Well that was an unexpected bonus. I expected us to get nothing from this game but this was a big boy performance. Full of quality character and - for once - goals.
It started horribly, which was exactly what I expected. With all the crap in the build up, talk of the team coach being held up and tyres let down (turns out it was a decoy coach and the real one entered the stadium with no problems!), I just had visions of falling behind inside the first ten minutes and never recovering from it. So what we saw early on was entirely what I was fearing.
We’d started quite brightly with the ball but United were finding too much space when they had it. Still, I was thinking we were doing well until Alisson’s latest brain fart. I’m getting so fucking sick of him just passing the ball to the opposition when he’s under no pressure. It’s needless and it’s something he should be able to easily cut out, yet he’s doing it all the fucking time.
He got away with it big time in the last game and he got away with again here because Cavani didn’t hit the target after Alisson passed it straight to him in the middle of the goal. There’s just no need. It isn’t about ability, it’s entirely about being sloppy as fuck. Just concentrate for fucks sake, because we can’t afford any mistakes like that right now.
Anyway, we got away with it but it seemed to unsettle us and gave United encouragement. We were ragged without the ball, which Klopp later explained was due to United’s tactics of doubling up in wide areas and outnumbering us. He said once we solved that we were fine. Can’t argue with that, because after that opening 15-20 minutes we were by far the better side and dominated most of the game.
Unfortunately by the time we solved the problem we were already a goal down. It was an own goal by Phillips but mercifully for him it goes down as a Fernandez goal. To be honest, I’d rather it was credited to Nat, if only to take a goal away from that rat faced, screaming little fucking worm.
Nat said he initially thought the shot was going wide and was going to leave it. Then he saw it curling and knew he had to try to clear it. He reacted too late and smashed it past Alisson. One of those things really. I think it would have hit the post but Phillips can’t know that and had to try and stop it. The bigger problem there was Gini losing Wan Bissaka and how easily Fernandez found space in the box. Fabinho got attracted to the ball.
For the next ten minutes or so it looked like we were going to get hammered, but slowly but surely we began to get control. Gini and Thiago were instrumental in that I thought, while Trent’s passing was just incredible all night and was the catalyst for us getting on top.
Having turned down what looked a clear penalty when Bailly blocked Firmino’s cross with his hand, Anthony Taylor then awarded us a penalty for what I initially thought was nothing. Then I saw the replay and I was sure it was nothing. Honestly, I’m staggered there are people who think that was a penalty. He got the ball, his follow through wasn’t dangerous or out of control and then Nat comes in and gets caught by him.
There’s an argument to be had that had it been at the other end a penalty would have been awarded. I’m not going to dispute that as Taylor and Tierney have too much previous. But I knew it wasn’t going to stand and I wasn’t even particularly annoyed about it. I was more annoyed about the handball earlier that was completely ignored.
The more I see that the worse it gets. Initially I was disappointed in Bobby looking to square it rather than shoot, but when you see it again that cut back is perfect and Jota has an open goal if that ball reaches him. It doesn’t reach him because Bailly doesn’t cut it out with his lunge but the ball hits his hand. Not deliberate, but that’s a fucking penalty all day. Not on Paul Tierney’s VAR watch though.
Anyway, I did fear that this overturned penalty was just going to be another one of those things we’d be left to feel sorry for ourselves about after more points were dropped. The whole season has been like that, but this time the lads seemed galvanised by it rather than deflated and the response was great.
We levelled when Phillips picked up a loose ball in the box and showed nice footwork and good intelligence to blast it back into the danger area where Jota flicked it home. No more than we’d deserved and we were looking really dangerous any time we went forward.
The goal that gave us the lead started with Phillips making two consecutive blocks in his own area. The first to deny Pogba, the second to stop Fernandez, who went down with a loud scream after not actually being touched by Thiago. He stayed down too, wanting the game to be stopped. We didn’t stop the game, play went on, we reached the edge of their box and Pogba took matters into his own hands and had a swing at Jota. He did it just to stop the game, but it just shows what thick cunt he is because he must have been the only person inside Old Trafford or watching on telly that didn’t know Fernandez was faking it.
Trent whipped in the free-kick and Firmino met it with a thumping header on the back post. You can hear a loud “BOBBBBBYYYYYYY!!!” as it goes in. Pretty sure it was Robbo.
So a great turnaround and a half time lead. It got better too. We started the second half brilliantly and United looked all over the place. It was complete dominance. United kept giving the ball away under our intense press and when Shaw was caught out Trent found himself in shooting position. He blasted it goal wards, Henderson spilled it and Bobby was on hand to make it 3-1. Fucking hell, dreamland.
For a while after that it looked like we would run riot but we just couldn’t finish them off. Jota hit the post with the best chance after a lovely sweeping counter attack and I felt like that was a turning point. That needed to go in to make it safe, because you just knew they’d have a spell and they have so many dangerous forwards that it was inevitable they’d score at least one more.
And they did. Rashford broke clear through the middle and linked past Alisson to completely change the momentum of the game and ensure a nervous finale for us. We were wobbling in that period and had an incredible let off when Phillips cleared off the line and then Williams made a great block on the follow up effort to get the ball behind for a corner. That was the most decisive moment of the entire game for me.
Nat modestly said afterwards that he was just making up for his own mistake as he’d tried to cushion a header to Fabinho instead of just clearing it. I fucking love him, such a modest, unassuming lad who has stepped up to the plate for us when we desperately needed him. I haven’t rooted for anybody this much since Neil Mellor came through, and that was different because I knew him personally. I have no connection with Nat Phillips but I just fucking love him. What a hero.
After that we dealt with whatever they threw at us and United seemed to be getting more and more frantic. It was no great surprise when substitute Jones played a first time ball to send Mo scampering clear with no defenders around him. I knew he was going to score because it just felt like that breakaway he had last season at Anfield against them. He was never going to miss, especially when the keeper inexplicably just went backwards and stood virtually on his line, giving Mo the entire far side of the goal to aim at.
That one incident alone would be enough for me to restore De Gea and cash in on Henderson if I was Solksjaer. That wasn’t a mistake, that was just a sign of a keeper who can’t be very good because that was genuinely staggering to me. Still, that’s their problem, not ours.
Mo’s celebration represented how all of us were feeling. Curtis was first to dive on him, and then Rhys Williams arrived on the scene. I love that. He was furthest away from him but obviously must have sprinted the length of the field to get there. What a night for that kid. He’s another who has performed way above any expectations we could have realistically had of him.
Sadio throwing a strop at the end and refusing the Klopp fist bump pissed me right off though. Firstly, he himself said this week that he’s been shite this season. Secondly, the three lads picked ahead of him all scored. What fucking justification can he have for being pissed off with Klopp?
I love Sadio but that’s not a good look. Bobby and Mo have been left out or subbed and there will be times they won’t have agreed with it, but I haven’t seen any toys coming out of prams like that. He’s prone to the odd wobbler though as he’s an emotional lad. Generally though he's the nicest, most popular lad at the club and everybody (other than maybe Mo!) loves him.
This isn't even a storm in a teacup and I doubt Klopp is remotely arsed about it. In fact he probably feels like he was partly to blame for it based on his explanation of it all.
It seems that Sadio was pissed off at the way the decision was made (and not explained) rather than just having the hump that he was overlooked. Doesn’t excuse his act of petulance but it does perhaps explain it.
He might need to get used to the bench for a while though as how can you drop any of the front three after that? Maybe there’s a case for rotating to introduce fresh legs, but that’s the only reason you’d bring Sadio back in currently. There was on other Sadio related incident that needs mentioning, as it was pretty staggering.
Taylor had just booked McTominay for a foul and seconds later he slipped and rugby tackled Mané as he ran into the box. I could have forgiven Taylor if he’d blown for the free-kick but not produced a second yellow based on the fact McTominay had fallen over and perhaps didn’t intend to foul Sadio, but to not even give the free-kick was either cowardice or cheating. I’d lean towards the former because overall I didn’t think he was that bad, but that one was incredible.
It’s utterly mental that despite the amount of times we’ve blown it this season that somehow our fate is still in our own hands. We knew before this that winning our last four games would almost certainly get us a Champions League spot. The biggest roadblock to that was this game but we’ve come through that one.
We can’t go and win at Old Trafford only to fuck it up against already relegated West Brom, surely? It’s been the kind of season where nothing can be ruled out, but let’s hope we can win our last three and salvage something from this absolutely fucking miserable campaign.
Star man is Trent by an absolute mile. That shows just how great he was because we had a lot of other top performers out there too. Just no-one even close to him. Everyone played well and it was a great team performance. I want to single out a few of them though, for differing reasons.
Firstly, Firmino. He’s been shite this season but he’s never let his head go down and he’s never complained or shown any dissent when he’s been left out. It was nice to see something go his way for once. The goals were obviously the main thing, but he generally looked more like his old self with his pressing and general involvement in the game.
I also want to highlight Thiago, who is someone else that has had plenty of criticism this season. He was fucking brilliant I thought. He covered so much ground and never wasted a pass all night. He’s starting to find his groove now and seems to be getting better every week. Having Fabinho in there has definitely helped him.
Finally, the two lads at the back. Williams had a fairly quiet game, which is a good thing as if you aren’t noticing him it means he isn’t getting exposed or making mistakes. The one thing about him that has really impressed all season is that he never looks like he’s scared. Even when he’s been caught out or made mistakes, it doesn’t seem to knock his confidence. He’s got a great attitude.
But when it comes to attitude nobody tops Big Nat. He’s nowhere near the level of most of his world class team-mates yet somehow he’s made himself one of our most important players right now. Look at our record when he’s played compared to when he hasn’t. He’s performing way above how he should be and it’s almost like he’s doing it through sheet force of will.
He put through his own net, at Old Trafford, and just shrugged it off to go on and produce a high quality performance. He set up the equaliser, cleared one off his own line and generally just put his body on the line and won his headers and defended like his life depended on it.
If we do qualify for the Champions League he may not even get to play in it, but he’ll be one of the main reasons we are in it as he’s been as influential as anybody in possibly saving our season.
There’s still three cup finals left before we’re at that point though. Don’t fuck it up now lads.
Team: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Phillips, R Williams, Robertson; Fabinho, Wijnaldum (Jones), Thiago; Salah (N Williams), Firmino, Jota (Mané):
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