Ahead of Liverpool’s trip to Old Trafford this weekend, it is difficult to argue the case for any Manchester United player to be in a combined 11. The opposite was true ahead of many games between these giants less than a decade ago.
Ten seasons ago Liverpool finished in 7th, looking so far behind their traditional competitors that it cost their manager his job. Manchester United looked impressive throughout the season before losing out on the league by one point.
The swap in positions in recent years is astonishing.
United’s catastrophic management has led to the club becoming the opposite of what they used to be. They are finishing the decade with a similar squad to Liverpool’s earlier in the decade. Full of expensive misfits and lacking in quality.
The opposite can be said for Liverpool, who have developed throughout the decade to become a shining example of how to manage a club and look set to finish this period as the strongest team in the country.
They are winning without having to play well and scoring late winners while watching their bitter rivals capitulate. Liverpool could be 18 points and 16 places in the table ahead of United nine games into the season if they beat them this weekend.
How did this happen?
Although United remained far ahead of Liverpool with Alex Ferguson in the early years of the 2010s, as they had been in the 2000s and 1990s, the players that were keeping them at that level were ageing. Little effort was made to set up a bright end to the decade.
Liverpool present a different challenge to Ole Gunnar Solskjær as a manager than they did to him as a playerLiverpool made some inspired decisions, signing young players such as Luis Suarez and Phillipe Coutinho, who would go on to bring the club to a higher level and ultimately earn the club huge money to reinvest.
Different players had big effects on each club, however, the managerial changes were the real key factors for both clubs over the last few years.
United lost arguably the greatest manager in the history of football, to be replaced by a manager who was sacked within 10 months and later struggled at Real Sociedad and Sunderland.
The owners reacted to this with two short-term plans which they felt would guarantee success in the near future. Louis Van Gaal and Jose Mourinho were unable to rebuild from the ruins they inherited.
Despite these failures, the club has still not employed a director of football.
Liverpool departed with Roy Hodgson to bring in Brendan Rodgers, who laid important building blocks by changing the team’s style of play, developing youth prospects such as Raheem Sterling and signing key players.
When he left, Jurgen Klopp came in to bring the team to a new level.
Downward Curve
The management decisions and recruitment policy from both clubs’ boards have left United on a downward curve, and Liverpool on the way back to their perch.
Liverpool have incredible quality all over the pitch, with their midfield being the only obvious part of the squad that could be improved, just as United had a decade ago. United have a complete mess, just as Liverpool did a decade ago.
Many expect Liverpool to showcase their superiority at Old Trafford this coming weekend, but history points to this game being well-contested despite the difference in quality.
When Ferguson’s United were well ahead of Liverpool, playing at Anfield was always a considerable challenge
Even without Paul Pogba and David De Gea, this is still one of the most difficult fixtures in the Premier Lague season for Liverpool.
Reasons to be optimistic for United supporters include the cliché: “Form goes out the window in these games”, Klopp’s relatively poor record against United and many positive results in big games over the last couple of years.
Klopp’s heavily favoured side may lose at Old Trafford as Ferguson’s sides did at Anfield many times. Unfortunately for United, even if this does happen the bigger picture will remain unchanged.
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