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Ole pressure eased, Marco in danger... Things learnt from Liverpool & Utd win

  /  Wyp1993

Liverpool smashed Everton 5-2 as Mane produced a glistening performance that could hasten the departure of Marco Silva while Man Utd handed Mourinho a maiden loss as Tottenham boss.

Here are some talking points of those two matches.

Solskjaer's job saved

Coming into this match, Solskjaer was under immense pressure. His side were disappointing at Old Trafford at the weekend, drawing with Aston Villa 2-2 in a game they could easily have lost, and with Pochettino now looking for a new job, a bad loss here could easily have pushed the Norwegian over the edge and out of the hot seat.

Thankfully for the United legend, his side delivered one of their best performances to date tonight. 

The Red Devils might've been edged out when it came to possession – 46% to Tottenham’s 54% - but they had more shots, more attempts on target and generally looked like a side who were more up for the game.

Judging by this, United's players are all behind Solskjaer with no exceptions. Perhaps he really does need more time after all.

Rashford shines

Rashford was on a whole different level in this match. He was the eye of the storm for United in the encounter, as Solskjaer's men constantly targeted Serge Aurier and Spurs' right flank.

The young Englishman had the most shots in the encounter, outperforming Harry Kane with 6 shots and 4 on target. He also completed 5 dribbles, a tally that was second only to Son Heung-min in the match.

Alli shows rejuvenation under Mourinho

The England midfielder had been struggling under Pochettino, but Mourinho has seemed determined to get the best out of him by putting him back into the position in which he once thrived, playing just behind central striker Harry Kane. 

Tonight wasn’t his best game like most of Spurs’ players, he was wasteful in possession on multiple occasions, but his goal was simply phenomenal.

It was still a sign that Alli is getting back to his best.

If the resurrection of Alli's career is the main result of Mourinho at Spurs, few Tottenham fans will be able to complain.

Lloris would have saved Rashford's first goal

Tottenham got off on the wrong foot from the off in tonight’s game thanks to Manchester United’s aggressive, harrying style, but should they really have gone behind on 6 minutes? 

In all honesty, probably not – and for the first time, questions now have to be asked regarding the place of Gazzaniga in the Spurs goal.

The Argentine keeper hasn’t performed badly per say since coming into the starting XI following Lloris’s elbow injury in October, but he hasn’t covered himself in glory either, conceding 11 goals in his 7 starts, and United’s first goal tonight was entirely avoidable.

Marcus Rashford shot quickly and with power, but there's no way Gazzaniga should've been beaten at his near post.

Under-pressure Marco Silva

In their 1-0 defeat in the previous campaign, Everton were well-organised and determined, and only a freak slice of misfortune denied them a point.

Silva's men displayed no such qualities on Wednesday. Liverpool were imperious going forward, but the ease with which Everton were cut open time and again was alarming.

Everton have not been relegated since 1951 but another chastening loss to their neighbours saw them drop into the bottom three.

Their Portuguese boss cut a forlorn figure on the sideline as he watched his side humiliated in arguably the headline game of a set of fixtures broadcast via an on-demand streaming platform. After their latest derby demolition, Everton fans are likely to be demanding change.

Ballon d'Or nominees produce golden touch

Van Dijk missed out on winning the Ballon d'Or on Monday, as Lionel Messi took home the award for the sixth time. He was not he only Liverpool player some felt was snubbed, however, with Sadio Mane seen as unfortunate to finish fourth in the voting.

While Van Dijk enjoyed a relatively quiet evening, Mane - who came into the fixture with eight league goals - produced the kind of performance that will keep him firmly in the running for world football's top individual prizes.

His through ball for Origi to open the scoring was unbelievably well-weighted, while his reverse pass to tee up Xherdan Shaqiri for Liverpool's second was simply sublime. After failing to register a single assist in his last 40 appearances at Anfield, Mane delivered two in the first half.

The move that led to Shaqiri's goal was started by an exquisite cross-field pass from Trent Alexander-Arnold - 19th in the Ballon d'Or voting - and it was the right-back who teed up Mane to make it 4-2 after popping up on the left wing in a glorious encapsulation of the freedom with which Klopp's side play.

Liverpool's clean sheet concern

One of the most bemusing statistics of this season is that Everton have kept more clean sheets (3) than Liverpool (2).

Klopp will not have been satisfied with Liverpool's defensive showing, with their problems defending set-pieces laid bare once again.

Everton should have scored more and, when the effects of a packed schedule and the Club World Cup take hold, it is fair to wonder whether better sides such as second-placed Leicester City - who they face in their first game back from Qatar on December 26 - may capitalise more ruthlessly on any defensive lapses.

Five-Star Origi

Origi was something of an outcast when he capitalised on Jordan Pickford's howler in the corresponding fixture last season.

Since then he has scored crucial goals in the semi-final and the final of the Champions League and he took his tally in the derby to five in fine fashion.

While there was obvious fortune about his winner last term, there was nothing lucky about either of his efforts time around, with the control he displayed to collect Dejan Lovren's long pass and lob Jordan Pickford to make it 3-1 particularly worthy of praise.

Only Steven Gerrard (9) and Robbie Fowler (6) have scored more Premier League goals in the Merseyside derby. Exalted company few would have expected him to keep 12 months ago.