The spoils were shared at Anfield on Sunday afternoon as Liverpool and a much-improved Manchester United played out a furious 2-2 draw.
With the two historic giants entering the competition in drastically different form, most expected a move from Liverpool to Anfield. However, United refused to show any of the incompetence that was displayed against Newcastle as they produced a brilliant opening 45 minutes.
They thwarted the crowd early and quickly settled into the contest. The hosts had their moments with Cody Gakpo going closest in the opening 30 minutes, but United were a constant threat down Liverpool's right and twice went behind through Diogo Dalot and Rasmus Hojlund. After Amad Diallo failed a good Dalot cross, Hojlund was denied one-on-one by Alisson.
As a result, both sides went into a complete break.
united's momentum continued in the second half and they secured a deserved goal from an unlikely source. Lisandro Martinez's finish from Bruno Fernandes' clever back-pass was magnificent, but their lead only lasted a few minutes. The in-form Gakpo leveled proceedings with an equally brilliant finish after subbing Matthijs de Ligt.
De Ligt was again the protagonist in defense as the Reds overturned the deficit from the penalty spot. The Dutchman's hand up from Mac Allister's header was not seen by Michael Oliver, but VAR stepped in to award Liverpool a spot-kick. Mohamed Salah was on hand to finish from 12 yards.
However, the impressive visitors refused to go away and restored parity to set up a thrilling final. After entering from behind LiverpoolRight again, Amad, one of the standout players under Amorim so far, coolly scored the equalizer.
The final was utterly breathless and either side could have won it at the death. Harry Maguire missed a golden opportunity with the last kick. In the end, it was just a point for Liverpool, who failed to capitalize on Arsenal's draw at Brighton on Saturday.
|
Player |
evaluations |
|---|---|
|
GC: Alisson |
5.7/10 |
|
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold |
6.7/10 |
|
CB: Ibrahima Konate |
7.5/10 |
|
CB: Virgil van Dijk |
6.5/10 |
|
LB: Andy Robertson |
6.5/10 |
|
CM: Ryan Gravenberch |
6.9/10 |
|
CM: Alexis McAllister |
7.8/10 |
|
AM: Curtis Jones |
6.5/10 |
|
RW: Mohamed Salah |
7.7/10 |
|
ST: Luis Diaz |
6.4/10 |
|
LW: Cody Steele |
7.7/10 |
|
UNDER: Darwin Nunez (60' for Diaz) |
6.4/10 |
|
UNDER: Diogo Jota (60' for Jones) |
6.1/10 |
|
UNDER: Conor Bradley (58' for Alexander-Arnold) |
6.4/10 |
|
UNDER: Harvey Elliott (86' for Steel) |
6.1/10 |
Subs not used: Caoimhin Kelleher (GK), James McConnell, Jayden Danns, Wataru Endo, Federico Chiesa, Kostas Tsimakas and Jarell Quansah.
|
Player |
ASSESSMENT |
|---|---|
|
GC: Andrew Onan |
6.7/10 |
|
CB: Matthijs de Ligt |
6.2/10 |
|
CB: Harry Maguire |
7.1/10 |
|
CB: Lisandro Martinez |
8.2/10 |
|
RWB: Noussair Mazraoui |
7.2/10 |
|
CM: Manuel Ugarte |
7.1/10 |
|
CM: Kobbie Mainoo |
6.7/10 |
|
LWB: Diogo Dalot |
7.4/10 |
|
AM: Bruno Fernandes |
8.7/10 |
|
AM: Amad Diallo |
8.1/10 |
|
ST: Rasmus Hojlund |
6.4/10 |
|
UNDER: Alejandro Garnacho (72' for Mainoo) |
6.0/10 |
|
UNDER: Leny Yoro (83' for De Ligt) |
6.1/10 |
|
UNDER: Joshua Zirkzee (87' for Hojlund) |
6.3/10 |
Subs not used: Altay Bayindir (GK), Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen, Casemiro, Antony, Toby Collyer.