Liverpool scored a goal in each half to beat Manchester United 2-0 on Sunday as the Reds closed in on the Premier League crown. Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah got the goals for the undefeated hosts, who haven't lost any of their last 39 league games and have a 16-point advantage over Manchester City. How did all 22 starters and all six subs perform, and which manager was the best one on the night?
Let's hand out some grades for the match. You can watch more Premier League action all season long on fuboTV (Try for free).
Liverpool grades
| Player | How did they do? | Grade |
|---|---|---|
(GK) Alisson | Didn't have to deal with a whole lot of danger and handled everything well. He even got an assist on the second goal to Salah. | A |
(DEF) Trent Alexander-Arnold | Assisted on the winning goal, which seems like his weekly output. Didn't get involved all that much but was consistent. | B |
(DEF) Virgil van Dijk | He scored the winning goal with his head and bossed United players off the ball regularly. The world's best defender showed it again. | A+ |
(DEF) Joe Gomez | The young Englishman worked well alongside Van Dijk and did a fine job of clearing out some dangerous balls. Sturdy. | B |
(DEF) Andrew Robertson | Fantastic against Daniel James early on but did let Aaron Wan-Bissaka get past him on one of United's best opportunities. | B |
(MID) Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain | Ox showed some clever passes, well-timed tackles and put in a good shift. His form is improving which is great for Liverpool and bad for everyone else. | B |
(MID) Jordan Henderson | Very good from the captain. He nearly scored and was lively with the ball, producing some clever passes. Led just like a captain is supposed to. | B+ |
(MID) Georginio Wijnaldum | What a lovely work rate. He does it all, including some awesome tackles. He showed skill and a fine ability to get the ball forward. One of the most underrated guys on the team. | A |
(FWD) Mohamed Salah | It's not how you start, it's how you finish, right? Struggled early but was better with each minute and produced a heck of a goal at the end to score for the first time against United in the league. | A |
(FWD) Roberto Firmino | Skillful and a joy to watch. One of the best strikers in Europe yet feels still very underrated. Had a goal called back due to a foul. | B- |
(FWD) Sadio Mane | The Senegal man had a decent match and nearly scored with his head in the first half, but he didn't get quite into the game as much as he had hoped. | C+ |
(SUB 1) Adam Lallana | Played just under a half an hour and added some stability to the midfield. | B |
(SUB 2) Divock Origi | Late sub that never really had much of a chance to get into the game. | N/A |
(SUB 3) Fabinho | Another late sub whose focus was defense. Not enough time to make a real impact. | N/A |
(Coach) Jurgen Klopp | His team continues to role and grind out results, and you better believe his team feeds of that enthusiasm. | A |
Man. United grades
| Player | How did they do? | Grade |
|---|---|---|
(GK) David de Gea | There was no stopping Van Dijk's header, and he had a fine stop on Henderson. Could have done better on Salah's winner, but the game was over by then. | B |
(DEF) Brandon Williams | Why the heck was he guarding Van Dijk? He's nine inches shorter and had no chance. Not his fault though. Overall, he showed good energy. | C |
(DEF) Harry Maguire | Wasn't alert enough on the opening goal, and that cost his team. Why not put your best defender on Van Dijk? | D |
(DEF) Victor Lindelof | Did well to deny Mane just after the hour mark but also didn't do enough on the opening goal. Was better than Maguire. | C |
(DEF) Aaron Wan-Bissaka | A solid outing. Should have had an assist to Andreas Pereira in the first half. Needs to get forward more. | B |
(MID) Nemanja Matic | Got schooled a couple times and was a bit sloppy. He's just a tad too slow to deal with a quick midfield like Liverpool's. | C- |
(MID) Fred | He's getting better and better with each game and becoming more comfortable. All of a sudden he's got from bust to an important player in this team. | B |
(MID) Luke Shaw | Saved a goal with a crucial tackle on Sadio Mane but hardly was impressive elsewhere. If you are putting him high up, you've got problems. | C |
(MID) Andreas Pereira | Missed a golden chance late in the first half, but he did well to set Anthony Martial up. Has all of the talent in the world but rarely shows hit. Inconsistent. | C |
(MID) Daniel James | Sloppy passing. He had three poor passes in the first 15 minutes. The hustle and dedication is great, but the execution is not. | D |
(FWD) Anthony Martial | Missed a fantastic chance in the second half by trying to rip the net off of the goal. His passing and dummies were solid and created space, but he really needs Marcus Rashford with him. | C+ |
(SUB 1) Juan Mata | Had 15 minutes on the pitch but could hardly even notice. | N/A |
(SUB 2) Mason Greenwood | Probably deserved a half an hour to make his mark and not half of that. | N/A |
(SUB 3) Diogo Dalot | Late sub. | N/A |
(Coach) Ole Gunnar Solskjaer | Questionable decisions like playing two left backs. To his credit, they didn't play all that poorly but need a striker. | C+ |
