Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold has dubbed the 2-1 loss to Manchester United on August 22 a “tough one” in a recent interview with Red Bull.
Manchester United vs Liverpool Was a Must-Win Clash This Season
Trent Alexander-Arnold Has Praised Manchester United’s Performance
United’s form heading into the game made the famous clash all the more tense; a 2-1 loss at home to Brighton and Hove Albion on opening day was bad enough, but the Reds followed with a 4-0 defeat to Brentford – with all four goals conceded in 35 minutes. After suffering a 9-0 aggregate score to Liverpool last season, Erik ten Hag knew his side had to leave everything on the pitch.
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Jurgen Klopp’s side had also fallen victim to a dip in form at the beginning of the 2022/2023 campaign after spending the best part of last season on course to complete a historic ‘quadruple’.
Injuries plagued the Merseyside squad and they began their league season with a 2-2 draw to newly promoted Fulham, before drawing 1-1 to Crystal Palace at Anfield with new signing Darwin Nunez receiving a red card for reckless behaviour on the pitch. The next fixture was a must-win game for both clubs.
Heated Clash Swung in United’s Favour After Impressive Display
Erik ten Hag’s side saw out the win after a late goal from Mohamed Salah made for a cagey final 10 minutes of the game, with the Red Devils putting every man behind the ball to ensure their rivals did not steal an equaliser. Goals from England internationals Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho secured United’s victory on the night in front of the adoring Old Trafford crowd.
The opener 🔥
🔴 @Sanchooo10 #MUFC || #MUNLIV pic.twitter.com/t5ECzffXHa
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) August 22, 2022
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A number of notable changes in the lineup deployed by Ten Hag paid off considerably for the Dutchman. The manager opted to drop club captain Harry Maguire to the bench along with five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo and Luke Shaw, and instead replaced the experienced players with Raphael Varane alongside Lisandro Martinez, Tyrell Malacia at left-back and Anthony Elanga in the attacking role.
Alexander-Arnold Has Since Had His Say on the Match
Alexander-Arnold has since addressed the loss to the Manchester side, saying: “Us lads, we were speaking about it in terms of it could go either way. They’d just come off the back of 4-0, Brentford I think. And it was like, no matter what they have to try and win the game against us.
“It’s either it could end up last year where it’s 5-0 again and they crumble after we get an early goal, or they’ll be able to perform and they’ll do well.”
“In fairness to them, they played well. Yeah, that was just a tough one. We had our chances, we just got hit on counter-attacks and got punished really.”
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United have since gone on to win every league game since their triumphant win against Liverpool. Klopp’s team also followed their loss with a 9-0 thrashing against Bournemouth but were unable to score in the Merseyside derby against a winless Everton.
