It has been nearly ten years since Manchester United last won a game of football at Anfield. You have to travel back in time to 2016 when a sole goal from the great Wayne Rooney won them the match.
A lot is different since then. As Ruben Amorim’s men defeated Arne Slot’s charges 2-1 on Sunday, it signified the first back-to-back league wins of the Portuguese’s rather dreary tenure in charge.
Perhaps the winds of change are among us. Is this the beginning of Amorim’s charge towards glory? Remarkably, United are now just two points shy of fourth place. They are only six points off the Premier League leaders.
For all of the negativity, for all of the criticism, this was a mammoth win. They deserve their plaudits this time around.
So, how did it happen?
How Man United ended their Anfield curse
This was as far from an Amorim performance as one can imagine. Yes, it’s a good time to play Liverpool, but arguably it’s always a good time to face Man United right now.
They changed the narrative around them on Sunday, however, and they did it in dramatic fashion.
The Red Devils came out of the gates firing when, with barely a minute on the clock, Bryan Mbeumo fired the visitors in front. It was poor defending from Virgil van Dijk who failed to track the winger and he then fired past the goalkeeper at the near post.
Mbeumo hasn’t been his rip-roaring best since trading London for Manchester, leaving Brentford behind in the summer, but he is a talisman United can build their team around. He was hailed as “one of the best in the world” during the game by BBC Sport’s Umir Irfan.
The big-money summer arrival wasn’t the only player Amorim had to thank. New goalkeeper Senne Lammens – an understated and quiet figure – looks an instant upgrade on Andre Onana. He claims crosses, looks assured and simply goes about his business without making a fuss. What a world of difference that makes.
However, the most telling story from a Man United persuasion was the way in which they responded to Cody Gakpo’s late equaliser.
When that goal went in, the game could have changed. Liverpool have made a habit of scoring late winners this term and they had the wind in their sails during that part of the clash.
United have usually wilted under pressure during the Amorim era and could have done here. This time it was different. Liverpool wilted instead and the visitors, in a big test of their mental resolve, stood up to the test.
Bruno Fernandes, always the main talisman of the club, hooked a ball into the box and there was man of the hour, Mr Harry Maguire, rolling back the clock and firing a bullet header into the net. Gary Neville cried tears of joy on commentary, Peter Drury roared and Jamie Carragher sat in silence. It was an iconic moment and one that could turn the tide of Amorim’s tenureship.
Yet, while Lammens, Mbeumo, Fernandes and Maguire came up with big moments, an ounce of praise should be fired in the direction of United’s new Carlos Tevez.
Manchester United's new Tevez has arrived
While the Argentine ultimately left United in controversial circumstances, heading to rivals Manchester City, his time at Old Trafford was something to savour.
A South American maverick, a player who’d run himself into the ground and, principally, a player who knew where the back of the net was, he was a workhorse for United.
A slender figure at 5 feet 7, his game was certainly bigger than that. He ultimately won two Premier League titles during the Sir Alex Ferguson era, played 99 games and scored 34 goals in the process. Tevez also registered 14 assists. He was a genuine all-rounder.
Well, in the present day, summer arrival Matheus Cunha looks like he’s cut from a similar cloth.
Another South American and a maverick sort of player, it’s easy to see where the comparisons stem from but, pivotally, he is actually yet to score in United colours.
His contributions have been first-class, however, and that was in evidence against Liverpool on Sunday. Like Tevez, he ran himself into the ground with a dogged performance on the road.
Scouted Football’s Jake Entwistle encapsulated things perfectly, writing on social media: The fitness of Cunha to scrap for that many duels throughout the game and drag a team up the pitch consistently is absurd. He should be absolutely gassed but he still looks able to do 90 yards with five hand-offs along the way.”
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That certainly sounds Tevez-esque, doesn’t it? During the game, the lively Brazilian only had two shots but he was also able to win four of his nine ground duels, making an interception and two clearances along the way. He also completed both of his dribble attempts and was fouled twice. Talk about offering a lot to the team.
Minutes played
90
Touches
55
Unsuccessful touches
4
Accurate passes
24/29 (83%)
Dribbles
2/2
Fouled
2x
Shots
2
Key passes
0
Interceptions
1
Clearances
2
Duels won
5/10
A goal or assist did not come the 26-year-old’s way but journalist Chris Winterburn suggested that “once Cunha starts finding the net, he’s going to be as popular as Tevez.”
Football writer for Forbes and FourFourTwo, Sam Pilger, was equally as impressed with Cunha, noting that he looks like an “incredible signing.” Quite.
United invested heavily in the frontline over the summer and while things didn’t click immediately, they certainly look as though they are now. Mbeumo is in form, Benjamin Sesko has scored twice in his last three outings and Cunha looks just as spritely.
Positives for United? What a shock. Pigs will fly next.