Manchester United put their torrid form of recent weeks behind them to secure a fantastic 2-2 draw away to Liverpool. The Premier League leaders may well have been left stunned by how well United played, who defended well and looked deadly in attack, managing to score past them twice.
A tactical tweak from manager Ruben Amorim certainly played a large part in the result. It was something spotted by The Overlap presenter and football analyst H, who explained it on X that Amroim’s tweak from a 5-2-3 to a 5-4-1 out of possession “clogged the space in midfield”, making it hard for Liverpool to play through.
Two fantastic goals from United also helped them to secure a draw at Anfield. First, Lisandro Martinez opened the scoring with a vicious shot past Alisson. The home side pulled level through Cody Gakpo and then took the lead with a penalty from Mohamed Salah.
United had a mountain to climb, given the fact they were 2-1 down and had just 20 minutes to go. However, as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer famously said, “mountains are there to be climbed”, and coincidentally it was a signing made by the Norwegian who earned United a point. Amad Diallo’s goal ensured his side left Anfield with something to show for it.
Indeed, the Ivorian was one of United’s best players at Anfield.
Amad’s stats vs. Liverpool
22-year-old Amad is the man with the Midas touch under Amroim. His hot form under the Portuguese boss continued with another goal at Anfield, taking his tally under the new United manager to three goals and five assists in just 12 games.
His goal was superbly taken, meeting a cross from Alejandro Garnacho after pulling deep away from the Reds defenders. He simply guided the ball into the far corner past Alisson to earn a crucial point for the visitors.
His performance was so much more than that goal, and the Ivorain worked so hard off the ball, too. That was noted by the Manchester Evening News journalist Samuel Luckhurst. He gave Amad a 7/10 for his efforts, explaining he “diligently ran back” throughout the game.
Indeed, the 22-year-old’s performance was clear to see in his stats from the game, courtesy of Sofascore. Amad had 42 touches of the ball and completed 93% of his passes and three from three dribbles. As Luckhurst mentioned, his out-of-possession work was tidy, as he won three from five ground duels.
There would no doubt be countless people to see Amad’s second-half strike nestle into the Liverpool net, although perhaps none more than Matthijs de Ligt.
De Ligt’s stats vs. Liverpool
It was by no means a terrible performance from De Ligt at Anfield. Like his fellow defenders Martinez and Harry Maguire, he defended diligently and was not afraid to get stuck in. However, he could have done better for both goals.
For Gakpo’s strike, the defender rashly slid in, completely missing both the Dutch attacker and the ball, as his international teammate made it 1-1. De Ligt was also the man who gave away the penalty, with the ball bouncing off his outstretched arm.
As the stats from De Ligt’s performance show, it was a bit of a mixed bag from the United number four. He had 37 touches and completed 83% of his passes, winning four from seven duels. However, the defender won just 33% of his tackles and gave away a penalty.
Touches
37
Passes accuracy
83%
Passes completed
25/30
Tackles won
1/3
Duels won
4/7
Penalties conceded
1
This was certainly a sentiment echoed by GOAL’s Richard Martin, who gave De Ligt a 4/10 for his efforts at a snowy Anfield. He explained that although the Dutchman was “unlucky”, he was “also responsible for both goals conceded” having been “skinned by Gakpo” for the first Liverpool goal.
De Ligt may well have been relieved to see Amad score to make it 2-2, but now his place in the side could well be under threat. Leny Yoro’s contribution off the bench was fantastic, as he made a superb last-gasp tackle to deny Darwin Nunez a golden chance.
There is no doubting the talent of the 19-year-old, and De Ligt might well be in the firing line for United’s next game against Arsenal in the FA Cup. At the very least, it would certainly be hard to argue if Amroim decided to bring Yoro into the side for the Dutchman.
Better than Maguire & Amad: Man Utd star was "utterly insane" vs Liverpool
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1 ByJoe NuttallJan 5, 2025
