Manchester United 1-4 Liverpool
Liverpool seized some treasured bragging rights with a convincing ICC 2018 win over Manchester United in front of 80,000 passionate fans at the Michigan Stadium.
After United had equalised Liverpool’s opener, Jurgen Klopp’s stars pulled away in the second half to run out deserved 4-1 winners, with new boy Xherdan Shaqiri scoring the pick of the goals.
There is always plenty of bite in these fixtures and the two managers were having a dig at each other even before a friendly. Jose Mourinho says Liverpool’s spending has put them under more pressure to win trophies, though he has been looking a little fractious himself—maybe frustrated by his own transfer progress this summer.
And it was Jurgen Klopp who left the Stadium with a smile on his face.
Highlights of the game
These mind games have been a fixture in the Manchester and Mersey derbies for years, and it all adds to the spice.
This was a game US soccer fans were looking forward to, and they got just what they wanted in a fantastic game played at a blistering pace.
It started as a true English classic as Liverpool’s James Milner introduced himself to United striker Alexis Sanchez with a crunching tackle. He then used the more creative side of his game to find Mo Salah with a through ball and the Egyptian striker brought a smart save from Lee Grant to stop his header.
Mo Salah, who scored within a minute of his arrival on the pitch against Manchester City last week, looked very sharp again tonight. He tested Grant on 15 minutes with another header after Adam Lallana had combined well with Sadio Mane.
In a rare United attack, Sanchez put Juan Mata through with a super ball, but the Spaniard was denied by the offside flag after firing home.
Liverpool’s pressure eventually told on 28 minutes when Salah drew a foul from young left-back Demetri Mitchell. The referee pointed to the spot, which Sadio Mane slotted coolly home.
It was all that Liverpool deserved, and the ICC 2018 odds swung the way of Jurgen Klopp’s men.
But as the breathtaking pace continued, the lead lasted just three minutes. Mata won a free kick about 25 yards out but wasn’t allowed to take the shot. Instead, it was Andreas Pereira—returning to Manchester United after a stint in La Liga—who grabbed the ball and announced himself with a stunning strike over the wall and into the corner.
Liverpool tried to restore the lead immediately and United fans had their hearts in their mouths as Mane appeared to be pushed over by Eric Bailly (but no penalty this time).
Klopp brought Shaqiri on for his debut at the start of the second half but it was a 65th-minute substitution which prompted the next big moment. Daniel Sturridge had only been on the pitch for a minute when Shaqiri put him in to finish smartly into the bottom corner.
Shaqiri and Sturridge combined well again moments later, but the latter’s effort flew just wide. Nonetheless, it was three for Liverpool soon enough after the referee pointed to the spot again following Ander Herrera’s attempt to stop Andy Robertson. Up stepped young Sheyi Ojo to stroke the ball into the net.
Mourinho chose this moment to introduce his big-money signing, Fred, but that was soon overshadowed when Shaqiri got his goal—and what a stunner it was. Youngster Ben Woodburn teed up a lovely ball at the back post, a little behind Shaqiri so he set himself to execute a brilliant overhead kick flying into the net.
What a goal and what a way to round off the game.
Key statistics
Recent ICC 2018 results made world news and this one is no exception.
But it was a bit of a drubbing for Jose’s boys as Liverpool ran riot.
The stats tell the story which makes good reading for Klopp. His team enjoyed 65 percent possession and won the shot count by a huge 16 to three, with nine shots on target.
Liverpool’s passing accuracy was at 87 percent while United’s was at 73 percent.
Jose Mourinho’s next press conference will be worth a watch!
What’s next?
The SBOBET ICC 2018 team loves a massive game; we had one here tonight and there’s another on the way when Manchester United meet Real Madrid in their next game in the tournament. The Red Devils, though, need to improve quickly.
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool continue its pre-season against Serie A runners-up Napoli.
And then well into the season, in December, the two old foes will be re-acquainted as Manchester United visit Anfield in one of the EPL matches of the season.
That could be tasty!
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