Man Utd mauling fuels Liverpool title charge (ESPN article)

by Dave Usher for ESPN

Disregard the history of this fixture and the massive rivalry between the two sides and this result shouldn't really be seen as much of a surprise. After all, two weeks ago Liverpool won 3-0 at Southampton, who sit just one place below Manchester United in the table, so -- logically at least -- this victory was a likely outcome.

Logic aside though, it was still Manchester United at Old Trafford, so for Kopites the 3-0 result and performance was the stuff dreams are made of; it was just complete and utter dominance in a fixture which usually brings nothing but misery to the Merseysiders.

Interestingly, the last time Liverpool won so easily at Old Trafford they were also in a title race, in the 2008-09 season. The margin of victory that day was three goals, Nemanja Vidic was sent off, Steven Gerrard scored from the penalty spot and then famously kissed a TV camera. Six years on history repeated itself, but if anything this performance was far more dominant. Liverpool were in control of this game from first minute to last; it was men against boys. Or if you like: Bren against Moyes.

Brendan Rodgers' tactical nous left his United counterpart completely in the shade. The gulf in class between the two sides was massive, but when you look at the quality still in the United team that shouldn't really be the case. Yet one side looked organised, confident, well coached, and the other was... well the other was Manchester United; a disjointed, uninspired mess.

Gerrard was imperious, but just as after the victory at Southampton, he was keen to heap accolades on Rodgers: "I think you've got to give credit to the manager," he said. "He keeps switching it, tinkering with the formation and the tactics. We played a diamond today and totally bossed it in the middle of the park."

Rodgers deserves as much credit as any of Liverpool's players for what the Reds have done so far this season and it's little wonder morning reports claimed he was on the radar of Barcelona. Liverpool play beautiful football, they score goals for fun and they're tactically flexible. It's a happy camp with a great team spirit too, which is always a reflection of how the manager runs things. Rodgers has worked a minor miracle to get the Reds where they are so quickly and without spending huge sums of money.

Moyes on the other hand has spent £70 million pounds on a squad that won the title by eleven points last season and he's somehow taken them to seventh place. That takes some doing, and what has happened at Old Trafford is almost beyond the wildest dreams of United's rivals. Worryingly for United fans, Liverpool won this at a canter whilst also missing a penalty and with neither Luis Suarez or Daniel Sturridge at their brilliant best. Don't get me wrong, Liverpool played well and the front two more than played their part in the victory, but they can play much better, as Arsenal, Everton and Spurs will testify. Such is Manchester United's level these days that even a Liverpool side in third gear could swat them aside with relative ease.

Read the full article here.