Thursday 28 / November / 2024
South Carolina: Liverpool continued their dominant pre-season run with a 3-0 victory over Manchester United in South Carolina, maintaining their perfect record on their US tour.
The match at Williams-Brice Stadium saw Liverpool take control early. Fabio Carvalho opened the scoring within ten minutes, capitalizing on a defensive lapse by Casemiro to slot home from close range. This early goal set the tone for a game where United struggled defensively.
Curtis Jones added Liverpool's second goal before the break, finishing off a well-crafted move. Mohamed Salah, showcasing his skill on the wing, outmanoeuvred United's 20-year-old Toby Collyer to provide a perfect cut-back for Jones, who made no mistake from close range.
Manchester United had their chances to score in the first half but were unable to capitalize. Amad Diallo, who had impressed against Real Betis, squandered two golden opportunities. He sent a header over the bar from Mason Mount's cross and later fired a shot into the stands.
Caoimhin Kelleher, Liverpool's goalkeeper, made crucial saves to deny both Mount and Marcus Rashford, who looked lively in the No.10 role.
Liverpool sealed their victory just after the hour mark. Kostas Tsimikas reacted quickest to a rebound after Andre Onana parried Diogo Jota's shot, firing home to make it 3-0.
The match also saw Manchester United suffer several injury setbacks. Young defender Will Fish was stretchered off following a challenge on Harvey Blair, adding to United's injury woes with just two weeks until the start of the Premier League season.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, and Jonny Evans also left the pitch with knocks, raising concerns for manager Erik ten Hag.
Despite creating opportunities, United's sloppy play in both boxes and Liverpool's clinical finishing made the difference.
The defeat means United have lost to both Premier League opponents they faced in the USA, Arsenal and Liverpool, and have accumulated several potentially costly injuries.
The game was witnessed by a record crowd of 77,559 at Williams-Brice Stadium, the largest non-US football crowd at the venue.
