Liverpool suffered their first league defeat since they last played Manchester United, back in December, as two Juan Mata goals gave Louis van Gaal’s side a 2-1 victory at Anfield. The game was overshadowed however, by a red card for captain Steven Gerrard, who was on the pitch for just forty seconds in his appearance in this fixture.
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The scoreline could have been worse for Brendan Rodgers’s men, had Wayne Rooney converted a stoppage time penalty. But despite the England captain’s miss, Liverpool’s Champions League qualification hopes were dealt a massive blow.
Read the full Liverpool player ratings below:
GK) Simon Mignolet – 7/10
Probably could have better with Mata’s first goal, but cannot be blamed for the second, and he did manage to save Rooney’s penalty, so he won’t be too disappointed with his own performance.
RCB) Emre Can – 6/10
Didn’t have his best game since his move to being part of a back three, but did concede the penalty late on, though it had no impact on the result.
CB) Martin Skrtel – 7/10
Did well defensively, keeping Rooney quiet, but was lucky his stamp on David De Gea wasn’t spotted by the referee.
LCB) Mamadou Sakho – 5/10
Had a poor game. He struggled, and failed, to contain Juan Mata.
DM) Joe Allen – 6/10
As always, he did a good job for his team with his passing, but failed to make a massive impact upon the game.
CM) Jordan Henderson – 6/10
Experienced his first loss as captain, and failed to recapture his form of recent weeks.
RM) Raheem Sterling – 5/10
Never really got into the game. He has definitely made less of an impact since pushed out wide.
LM) Alberto Moreno – 4/10 (Balotelli – 66′)
He needed to offer his defence more support when it came to marking Mata, and generally had a bad game before coming off.
AM) Adam Lallana – 5/10 (Gerrard – 46′)
Squandered Liverpool’s best chance of the first half, when he also failed to hit the target. He should have at least tested David De Gea.
AM) Philippe Coutinho – 7/10
Looked lively throughout, and it seemed United tried to give him extra attention knowing the threat he poses.
ST) Daniel Sturridge – 7/10
Took his goal well, and generally made life difficult for United’s defence
Subs:
1) Steven Gerrard 1/10
Sent off 40 seconds after coming on for a stupid stamp on Ander Herrera
2) Mario Balotelli 5/10
Picked up a silly yellow card, and could have followed Gerrard had it not been for the supporters literally holding him back.