SHOW them. Show them. Show them the way to go home. They’re tired and they want to go to bed. Cos they’re only half a football team compared to the boys in Red. Oh! Show them…
Not quite as straightforward as that. On 42 minutes, Ben Johnson tells me that he would hook Philippe Coutinho. On 45 minutes, Mike Girling tells me he owes us as he picks the ball up and wins the tie.
This is what mercurial footballers do. It is in the job description. They get to do your head in. They get to do that to you. Because they go on and give you this.
This is standing the full back up. This is waltzing around him. This is looking at a great goalkeeper being too clever and clipping the ball into the enormous space he leaves because he is sure he knows you better than you know yourself.
He doesn’t. He can’t. Because you aren’t predictably great. You are mercurial. Soz abar that.
So stitch that going into half time. Stitch that. You gave us everything you had. You had chances, we had chances. You were perhaps a little bit better. But it is 1-1. Stitch that and come back better.
- Read – Manchester United 1 Liverpool 1: Player ratings
- Read – Manchester United 1 Liverpool 1: Five from Fitzgerald
- Listen – Manchester United 1 Liverpool 1: Immediate post-match reaction
They couldn’t. They just couldn’t. United wanted to go toe to toe with Jürgen’s Klopp’s mighty boys in Red just that smidgeon too late. They came off emphatically second best.
Both of Liverpool’s central defenders were excellent. The centre midfielders good enough out of possession to allow flaws in possession. By the hour mark the game belonged to one of England’s two great clubs. By the hour mark the 180 minutes belonged to the Reds of Liverpool.
When you were lying awake last night this was the last 20 you wanted. The travelling Reds lording it. The travelling Reds calling it. Only half a football team. Compared to. The boys in. Red.
To call Manchester United abject ignores their first half and lessens Liverpool’s 180-minute achievement. Privately, if you spoke to any of those United players they would tell you they’ve been bettered. They’d tell you it wasn’t their fault. Bar the goalkeeper across the pitch they find themselves half a yard short of what is required to be Manchester United.
Teenagers can lash bedsheets on motorway bridges. They don’t represent Manchester United. Manchester United are the second club of England. They will always deserve respect. They are good lads, their city is a good city, a great city, a world city.
Liverpool are the first club. And Liverpool need to know that and need to walk that walk. This is only step one. We are the first club. Everyone knows it bar United. That’s why they will always be worthy of your respect. Forget bedsheets and chants. They will come again. They always will. What would be the point of them otherwise? Yin needs yang.
No matter for tonight, they have been vanquished and, for 45 minutes, with a minimum of fuss. Liverpool normally find drama. Football normally finds drama. There was none.
Everyone did their job. Just did their job. Functioned.
There was no drama. There was the mighty boys in Red. There was half a football team.
There was the Reds.
Just show *them* the way to go home.
We won’t be going home. We’re not tired. We’ll go and have a disco.
Up the Reds you compare yourself to.
What a set of lads they are.
Up the last eight Reds.
excellent, as always, Neil. A bit of philosopher mode yeah?
so proud of the boys tonight. really pleased that we, under Klopp’s leadership, did not play dirty timewasting game like Mourinho’s team in similar position would definitely have.
Our overall play was a few notches above theirs. And we deserve to win, by a long mile. Let this be the ‘knocking MU off the ****’ moment in history, I hope.
We don’t need to compare ourselves to Mourinho – we have never followed that philosophy and it’s why the Mancs haven’t got him as manager there. He may well end up there but it will only be because no one else is available.
Tonight showed we are on the right track – an astute manager- a team beginning to take his beliefs on board – and having a player capable of the sublime even when he is not playing at his best – YNWA
a few months back we all wanted the whole team replaced. now we could see that maybe just a few upgrades to be brought in to further improve Klopp’s team.
‘They will always deserve respect. They are good lads, their city is a good city, a great city, a world city.’
You’re a very generous man Neil, but, nah. Tony Wilson was great, but its not a world city.
Manchester a alright as a city,Wilson was a tit.
Wilson rocked: Joy Division, New Order, the Hacienda, the Mondays and you think he’s a tit? Wow. We’d have killed for a Scouse equivalent in the 70s and 80s. He triggered the Manc Renaissance.
Atkinson obviously has Manchester media pals he is terrified of causing offence to. Luckily we haven’t. Low life death mockers with wank stained bed sheets is exactly what Manchester is. It is Manchester.Manchester it is
Then does that make all Liverpool fans “low-life death mockers” because some choose to chant Munich?
“Atkinson” is right mate – you aren’t.
Ben and Mike were right about Coutinho btw: he’d had a shocker before the goal. Can and Sakho were immense. Lovren reliable.
Great writing. I like the respect for our opponents from the city 40 miles to the East – although some residents, by all accounts, didnt exactly welcome folk from the West with open arms! What a defining victory though for the mighty reds!
Brilliant goal. Reminded me a bit of Torres on debut v Chelsea. We always looked in control, over the 2 legs. Not sure we have enough yet, to beat Dortmund and win the trophy, but things are looking drastically better than 6 weeks ago. If Sturridge can immediately find some form, then we might even scrape top-4.
There’s a pile of shit, both above us and below us, in the Premier League.
Dortmund? We are going to knock them dead. We have Klopp. They don’t
Anthony *H* Wilson was a good man but he was NOT from Manchester, He was from Salford… another City!
It is the same with nearly ALL of the *manchester bands* they are actually from all points west, east, north and south but NOT from manchester.
Can you imagine us being so desperate as to pass-off Wools as Scousers.
Feel better now, Up The Reds :)
Of course it’s a world city. Only London and New York surpass it, in terms of cultural output in the modern era. How did we get on to this, anyway?
I knew it.
:-)
If you’re completely parochial and anglocentric, perhaps. I think Paris, Berlin, Barcelona et al may have something to say about that.
The whole world is anglocentric Paul. That’s why you’re here. ;-)
Our time will eventually pass, just like it did for the Ottomans.
Lady, have you ever travelled outside England? :;) to think Manchester as 3rd on the list behind NY and London?
It isn’t. I’m from Liverpool. Like so many, you fail to distinguish between high street culture, popular culture, aesthetics, history and values. World cities are destinations, celebrated for their culture, their cuisine, their architecture, their artists, their histories, their contributions to the world.
Then there’s Manchester whose most famous son opined: ‘the rain falls down on a humdrum town, this town will drag you down’ and whose most famous artist is Lowry.
well said, mate..even the Dooleys were from Essex yet they still get a mention in ‘Manchester’s’ greatest bands selection. So very desperate!
Bit disappointed we didn’t win or maybe disappointed the anfield dominance wasn’t converted to deserved goals. Either way 3-1 on aggregate feels like they got off lightly.
I know he was sick and I’ve generally been a big fan of his but Henderson is a bit of a shithouse infront of goal if I’m being brutally honest. Tonight. Last week. The other week in the league against them. Just get your head over it and pass it in, mate. Or failing that atleast hurt Fellaini over the 180 minutes like Gerrard or Carragher would have done.
And fuck the yin and yang nonsense. In an ideal world I’d have them be going the way of Rangers. Soz to all the sound mancs but a lot of their support are a disgrace to life.
you greedy bas*&;:@ :)
I’d take 3-1 all day long. but yes we could have won 7-0 or 9-0 based on.our missed chances
” Teenagers can lash bedsheets on motorway bridges.”
So true. So good to disparage them
so loftily . And then that goal. That angle. So acute. So beautiful. So perfect into the Stretford End. Into their throats. Into the ones who cried “murderers “. Not all. But enough. Oh God! How bright the future !
Description of the goal well and truly nailed Billy,
Into their throats indeed,
Brilliant.
‘into their throats’ – Nailed it there. What a beautiful goal !
@Neil: ‘they are good lads, their city is a good city, a great city, a world city’
There is no doubt Manchester is a great city and has contributed much to the arts, sport, science, industry, labour movements etc.
‘they are good lads’ — mmm. some are, some aren’t – just like us.
But Scousers and Mancs are like chalk and cheese. That’s just the way it is. Different cultures and outlooks. Theirs forged on the ‘anvil of industry’ and ‘clocking on’ . Ours forged by the sea and trade and whatever ‘fell off’ the back of lorries on the way to the docks.
They have their ways, we have ours. Personally, I just never really got their ways in the same way that i get Geordie ways , Glaswegian ways , Irish ways , East End cockney or saawf londoners ways . The spirit is different. So close but yet so far.
love it Neil, love it! we outclassed them over 2 legs, the look on Van Gaals face said it all…we knew it, he knew it!!! on reflection what pleased me most was that we finally look a good side! and even more pleasing is that there is much room for improvement, if Sturridge can rediscover his swagger and we avoid injuries until the end of the season (wrap the little magician in cotton wool) then believe…believe lads!!! anything is possible!! up the mighty reds!!!
It was very nice of Fergie to take his perch with him into retirement.
Don’t know why we’re still losing our heads over United: it’s over, still they cling, they don’t know what else they can do, over, over, over, over, over, over….
@josh k – I’ve been around the world a few times. The food was better. The bands were pretty crap.
You can probably teach a bad cook and make them better though.
cheers, Lady. Depending on what type.of music though…blues? new orlenes. Jezz? Chicago. Chinese opera, China…:)
Maybe set up Culinary Institute there, and the city might bypass NY and London.
I can’t remember the last goal we scored that had such a crushing effect on an entire stadium. They all really believed it was on and Coutinho just tore the heart out of the tie. It was beautiful. We were comfortable from that point onwards and could conceivably have put up a 7-1 aggregate scoreline.
Sakho gave one of the best centre-back performances for Liverpool I can remember. He was simply always there. Sick of the mainstream media describing his technique as ‘awkward’.
Neil, I look for your piece after every game; always a great read and inspires more over-the-top, poetic or profound reader responses than anything else available anywhere in the broadsheets. Good on ya.