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Jamie Jackson
On 75 minutes up stepped Kobbie Mainoo with the coolest of winners before the Stretford End to cause bedlam among home fans and wrest the bragging rights Manchester United’s way.
After a raid down the left Alexis Mac Allister’s weak clearance rolled to the midfielder who beat Dominik Szoboszlai to punch home a finish that bested Freddie Woodman to the Liverpool goalkeeper’s right.
After ceding a 2-0 half-time lead this ensured a league double over the visitors for a first time in a decade. Yet zoom out, and as United and Liverpool are not in the title race this meeting of England’s heavyweights was akin to two follicly-challenged men fighting over a comb.
ShareKobbie Mainoo’s reaction
double quotation markTo turn [the season] round the way we have is credit to all the players and the manager. We want to just keep winning, winning, winning.
[On the first half of the season] It’s difficult any time you’re not playing football. I tried to keep my head down, work hard and look forward as much as possible.
[On Michael Carrick] He gives so much confidence to not just me but all the players. You wanna follow him, you wanna fight for him, you wanna die for him on the pitch. I feel like we showed that today.
I’m so blessed to be in this position. I used to dream about days like this. I’m glad to be here and my future’s at this club.
Michael Carrick has beaten Manchester City, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool since taking over in January. That’s some achievement, even if the last two wins were less than convincing.
Updated at 12.31 EDT
Full time: Man Utd 3-2 Liverpool
Manchester United are back in the Champions League after completing their first league double over Liverpool in a game. A wild game, shambolic at times, was settled by a serene touch of class from Kobbie Mainoo.
Updated at 12.30 EDT
90+6 min Dalot misses a great chance, slicing wide after a four-on-three break. No matter…
90+5 min: Man Utd substitution Leny Yoro replaces Bruno Fernandes.
90+5 min Szoboszlai’s free-kick is headed away by Casemiro at the far post.
90+4 min Dorgu fouls Jones just inside the United half, which gives Liverpool the chance to send everyone forward.
90+2 min Fernandes is up now. At the other end, Kerkez’s attempted cutback deflects into the arms of Lammens.
90+1 min Zirkzee knocks the ball down for Fernandes, who slices well wide under pressure. He has stayed down holding his ankle.
90+1 min Kerkez concedes a needless foul on Amad, which gives United the chance to waste 30 seconds.
90+1 min There will be five minutes of added time.
90 min Casemiro finds Dorgu in space with a good square pass. Dorgu moves to within 20 yards of goal and then cracks a shot well wide of the far post.
87 min: Liverpool substitution Federico Chiesa for Ibrahima Konate, and why not.
87 min: Man Utd substitution Joshua Zirkzeee replaces Matheus Cunha, whose early goal feels a lifetime ago.
86 min If it stays like this – a Brobdingnagian if, even with only a few minutes to play – United will confirm Champions League qualification.
85 min Gakpo is booked for a foul on Casemiro.
84 min Fernandes is furious after being accidentally flattened by the referee when he was trying to get across to challenge a Liverpool player. Imagine if this leads to a goal!
It doesn’t: Gakpo’s tame shot from distance is comfortable for Lammens.
Updated at 12.15 EDT
82 min Ngumoha smashes a shot a few yards wide from the edge of the area. This has been a wild second half – richly entertaining, but also indicative of why these two aren’t challenging for the title.
Updated at 12.14 EDT
80 min Cunha slips Szoboszlai near the halfway line and suddenly United have a four-on-two break. Cunha eventually finds Dorgu to his left, but the pass is slightly underhit and Dorgu falls over as he tries to stumble past Jones.
Fernandes is then booked for a poor tackle on Szoboszlai.
Mainoo scored a beauty against Liverpool in his breakthrough season two years ago. This isn’t quite in the same class but it was still a lovely finish. Shaw’s cross was headed back across goal by Amad and sliced towards the edge of the D by Mac Allister. Mainoo got to the bouncing ball a split second before Szoboszlai and sidefooted a beautifully controlled finish into the corner. His anticipation and technique were immaculate.
Updated at 12.17 EDT
GOAL! Man Utd 3-2 Liverpool (Mainoo 77)
Kobbie Mainoo restores United’s lead with a fine goal!
Kobbie Mainoo scores for United! Photograph: Michael Regan/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 12.11 EDT
76 min: Man Utd substiution Patrick Dorgu, who has been out since January, comes on for Bryan Mbeumo.
75 min: Liverpool substitution Rio Ngumoha replaces Jeremie Frimpong, who played an important part in Liverpool’s comeback.
75 min Jones is booked for a tactical foul on Cunha.
Share72 min: Great chance for Casemiro!
Oof, what a chance. Fernandes took a free-kick on the right and put it straight on the head of Casemiro, unmarked 10 yards out. He’s usually such a good finisher with his head but on this occasion he planted it straight at Woodman.
71 min The last time Man Utd lost a league game at home after leading by one goal at half-time, never mind two, was against Ipswich in 1983-84.
68 min: Vital save by Lammens! Szoboszlai’s wicked free-kick from the right bounces across the six-yard box, ricochets towards goal (possibly off Konate) and is kicked away desperately by Lammens.
Liverpool look the likelier winners, something that would have been unthinkable at half-time.
66 min Including today’s game, there have been 55 goals in the last 13 games between United and Liverpool. In the 13 matches before that, there were 22.
64 min United almost cut Liverpool open with a simple long ball. Kerkez has to come across a long way to make an important tackle on Mbeumo.
62 min Now it’s Liverpool who are shredding Man Utd on the break. Frimpong drives a very deep cross to Kerkez, who touches it back to Gakpo on the edge of the area. His shot deflects over the bar.
Jeremie Frimpong is causing all sorts of problems on the right for Liverpool. Photograph: Darren Staples/AFP/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 12.00 EDT
61 min United restore some order with a calmer spell of possession. They must wonder what the hell is going on after such a dominant first half.
59 min: Liverpool substitution Milos Kerkez for Andy Robertson.
58 min Maguire’s crossfield pass is controlled majestically by Fernandes on the left. He hammers an almost angry cross that is clipped over the bar by Mbeumo on the edge of the area.
Football, bloody etc. Liverpool, so wretched in the first half, are now sniffing an extraordinary victory. Heaven touched a goal-kick to Lammens, who tried to play a straight pass to Casemiro in the D. It was a poor idea, badly executed: Mac Allister intercepted it and found Szoboszlai, who calmly squared the ball to give Gakpo an open goal.