Since joining the Liverpool ECHO in 2018, I’ve been lucky to cover Jurgen Klopp’s fights with arch rivals Manchester United.
Over the last six years, I’ve worked the iconic fixture six times in person, with last December’s 0-0 stalemate at Anfield marking the first time the Reds failed to win. But those five victories—wow. For Liverpool supporters, each one proved to be more glorious than the last.
My first taste came when Xherdan Shaqiri came off the bench to fire Jose Mourinho in December 2018, followed by Alisson Becker’s assist to Mohamed Salah in a 2-0 victory 13 months later. As the Brazilian ran the length of the pitch to celebrate with the Egyptian, the Kop finally declared, ‘We’re going win the league!’ in what would prove to be a memorable title-winning season for the Reds.
Fast forward to the 2021/22 season, and the Red Devils faced crushing defeat. Salah scored a stunning hat-trick in a historic 5-0 triumph at Old Trafford, while Thiago Alcantara was at his majestic best in a 4-0 victory at Anfield in April 2022.
In actuality, that later victory is perhaps the most underrated on my mini-list, given that Liverpool would eventually lose the title battle by a single point the following month.
But none of that compares to the sights at Anfield on this day last year, when Klopp’s men ran wild. United’s unfathomable 7-0 loss (SEVEN) was a whole new level of humiliation.
Almost everything the Reds touched went in. After all, they’d ‘only’ report eight shots on target. However, after Cody Gakpo cut inside to give them a 1-0 lead on the stroke of halftime, the second half was, quite bluntly, absurd as the visitors capitulated.
When Darwin Nunez made it 2-0 shortly after the restart, the floodgates flowed. Gakpo and the Uruguayan both scored braces before Salah joined in, followed by the Egyptian’s own second goal.
The highlight of such strikes was Salah bamboozling Lisandro Martinez before leaving him on his behind and allowing Gakpo to dink the ball over David De Gea for his second goal of the day. The visitors’ defence was awful throughout, as they failed to mark Liverpool’s players and gave up possession cheaply on numerous occasions.
The cherry on top came later. The image of Roberto Firmino making it 7-0, only two days after it was announced that he will depart the club at the conclusion of his contract this summer. The subsequent rendition of ‘Si Senor’ was thunderous, with Kopites watching in ecstatic astonishment.
Of course, such sentiments were shared by two of Liverpool’s most popular sons. We’ve all enjoyed watching Jamie Carragher hop up and down with unimaginable regularity next to a dejected Gary Neville on Sky Sports’ commentary assignment. Unsurprisingly, he mocked his sparring partner on multiple occasions on social media.
Meanwhile, in a TikTok video posted by another club veteran Ian Rush, Steven Gerrard was seen punching the air in delight from the stands.
While fans of the Reds reveled in the inconceivable thrashing, rival Manchester United legends had a very different narrative. Neville wasn’t the only Red Devils icon who was distraught.
Not for the first time, Sky Sports cameras went to Sir Alex Ferguson’s face in the stands as he witnessed yet another beating by Liverpool. After fighting for 27 years to ‘knock the Reds off their throne’, he has spent the last decade of his retirement seeing his hard work crumble in front of his eyes.
On one instance, the Sky cameras captured the Scot shaking his head at the calamity he was witnessing on the pitch. Inject into the veins.
Following the final whistle, Neville would dispute with Carragher and Graeme Souness on Sky Sports as they reflected on the game. Claiming the former Liverpool pair were ‘gloating like little children’, he would assert that the Reds had not performed well and that United had been the better side in the first half.
“Not a chance,” Souness replied dismissively at the end of the pair’s heated exchange.
Meanwhile, Rio Ferdinand was left with the largest egg on his face after his overconfident pre-match prediction backfired spectacularly.
“Nervous? “This is the most confident I’ve felt going into a Liverpool game in the last six or seven years,” Ferdinand told BT Sport. “I believe Manchester United are on the rise, whilst Liverpool have stalled and taken a couple of steps back.
“They’ve had a great run over the previous several years, but they’re not the Liverpool team we’ve seen in recent years. “What a time to visit Anfield; it’s the best place to win as a Manchester United player.”
Admittedly, the Reds were having a bad season. They were already out of both domestic cup tournaments and on the verge of being eliminated from the Champions League round of 16 after losing 5-2 at home to Real Madrid less than two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, Liverpool, lying sixth in the Premier League table and 10 points behind United, knew they were unlikely to compete in the Champions League the next season.
But, in reality, that is what made the 7-0 triumph and subsequent Red Devils comebacks all the more fun. And Klopp would later admit that beating United was probably the only thing worth remembering about their awful campaign.
“This season, if we don’t do something really special, will be remembered for the 7-0 against United,” he remarked in the spring of 2023. “I hope that when people talk about it in a few years, they will look back and say, ‘That is the year we beat United 7-0′ and add something pleasant on top of that.
“After that, we qualified for whatever. That will be good, but if not, we will have to accept it as well.”
Unfortunately, there would be nothing positive to say after that 7-0 victory as the terrible 2022/23 season came to an end. However, a year later, Liverpool is still at the top of the Premier League, has won the League Cup, and is in the FA Cup quarterfinals and Europa League round of 16.
In comparison, Erik ten Hag’s squad, who qualified for the Champions League last season, is presently sixth in the table, 19 points behind Klopp’s men. After being eliminated from the European group stage and the League Cup in the fourth round, they will face Liverpool in the FA Cup last eight later this month, their last chance to prevent a trophyless season.
Last year’s thrashing of United is a result that Liverpool fans will never forget, as Klopp correctly stated. But the Reds’ recovery over the last year, in contrast to the Red Devils’ ongoing stagnation, makes it even sweeter.
United legends have never been more confident heading to Anfield last March, convinced that their recent misfortune in the fixture would be over. But, with the FA Cup and Premier League in fast succession at Old Trafford in the coming weeks, an improbable victory may end up being the highlight of their season, as it did for Liverpool a year ago.
With Klopp’s men no longer resembling the wounded animal that embarrassed United last year, Neville, Ferdinand, and co. will have never been more afraid of confronting their closest rivals.
