In a game which it was important not to lose, Jose Mourinho managed to nullify the pressing of Jurgen Klopp’s energetic Liverpool side with a clever team selection and secured a point for Manchester United so they can move on to fight other battles like their next fixture away to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. United started the better of the two sides and took the sting out of Liverpool by dominating possession early on and taking their time to take free kicks and throw the ball back into play. Liverpool were unable to use their preferred tactic of pressing to any great effect and their slow start meant that United were able to take the crowd out of the game early.

Jose Mourinho surprised many with the inclusion of Ashley Young for his first Premier League start of the campaign and he also found a place for Marcus Rashford on the left-wing. Both players delivered decent performances for the Red Devils with Young looking particularly good in his first starting apppearance. Both sides struggled to create many clear cut chances as the teams played out an intense match at Anfield.

United certainly had the better of the scoreless first half with Liverpool edging the second half which produced no goals either. In  a game that United definitely did not want to lose, as reported by the BBC, Jose Mourinho had this to say about his side’s performance,

“It is not the result we wanted but it is a positive result. It is a result that stops a direct opponent getting three points at home, so not a bad result.

“The game was difficult for both teams but for longer periods it was more difficult for them than us.

“We controlled the game not just tactically but the emotion of the game. That was probably the quietest Anfield I had and I was expecting it to be the other way.

“It was a positive performance.”

So the boss seems content and is clearly now preparing for his return to Stamford Bridge to face former club Chelsea for the first time as Manchester United manager.