Red Alert With Steve Shankyaski

I ended last weeks column saying that a Liverpool v MUFC derby hyped-up as much as this one usually ends as a draw.

It did, so what did we learn from the 90 mins? Watching the match unfold, I felt like we could’ve taken the game. We were under pressure for the first 30 minutes, but after that we found our groove and had the best chances in the game. A single goal would’ve been enough, and Liverpool just didn’t seem to have what was needed to beat us - thanks to our defence, and especially Luke Shaw. He was superb. His role as left-back meant, by default, he would come up against Mo Salah throughout the game, and Shaw had him in his pocket - one of the best attacking wingers in the world, and Luke made him look Sunday League hungover level.

On top of this, Shaw was making darting runs toward the box that were scaring the Liverpool defence to death. If the purchase of Alex Telles has meant that Luke Shaw plays like this, then it was worth every penny. Wan Bissaka on the right wing was almost equal to Luke Shaw, intercepting with his signature precision.

Maguire worries me a little bit with his lack of pace, and one point he was tracking back at full pelt and looked like someone chasing a cat off his garden while wearing slippers, but his clearances were sound – and the same with Lindelof, who I was surprised to see over Bailly but did the job perfectly. I’m going to pick two players out now for negative reasons. The first, perhaps surprisingly is Bruno Fernandez. He’s giving the ball away way too many times now for it to be called a ‘one off bad game’. From what I can assess, he’s looking for that first-time Hollywood pass every time. I feel he just needs to look up from time to time, and play the right pass at the right time instead of looking for a flick-on or an eye-of-the-needle through-pass that most likely will be read and intercepted.

I think Bruno looks like he’s burning out to me, mentally and physically. Ole will happily play him every game until he snaps, and I don’t think that’s right. Sometimes players need protecting from themselves, and Bruno definitely needs a spell in Donny Van De Beek’s seat to replenish. The second player that might need a rest or a chance to clear his mind is Rashford. He was off-side so many times on Sunday it was ridiculously frustrating. It was the second game in a row where he was ineffective and struggled in the right wing role. His final decisions, be it passes or shots, are incorrect at the moment. Therefore, had he been on-side or made a better final passing decision against Liverpool, I feel the forward play may have had more shots on goal rather than being shattered to pieces by the linesman’s flag or an opposing defender.

We face Fulham midweek, and they have some key players out with injury, so I’m hoping to see both Bruno and Rashford resting on the bench for DVDBeek and Greenwood or James. It’s the perfect way to get some glycogen back into their legs for the second Liverpool v MUFC game which is coming on Sunday in our FA Cup draw against them.

It will be fascinating to see how the teams address each other after such a recent visit under such pressure. Salah can face Shaw again in his second schooling session of the week, Rashford can hopefully stay on-side for a few more perfectly timed through-passes from Bruno, but more importantly, we show them what should’ve happened last week – a United win. I’m still confident we’ve got what it takes to beat Liverpool, and I see Man City becoming our biggest problem in our hope to take this season’s Premier League title, and the FA Cup.