Manchester United produced their best performance tonight to defeat Liverpool 2-1 and give manager Erik ten Hag his first Premier League victory at Old Trafford.
Ten Hag dropped captain Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw and Cristiano Ronaldo and he got rewarded with a display that erased the gloom at Old Trafford which followed the defeats to Brighton and Brentford.
Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford struck for United, while Mohamed Salah scored a late goal for Liverpool to ensure a nervy end to the game.
United were on the front foot from the start and they appeared to be up for the fight after rudderless outings at home to Brighton and away to Brentford.
They almost took the lead early on but Anthony Elanga, who was in the starting line-up in place of Ronaldo, hit the base of the upright with Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson beaten.
Moments after that miss, Sancho showed admirable composure to deservedly put United in front in the 16th minute.
The England forward sat James Milner and Alisson down in the Liverpool box before passing the ball into the net.
Rashford made it 2-0 eight minutes into the second half, racing clear to beat Alisson from substitute Anthony Martial’s clever pass as Liverpool left huge gaps in behind.
Salah then set up a tense finish when he scrambled in a header with nine minutes left on the clock after United failed to properly clear a corner kick.
United’s new £60m signing Casemiro was paraded in front of the Old Trafford crowd just before kick-off after his deal was completed and confirmed on the club’s website.
Manchester United became the first team to beat Liverpool in the Premier League in 2022, ending their 21-game unbeaten run.
