Liverpool has had a tough season, but they may have just found their light at the end of the tunnel. In a truly scintillating performance, Jurgen Klopp’s men tore Manchester United apart at Anfield with an utterly dominant 7-0 win, marking the biggest win in the history of this storied fixture.
The braces from Cody Gakpo, Darwin Núñez, and Mo Salah, plus Roberto Firmino’s late goal, secured Liverpool not only one of the all-time great victories in this fixture, but one of the greatest Premier League results in history and will be remembered for decades to come.
Klopp, who called United a “results machine” in the build-up to the match, couldn’t have envisaged a performance and result like this one. “No words,” he told Sky Sports after the win. “Spectacular football game. Outstanding.”
While Liverpool was phenomenal all game, Manchester United was equally, how shall we say it, bad, horrible, terrible. Former United captain Gary Neville labeled the performance a “shambles” and “embarrassing” on the Sky Sports coverage of the game.
But this was Liverpool’s day, and a raucous Anfield gave the players a spine-tingling ovation at full-time, a moment undoubtedly made all the sweeter given the team’s struggles this season.
To add further gloss to the occasion, Salah’s two goals took his Premier League tally for Liverpool to 129, surpassing Robbie Fowler’s record for the club.
Despite all the problems Liverpool has encountered this season, the team now moves up to fifth place in the league and is just three points behind Tottenham in the fourth and final Champions League place with a game in hand.
“It was the push we wanted, it puts us in the right direction,” Klopp added. “Everyone has to know we are still around. It wasn’t the case for a while, but tonight was a proper show of what we can be and what we have to be from now on.”
This victory also comes at the best possible time, as Liverpool attempts to build some momentum ahead of the return Champions League fixture against Real Madrid in 10 days’ time. Any chance of turning a 5-2 deficit around at the Bernabeu still seems slim, but Liverpool and its fans will now have more hope than ever before that the improbable feat can be accomplished.
Liverpool’s performance against Manchester United was so dominant, it was almost like watching a lion take down a gazelle. Klopp was ecstatic, while Neville was not. The victory may have come at the best possible time for Liverpool, as they gear up for the return Champions League fixture against Real Madrid. All in all, it was a great day to be a Liverpool fan.
