drew his team level. The opening once again coming down Liverpool’s right side, as Alisson was beaten from close range. United even had time, in the seven minutes of added time, to snatch all three points. Thankfully, the guilt edged chance fell to Maguire, who blazed over the bar in the dying seconds, as Anfield collectively held its breath
Premier League champions are rarely, if ever, crowned easily. Liverpool, though six points clear at the top, and with a game in hand, now face two tough away games, at Nottingham Forest, and Brentford, that will surely test their title credentials. At the conclusion of this month, Liverpool may also have a cup final on the horizon, but with a potential 20th league championship in their grasp, the league campaign were the team will need laser like focus, as they head into the second half of the season.
