It always hurts to lose to Manchester United. Even in those long gone days when Liverpool ruled the roost and a defeat to the Mancunians was a mere blip on the way to another title, it always stung a little bit more than other defeats.
Of course, in the larger scheme of things today, I’ll be hard-pressed, and I wouldn`t even try, to convince anyone that losing at Old Trafford – to a team 7 points clear at the top of the Premiership – is worse than losing at home to an Aston Villa side that has hardly scored a single goal and shipped tons since scoring three times at Anfield in December.
As is usually the case, much has been made of Liverpool’s loss – and performance - at Old Trafford and I suppose the historical rivalry between the two clubs makes that inevitable. Yet, this was no significant clash with far-reaching consequences for end of season honours. First versus eighth, had it involved any other clubs, would hardly have generated even half the attention this tie did. Indeed, the last time this fixture held any relevance to the title race was back in 2008/09, not that long ago, when Rafa Benitez’s side won the battle – taking all three points in a 4-1 win – yet lost the war, finishing 4 points behind United at the end of the season.
If anything, Sunday’s 2-1 result was pretty much par for the course. Take out that 08/09 game and Liverpool’s last six results at Old Trafford read: 1-2, 2-3, 1-2, 0-3, 0-1, 0-1. So, in 7 Premier League visits to Old Trafford since 2005, Liverpool have a dismal 1-0-6 record. And I daresay, many of those Liverpool teams – especially between 2007 and 2009, when Rafa’s team lost only 6 times in 76 league games (twice to United) – were a much stronger vintage than Brendan Rodger`s `work-in-progress` class of 2013.
All told, Sunday`s game may have presented Rodgers with perhaps the toughest test his side will face this season – the tension of age-old rivalry only adding spice to an encounter against the runaway league leaders – but failure to beat a side that`s won 18 of 22 matches this season, especially on a home patch where they`ve been almost unbeatable for two years, can hardly be used as a barometer of progress – or the lack thereof.
If anything, Liverpool`s performance at Old Trafford – leaving aside the result – provided a microcosm of what we`ve seen from Rodgers`s team all season; a disappointingly tentative and uninspiring first half was reminiscent of the worst days at West Brom and Stoke, and at home to Arsenal and Aston Villa; while the energetic, positive attacking display of the second half brought to mind better days against QPR, Fulham and Sunderland, and even those early season home games against Man City and United.
Liverpool fans will be hoping to see more of the latter between now and May, and the fact that Rodgers – for the first time this season – could put three strikers on the field for the most of that second half can only be a source of encouragement.
As for United, the pundits keep telling us that this squad cannot compare to their great teams of yesteryears, yet they remain miles ahead of the pack. If they are that bad, what does that say of the rest of the league?
I know it’s only January, but it’s their title to lose now.
