Manchester United were dealt a grim reality check following yet another dismal display away to Liverpool on Sunday afternoon, with Erik ten Hag’s seemingly resurgent outfit having been simply schooled by their bitter rivals.
While the Red Devils have made impressive progress since the win in the reverse fixture back in August – a result that the players themselves have pointed to as a defining moment in the season – this latest encounter was a reminder that the Carabao Cup winners are far from the finished article, with any previous, quiet hopes of a title charge now well and truly extinguished.
After a relatively encouraging first-half performance at Anfield, a goal from former United target Cody Gakpo just before the break seemed to open the floodgates once the second half began, with the visitors simply wilting amid the rampant Reds onslaught.
As much as Ten Hag had lauded his side’s “mentality” heading into that mouthwatering meeting, the club’s leaders appeared to go missing amid that staggering collapse after the interval, with the 7-0 scoreline reflecting a new nadir in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era.
It was undoubtedly stark to see experienced heads such as Casemiro seemingly go under on Merseyside, the serial-winning Brazilian having been simply ‘overwhelmed’ by Jurgen Klopp’s men, according to Manchester Evening News journalist Samuel Luckhurst.
The midfield “monster” – as lauded by journalist Muhammad Butt – has been a truly influential presence this season, although failed to hit his usual heights yesterday, having lost possession on 13 occasions and recorded just a 63% pass accuracy rate before being withdrawn late on.
The 31-year-old was not the only surprise figure who endured something of a rare horror show on the day, however, with the typically unflappable Raphael Varane also looking rather “awful” at the heart of the defence, according to reporter James Wokabi.
How did Varane play against Liverpool?
Much like his ex-Real Madrid colleague, Casemiro, Varane has been a real key asset in the recent rise for Ten Hag’s men, with the “calm and collected” Frenchman – as described by pundit and former defender Adrian Mariappa – having formed a rock-solid partnership with summer signing Lisandro Martinez of late.
For all the 29-year-old’s good work in recent months, however, the World Cup winner was caught out by the ferocious nature of Liverpool’s attacking triad, having been far too easily beaten by Gakpo as the Dutchman netted the game’s opener.
That set the tone for the car-crash performance that was to follow from Varane and his teammates, with the 93-cap titan not able to step up and lead his teammates when needed, as he won just three duels and made only one tackle in his 90-minute outing.
The £340k-per-week gem also lost possession nine times from his 38 touches and achieved a pass accuracy rate of only 75%, with that contributing to a rather dire match rating of 5.5, as per Sofascore – the lowest of any outfield player.
Arguably the centre-back’s ‘worst performance of the season’ – according to Luckhurst – Varane was exposed like most in that grim Anfield encounter, with the hope being that such a drubbing is merely a one-off as far as the Old Trafford outfit are concerned.
The fear will be, however, that much like the previous meeting at the Theatre of Dreams helped to kick start United’s season, yesterday’s shambolic showing could spark something of a nosedive for the club in the coming months.