{"id":646344,"date":"2026-05-04T03:09:07","date_gmt":"2026-05-04T03:09:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/646344\/"},"modified":"2026-05-04T03:09:07","modified_gmt":"2026-05-04T03:09:07","slug":"manchester-united-seal-champions-league-return-as-mainoo-ends-liverpool-comeback-premier-league","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/646344\/","title":{"rendered":"Manchester United seal Champions League return as Mainoo ends Liverpool comeback | Premier League"},"content":{"rendered":"

On 77 minutes up stepped Kobbie Mainoo with the coolest of \u00adwinners in front of the Stretford End to cause bedlam among home fans and wrest the bragging rights Manchester \u00adUnited\u2019s way.<\/p>\n

Alexis Mac\u00a0Allister\u2019s weak clearance rolled to the midfielder who beat Dominik Szoboszlai to punch home a finish that beat Freddie Woodman to the Liverpool<\/a> goalkeeper\u2019s right.<\/p>\n

After ceding a 2-0 half-time lead this ensured a league double over the visitors for a first time in a \u00addecade. Yet as United and Liverpool are not in the title race this meeting of \u00adEngland\u2019s heavyweights was akin to two \u00adfollicly challenged men fighting over a comb.<\/p>\n

Michael Carrick and his team were far happier \u2013 as victory confirmed what was all but a (mathematical) \u00adcertainty: United are back in the Champions League and the interim manager can afford to be baffled if he is not offered the post on a \u00adpermanent\u00a0basis.<\/p>\n

His record is 10 wins, two draws and two defeats from 14 games: 32 from 42 possible points is a stellar return, particularly as the 3-4-3 of Ruben Amorim plus his predecessor\u2019s mercurial persona had sapped morale and confidence when he arrived in\u00a0January.<\/p>\n

After the interval United folded, allowing Arne Slot\u2019s side to respond to Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko strikes with goals from Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo. Each derived from errant United passes, from Amad Diallo for Szoboszlai\u2019s and Senne Lammens for Gakpo\u2019s\u00a0equaliser.<\/p>\n

United were as lively at the start as they had been against Brentford on Monday, launching several raids down the right flank. Following one, Bryan Mbeumo\u2019s corner from the right bounced to Cunha. A first effort came back via Ryan \u00adGravenberch. This time, with his left boot, Cunha\u2019s shot caromed off Mac\u00a0\u00adAllister and beat Woodman to his left and home celebrations began.<\/p>\n

Soon, there were more chances as United\u2019s thrust shredded \u00adLiverpool. Again, from the right, Bruno \u00adFernandes crossed for Sesko who was impeded and did not finish. Down to the turf went the striker, who sprang back up as the attack continued. This time Luke Shaw, from the left, popped the ball over for the ever-threatening Fernandes. He flicked a header back, this was palmed by Woodman on to Sesko who, falling over once more, bundled in United\u2019s second. Slot moaned there was a handball by the scorer but images were inconclusive.<\/p>\n

Two-nil down 14 minutes in was the visitors\u2019 worst nightmare and Liverpool were unable to breach United territory. Slot\u2019s 4-2-2-2 formation \u2013 due to Alexander Isak\u2019s absence \u2013 that positioned Florian Wirtz and Szoboszlai as the (false-ish) 9s was near-toothless.<\/p>\n

Liverpool\u2019s issue was allowing United too much space. \u00adFernandes missed a simple opening \u2013 for him \u2013 from a Mbeumo cross, cannoning the attempt wide, as he and the winger were unmarked.<\/p>\n

Slot\u2019s side were ragged. Szoboszlai, supposedly their totem, and Wirtz misplaced passes, and the pace was too fast for all in white.<\/p>\n

Matheus Cunha gave Manchester United a sixth-minute lead. Photograph: Dave Thompson\/AP<\/p>\n

Slot was reduced to arm-flailing frustration after Jeremie Frimpong, in for the injured Mohamed Salah, was caught offside, the crime more blatant as this was during a soporific buildup rather than quick counter.<\/p>\n

As the news filtered through of Sir Alex Ferguson being taken to hospital <\/a>as a precautionary measure due to feeling unwell, the former manager, who is said to be out of harm\u2019s way, would have been proud of United\u2019s front-foot mode.<\/p>\n

One of Cunha and Sesko should have netted a third as the interval neared. Then, in the period\u2019s added time, Fernandes floated a corner over from the left: it amounted to nothing, unlike the 45 minutes, generally, for United.<\/p>\n

For the second half Diallo replaced Sesko due to a shin problem, the \u00adIvorian hugged by Carrick as he headed on. The decision backfired immediately when the winger spilt the ball to Szoboszlai near the \u00adcentre circle.<\/p>\n

He skated forward, Harry Maguire backed off and kept doing so, the Hungarian slalomed right of \u00adLammens\u2019 goal, then coolly rolled beyond the keeper into the left \u00adcorner, Diogo Dalot perhaps unsighting the Belgian.<\/p>\n

This was superb from Szoboszlai, calamitous from Diallo and \u00adMaguire. So what finer riposte than a fluid home move? It featured Casemiro spiralling the ball in, Fernandes pinging it across from the right, and Mbeumo\u2019s backheel defeating \u00adWoodman only for the right post to save Liverpool.<\/p>\n

Nothing saved Lammens when the usually reliable goalkeeper \u00adproduced a clanger. Aiming for Casemiro he found Mac\u00a0Allister lurking. The Argentinian tapped to Szoboszlai and as the hapless Lammens rushed out Gakpo was found and he made the score 2-2.<\/p>\n

Lammens grimaced, Carrick was dumbfounded, and the visiting supporters partied. Liverpool were \u00adinferior in all but spirit: enough to draw level and stymie United, who now had more of the contest coming at them. Example: Szoboszlai swung in a free-kick, United\u2019s rearguard \u00adslumbered and Lammens stabbed the ball off the line.<\/p>\n

Now, though, came Mainoo\u2019s clincher and United remain headed for a third-place finish.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"On 77 minutes up stepped Kobbie Mainoo with the coolest of \u00adwinners in front of the Stretford End…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":646345,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,561,82],"class_list":["post-646344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-soccer","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=646344"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646344\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/646345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=646344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=646344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=646344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}