Manchester United drew 0-0 with Liverpool at Old Trafford in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon. It was a strange match with the three substitutions for United in the first half with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer losing Ander Herrera, Juan Mata, and then Jesse Lingard in the first 43 minutes of the game. That said, it was United who had the better play, getting six shots, three of those on target – Liverpool has seven shots, one on target.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had to rejig his team inside the first half of the game with Ander Herrera, Juan Mata, and Jesse Lingard coming off injured. Andreas Pereira (Herrera), Jesse Lingard (Mata), and Alexis Sanchez (Lingard) replaced the injured midfielders, which will be a worry for the Norwegian as Nemanja Matic is on the sidelines for up to a month. Now selling Marouane Fellaini does not look like a good decision after all, although the likes of Pereira, Scott McTominay and Fred may get some valuable minutes soon.
Man of the Match: Luke Shaw
The England left-back played well throughout the game and put in a lot of effort to keep Liverpool at bay. The result may not have been the best but the clean sheet, especially against a team who have scored in every away game this season, is a good result. It may have helped Liverpool reach the summit of the league table once again but they are only a point better off against Manchester City with eleven matches still to play. Shaw and United should be applauded for this match, considering all the injuries in the first half.
Match Statistics:
Manchester United 0-0 Liverpool pic.twitter.com/MJ1BmyF3JW
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Manchester United
1 David De Gea
The Spanish number one had little to do against Liverpool at Old Trafford. One shot on target for the visitors. United, despite the three first half substitutions, had the better opportunities to score, even having the ball in the back of the net, although it was ruled offside.
18 Ashley Young
The United defence kept Liverpool at bay. Young did well throughout the match. Mohamed Salah has not scored a single goal against United and that remains a fact to this day. No double for the dippers.
2 Victor Lindelof
The ice man was in good form in defence against Liverpool. One of the contenders for MOTM for me, although Rashford was the one who won it, in my opinion.
Chris Smalling
Could have been involved in the only goal of the match, playing the ball through the defence from a set-piece, however, he was ruled to be offside. Defensively, he played a good game and that clean sheet will be valuable, although the result may not be.
23 Luke Shaw
Got forward at times, despite being pegged back for much of the game with Liverpool having the most of the ball, despite doing less than United did with it. A commendable performance.
21 Ander Herrera
The Spanish midfielder lasted 20 minutes in the game against Liverpool before coming off injured, heading straight down the tunnel for treatment, which could be worrying for United, especially with Nemanja Matic on the sidelines.
39 Scott McTominay
Started and was immediately criticised on social media but the fickle fans who seem to know more. I don't think he did all that bad a job in all honesty. He's not Nemanja Matic and does not bring the confidence the Serbian does but he needs to play to continue his development. McTominay showed his ability in the box defending set-pieces.
8 Juan Mata
Juan Mata lasted 25 minutes against Liverpool before injury ended his game with him being replaced by Jesse Lingard. United's injury worries had doubled in the opening quarter of this game.
6 Paul Pogba
Got involved throughout the game and kept United going when they were attacking, especially at the start of there second half. United did well against Liverpool.
10 Marcus Rashford
Did not look happy half way into the first half and was seemingly carrying an injury, which comes at the worst time for United. Carried on into the second half, although it was obvious that he was not fully fit. Great to see him put himself on the line for his team though.
Romelu Lukaku
Not impressed with what I saw from the Belgian today. Seemed to do a lot less than Rashford, and he was carrying an injury.
Substitutes
Andreas Pereira
Replaced Herrera 21'. The Belgian-born Brazilian had high expectations to fill on replacing Herrera. He did well in the first half but dithered a bit in the second half, making some poor passes. A bit of confidence could do wonders for him. As the second half grew, his confidence grew too, which could be a boost for him as he could feature more now, especially against Crystal Palace on Wednesday.
14 Jesse Lingard
Replaced Mata 25'. The England international overcame injury to face Liverpool, which might have been too soon for him. Romelu Lukaku played Lingard through, beating Van Dijk with Alisson rushing to gather the ball with Lingard through. Lingard seemed to get injured here and immediately left the pitch, possible for a longer layoff. Not good for Solskjaer and United.
Alexis Sanchez
Replaced Lingard 43'. As more times passes, it seems obvious that Sanchez is not a good fit for United. Another failure in the number seven shirt at this stage. Of course, it can still change but the chances of it changing are outweighed significantly. Not a United player in my opinion, as exciting his signing was more than a year ago.
Manchester United: De Gea; Young, Lindelof, Smalling, Shaw; Herrera (Pereira 21′), McTominay, Mata (Lingard 25′ (Sanchez 43′), Pogba; Rashford, Lukaku
Substitutes Not Used: Romero; Bailly, Dalot; Fred
Bookings: Ashley Young 81′; James Milner 23′, Xherdan Shaqiri 83′, Georgino Wijnaldum 90′
