Football Features

    Man Utd 1-1 Liverpool: Full player ratings as Lallana rains on Rashford’s parade

    By John Smith

    Published: 18:34, 20 October 2019

    Liverpool’s perfect start to the Premier League season was ended as they drew 1-1 with Manchester United on Sunday.

    Jurgen Klopp’s side found themselves 1-0 down after Marcus Rashford fired home from a Daniel James cross, although the German was incensed by a VAR decision which failed to bring back play for a supposed foul on Divock Origi by Victor Lindelof.

    VAR poured more misery on Liverpool shortly after as Sadio Mane’s goal was rightly ruled out for handball, although the Reds finally found an equaliser five minutes from time when Adam Lallana stole in at the far post to fire home an Andy Robertson cross.

    Here’s how the players rated at Old Trafford:

    Manchester United

    David De Gea – 7 – Made a couple of routine saves but wasn’t truly tested by an unusually blunt Liverpool.

    Victor Lindelof – 5 – You could argue that the Origi ‘foul’ was very soft for the first VAR call but Lindelof was absolutely bailed out for the second one with Mane unfortunate to see the ball hit his hand before firing beyond De Gea. The Swede has to be stronger than that in his own box.

    Harry Maguire – 6 – Was as assured as ever on the ball and made some important clearances to get Man United up the pitch.

    Marcos Rojo – 6 – Was a last-minute addition to the starting line-up due to Axel Tuanzebe’s injury but performed well for the most part, until he left the back post wide open for Lallana’s late equaliser. Neither he or Ashley Young took responsibility.

    Aaron Wan-Bissaka – 6 – Another solid defensive performance from Wan-Bissaka, who made three tackles, two interceptions and two clearances. Did a good job on pinning back Robertson but allowed the Scotland international far too much space to deliver his cross for the equaliser.

    Scott McTominay – 6 – Another solid performance in a big game from McTominay, who covered his defence well and tried to drive Man United forward in possession.

    Fred – 6 – His first touch still leaves a lot to be desired and he got caught in possession a couple of times. Made up for it with an excellent screening role in midfield.

    Ashley Young – 7 – Pushed high on Trent Alexander-Arnold and kept his much younger full-back counterpart in his back pocket for most of the game. Should have communicated far better with Rojo for Lallana’s goal.

    Andreas Pereira – 5 – Always tried to create but lacked quality and confidence with his final ball. Was dispossessed more times (6) than any other player on the pitch.

    Marcus Rashford – 8 – That goal for England seems to have breathed confidence into Rashford, as does having the freedom to drift out wide. Whether he was going up against Joel Matip or Virgil van Dijk, he caused problems all afternoon, driving at the Liverpool defence and getting shots on goal. Great movement for his goal.

    Daniel James – 8 – Delivered a fantastic cross for the Rashford goal and caused Liverpool all sorts of trouble on the break with his pace and directness. Took a battering from Van Dijk and Matip but kept on going.

    Substitutes:

    Anthony Martial (for Rashford 83) – 6 – Replaced Rashford late on but didn’t get into the game.

    Brandon Williams (for Pereira 94) – N/A – Replaced Pereira in stoppage time.

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    Liverpool

    Alisson – 6 – Little he could do about Rashford’s goal, carried out his other tasks well enough.

    Trent Alexander-Arnold – 5 – Was cancelled out by Young for long stretches and completed just 73 per cent of his passes.

    Joel Matip – 5 – Had a really tough time trying to handle Rashford, being outpaced and turned inside out on a number of occasions.

    Virgil van Dijk – 6 – Like Matip, was given a stern test by Rashford but handled it a little better than his centre-back counterpart. Only really beaten in one duel by the England international.

    Andy Robertson – 6 – Provided the cross for Liverpool’s equaliser in one of the few moments he was able to get forward. Solid defensively.

    Jordan Henderson – 5 – Sloppy in possession and unable to exert any creative influence over the game. Hauled off in the final quarter of the match as Klopp searched for some more chemistry further forward.

    Fabinho – 5 – Wasn’t quite at the races on Sunday, struggling to break up play in the fashion he has so often be able to this season. Booked for a cynical foul on James in the second half.

    Georginio Wijnaldum – 7 – Was the stand-out player in Liverpool’s midfield for most of the match, looking far more creative than his counterparts during the first half. Can count himself as unlucky to be brought off.

    Sadio Mane – 7 – Was the most threatening of Liverpool’s front three, creating and getting into scoring positions himself. Unfortunate to have his goal ruled out in the first half after the ball hit his hand.

    Roberto Firmino – 5 – It was a swing and a miss today for Firmino, who fluffed a number of decent chances and lacked his usual composure in front of goal. Managed to redeem himself by helping on Robertson’s cross for the equaliser.

    Divock Origi – 4 – Went down theatrically under Lindelof’s challenge with Man United going down the other end to score. Was almost anonymous going forward. Subbed just before the hour mark.

    Substitutes:

    Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (for Origi 59) – 7 – Looked lively when he came on and put Liverpool back on the front foot.

    Adam Lallana (for Henderson 71) – 8 – A brilliant cameo performance, grabbing the late equaliser and probing right across Liverpool’s front line. Changed the game.

    Naby Keita (for Wijnaldum 82) – 6 – Was involved in the build-up to Liverpool’s equaliser and Klopp will be pleased to give him some more minutes on the pitch.

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