Liverpool 0 Manchester United 1 comment: Liverpool’s limitations leave Anfield yearning for yesteryear

COMMENT: Wonder-strikes in front of the Kop belong to Gerrard and an era that is becoming sepia-tinted

Jordan Henderson, the Liverpool captain, fires wide at Anfield when he should have done better (Reuters)

It was a catalogue of scruffy passes and unruly clearances amid a wider mood of attrition here at Anfield.

It seemed as though the two busiest players would define the result. For Liverpool, Mamadou Sakho stretched his long limbs to cover up his own mistakes, somehow shackling Wayne Rooney whose presence was irrelevant for almost the entire match. For Manchester United, Marouane Fellaini – the primary target of the visiting team’s attacking play – was found chasing his own misdirected flick-ons.

Despite Simon Mignolet being Liverpool’s obvious weakness, the goalkeeper was not troubled. Then United delivered one decent cross towards Fellaini following a short corner. Rooney became active in the corresponding chaos. And with that, victory fell into United’s lap.

Though he did not attempt to meet the cross, it was not entirely Mignolet’s fault that the home team lost. A scrum of Liverpool defenders could not prevent Fellaini from jumping the highest, with Lucas Leiva abandoning Rooney, affording him the necessary space. Yet David De Gea made four crucial saves at the other end. First he saved from Adam Lallana, albeit the midfielder did not possess the conviction to pass him. He saved brilliantly from Emre Can twice. And then from Roberto Firmino.

Liverpool possibly look at Mignolet as a financial asset but if they deem he is worth a new five-year contract, United should be looking to strap De Gea to Old Trafford until the end of time.

United might be utterly joyless to watch and Champions League qualification might not seem like much of an achievement for a club of this size but at least they have a realistic chance of being there next season; mainly because of De Gea, who saves points; and sometimes due to the abilities of Rooney, who can still produce moments that win games.

For Liverpool, the quest for success lands exclusively with Jürgen Klopp’s training tactics and man-management, as all of the players capable of instinctively raising the collective have either been sold to the highest bidder or moved on towards the pasture of retirement without adequately being replaced, though the manager reminded here that he “cannot provide” the finishing touch when Liverpool need it on the pitch.

Louis van Gaal spent much of his post-match press conference distracted by the televisions inside Anfield’s former trophy room, wondering whether a bad result for Arsenal at Stoke might place United back in contention for the Premier League title. Van Gaal was proud of his win here but if he thinks United have a chance, he contradicted himself in describing Liverpool as “competitors”.

Klopp, indeed, spoke quietly and slowly, staring into the middle-distance with his chin nuzzled into the palm of his hand; surely appreciating Stoke’s result rather than Arsenal’s would affect Liverpool more, for it is Stoke who are closer to them in the table and not Arsenal, who were 12 points ahead at the beginning of the day.

This is how far Liverpool have fallen. Klopp was a more comfortable fit than any of those making the biggest decisions at Fenway Sports Group expected, having been advised against his appointment when it was decided that Brendan Rodgers should go. He arrived at Anfield because he claimed during interview that things were not as bad as they seemed; that the players who had failed Rodgers and undermined Liverpool’s transfer committee were actually quite good and that he could improve them; make Liverpool better.

Klopp must realise now that there is so much work to do; that the job at Anfield is much bigger than he first thought – as Jamie Carragher insisted on Saturday by relating his challenge to Bill Shankly’s when he inherited a club struggling in the Second Division in 1959. The comparison is relative and fair.

Klopp wants to execute fast, aggressive, counter-attacking football, yet he has inherited a squad with a skill set that is jumbled, one that lacks any sort of common identity; one without any local influence.

This is the legacy of a predecessor and a committee that traded favours when it came to recruitment: Rodgers got what he wanted in Christian Benteke but so did the committee when Firmino arrived. Liverpool do not necessarily need to spend big to change the mood but they need to spend wiser in an undiluted manner, making accountability clear rather than blurred, especially for the person who cannot hide – the person whose neck is on the chopping board so publically: the manager.

On this occasion, Firmino – the closest thing Liverpool had to an inspiration – created an opportunity for Jordan Henderson by furrowing for stray ball and Henderson chose the safest possible shot when he needed to be bolder and certainly more convincing, reminding that wonder-strikes in front of the Kop from a similar distance belong to Steven Gerrard and an era that is becoming sepia-tinted.

There was no Gerrard on show here and there was no Roy Keane for United either. There was no Eric Cantona, nor a Luis Suarez. Liverpool continue to miss Daniel Sturridge while United should improve when Michael Carrick returns from injury and he brings self-assurance to the midfield.

On chances, Liverpool merited a win and Van Gaal admitted that United’s first-half performance especially concerned him. Improbably, they muddled through, relied on De Gea and in doing so, were able to look towards someone else to enforce the most extreme punishment when the opportunity came along.

United had spent the latter stages of the warm-up immersed the same routine: centre-midfielders with limited passing ranges compared to those of the past, spraying possession out to wingers that are not really wingers, before a series of crosses aimed at the No 10s acting as centre forwards. The rehearsal proved a significant forewarning, with a disjointed display disguised by a late winner from a wide area.

Van Gaal had told Daley Blind and Juan Mata to try a short corner as it altered the line of vision for a Liverpool defence known for struggling when faced with such prospects.

In the end, it was his advice that mattered the most and determined the outcome on a scruffy afternoon.