Man United 0-3 Liverpool: Erik ten Hag’s side utterly outclassed as Luis Diaz nets a brace before Mohamed Salah adds a third

Erik ten Hag decided to show off before his team’s most important home game of the season, which some considered rather unwise.

Ten Hag proudly stated that under his reign, Manchester United were second only to Manchester City in terms of trophies won.

He was right, of course, but if he expected applause for the glorious Carabao Cup and FA Cup triumph at Old Trafford, he was mistaken.

Because taking home a few gems that are trivial compared to the major trophies of modern football is nothing compared to the humiliations United routinely endure these days.

They don’t count, as United finished eighth in the Premier League last season, and yet their fans are told to be grateful.

Erik ten Hag chose to boast before his team played their biggest home game of the season

They don’t count as United are completely outclassed by Liverpool, who have just lost one of their best managers: Jurgen Klopp.

They count for nothing when United look like boys playing against men. They count for nothing when Liverpool could have scored six or seven if they had been a bit more ruthless in front of goal.

They don’t count as there is still some sort of title claim by many of these United players, which they have done absolutely nothing for.

They mean nothing if United fans are so disappointed that they leave en masse with ten minutes to go, booed and jeered by Liverpool supporters.

“Ten Hag at the wheel, Ten Hag at the wheel,” the visiting club’s supporters sang enthusiastically, referring to the song United fans used to sing about Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

But for how long? That is the question. How long can Ten Hag keep it up at England’s biggest club with empty bluff and bluff?

There was always the suspicion that Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his grim henchman Sir Dave Brailsford were merely trying to buy time when they failed to sack Ten Hag in the summer.

And there was a suspicion that if the start of this season did not go well, Ten Hag would no longer be there in October.

After defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend, United have now lost two of their opening three games and are 14th in the table.

Things could improve if their new midfielder Manuel Ugarte, who was shown on the pitch before this game, is available to play. He costs £50m.

That is the area of ​​the team where United most urgently need reinforcements. Casemiro, once a giant of a player, was again exposed as a nuisance and was responsible for Liverpool’s first two goals.

But it’s not just the midfield. United have also looked good in central defence. Lisandro Martinez is a good talker and a terrible looker, but when it comes to shutting down decent attackers, he’s not so impressive.

Matthijs de Ligt, the new signing from Bayern Munich for United, was also disappointing. Kobbie Mainoo was sidelined. Alejandro Garnacho was peripheral. The list of doomsday scenarios went on and on.

As for Liverpool, it’s hard to compare them to a side as bad as United, but they appear to have handled Klopp’s departure as smoothly as possible.

They were brilliant and fluid in their play at times. Mo Salah became both provider and scorer, Ryan Gravenberch seems a player who has transformed under new boss Arne Slot and was the man of the match.

Slot became the first Liverpool manager since Bob Paisley in November 1975 to win his first match against United and the first since George Kay, with a 5–2 victory in November 1936, to triumph in his first league match at Old Trafford.

Based on this result, it looks set to see Liverpool join Arsenal and City in the title fight once again.

United started strongly and energetically, dominating possession and driven by a pleading crowd, but were grateful for VAR after Liverpool’s first attack in the seventh minute.

Liverpool thought they had taken the lead after six minutes, but Trent Alexander-Arnold had a goal disallowed

Gravenberch turned beautifully when he received a ball from Virgil van Dijk halfway into United’s half and began a dazzling run. He played in Luis Diaz and although his cross was forced over the line by Trent Alexander-Arnold, replays showed Salah was offside when he touched the ball on the run-up.

After that flurry of action the game sank into something of a stalemate, but there was still much to admire about United’s play in the context of that stalemate. The energy and coordination of their pressing seems to be finally coming closer to the level of their rivals.

But as the half wore on, that energy waned and United’s passing became increasingly sloppy. It seemed only a matter of time before they were made to pay for their sloppiness and when Casemiro gave the ball away to Gravenberch 10 minutes before half-time, they paid the penalty.

Gravenberch stormed forward and laid the ball into the path of Salah, who was overlapping on the right. Salah floated a perfect cross to the far post, where both Dominik Szoboszlai and Diaz were waiting for him unmarked.

United’s only hope seemed to be to get the two Liverpool players in each other’s way, but Diaz gave a last-minute warning, Szoboszlai dove aside and Diaz headed his ball past André Onana.

United almost took an immediate lead, but Alisson made a great save from a low shot from Noussair Mazraoui. This caused frustration to creep into United’s play, which was evident when Martinez fouled Szoboszlai from behind.

Van Dijk invited Martinez to bully him instead, but it didn’t take long for Liverpool to get their revenge on the Argentine defender. Van Dijk was able to stand by and watch as Liverpool doubled their lead.

Casemiro was again given possession. Diaz stole the ball from him and played it to Salah. Salah waited, Diaz made space for Martinez who stood with his feet flat on his feet as Salah played the ball back to Diaz and Diaz swept it majestically past Onana.

Martinez might have thought that if he had concentrated a bit more on his defence rather than his posture, United might not be so porous at the back. Instead, he marched up to Ten Hag on the touchline and angrily reproached him, as if the goal was entirely his fault.

To no one’s great surprise, Ten Hag blamed Casemiro and substituted him at half-time, replacing him with Toby Collyer, a 20-year-old making his debut in the competition. Collyer almost made the difference immediately, nodding a pass into the path of Joshua Zirkzee, but Zirkzee’s curling shot was cleared away by Alisson.

It will take more than a 20-year-old player who came out of Brighton’s academy two years ago to clean up this mess, though, and Liverpool went even further ahead ten minutes after the break.

This time it was Mainoo who was pushed aside in possession. This time it was Alexis Mac Allister who ran away with the ball. He passed the ball to Szoboszlai, who played it to Salah, who fired the ball out of reach of Onana. It was the seventh game in a row that Salah had scored at Old Trafford.

Salah nearly scored twice in a matter of minutes, dancing across the face of the penalty area and lifting a shot just too high, only to see Onana curl his shot past the post. It was yet another embarrassment for Ten Hag and his team.

Zirkzee almost salvaged a little pride for his team with a close-range header that was well saved by Alisson, but it still felt like men versus boys. The atmosphere was already starting to sour. When Alejandro Garnacho was substituted midway through the half, his withdrawal was greeted with a chorus of desultory boos.

Despite all Ten Hag’s boasting, United fans have become accustomed to a diet of this kind of gruel, and their patience may not last much longer.