Manchester United 2-1 Liverpool: 5 Factors That Influenced the Derby Result

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Liverpool slipped to a 2-1 defeat at Old Trafford to Manchester United in a game that saw Daniel Sturridge score on his debut.

Robin van Persie yet again proved to be the decisive factor, as the Dutchman scored one and set up another. United ran away with the full haul having controlled the action in the middle of the park for larger parts of the game.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s men now move 10 points clear at the top of the table, an unusual position for the Red Devils to be at in the middle of January.

Brendan Rodgers’ side remain at eighth, two points behind West Bromwich Albion, with 16 games remaining until the end of season.

Surprisingly remaining neutral through the game was referee Howard Webb, and the Yorkshire man controlled the game fairly well.

Now, let’s look at the situations that factored in the result.

Robin van Persie

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Robin van Persie truly is the difference between Manchester United and Manchester City in the title race.

The Dutchman simply can't stop scoring at the moment as he scored his 17th Premier League goal to set up United on the way to victory.

Van Persie holds the key to United claiming back the title.

At the moment, anything that comes off of the Dutchman’s boot seems destined to test the ‘keeper or definitely end up in the back of the net.

Those one-touch finishes prove he is a class over his contemporaries, and that includes Luis Suarez.

Joe Allen-Lucas Leiva Mix-Up

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A tactical failure on Rodgers’ part ensured Allen stayed on the pitch far more than he should have.

Joe Allen’s dwindling form has been a cause of concern of late. Questions have arisen over the Welshman’s composure and whether he has what it takes to perform under pressure.

The decision to bring on Daniel Sturridge at half-time is welcome. However, it should not have come at the expense of Lucas Leiva.

The Brazilian looked more solid for most of the first half than Allen had for the entire 80 minutes.

In the end, it proved to be too much too late as Rodgers’ last ditch introduction of Jordan Henderson failed to yield the desired result.

Steven Gerrard Disappoints

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Coming on the back of a fantastic 40-yard pass to Luis Suarez in the game against Sunderland, Gerrard would have been disappointed with his performance in the game.

Comparatively, Michael Carrick controlled the game very well for the opponents and created far more chances for his teammates.

He also bore a disappointed look through the game, and his only real contribution came when his goal-bound shot came off of David de Gea, leading to Daniel Sturridge converting for Liverpool’s consolation.

Manchester United Given Space

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Brendan Rodgers’ vision for Liverpool includes making them play the tiki-taka way à la FC Barcelona.

But doesn’t it say in the “Dummy’s Handbook” to playing the La Masia way that the opponents cannot be afforded space in the middle?

Liverpool went one better as they even gifted the opposition their own time on the ball.

Whatever in the world happened to the six-second rule?

It was an unflattering display against the league leaders, and Rodgers’ men deservedly lost the tie.

Call Vidic a Cheat Too?

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Last week, the press carried out a character assassination of Reds striker Luis Suarez.

Vilified and called a "cheat," Suarez’s actions even forced the mouth of a commentator.

At Old Trafford, a Steven Gerrard free kick took a deflection off of Nemanja Vidic’s head before going outside.

Now, Howard Webb and his assistants missed the incident and wrongly awarded a goal kick to Manchester United.

Vidic kept quiet and went about his business.

However, if Suarez’s actions from last week robbed Mansfield of a FA Cup replay, then Vidic’s actions stripped Liverpool off of an opportunity to settle the scores.

What if, out of the resulting corner, Liverpool scored to level things? Then, we would have had a different game on in our hands.

Vidic, thus, by press standards “cheated” by not running up to the referee and persuading him to award the corner kick to Liverpool.

Such an irresponsible and reckless behaviour must not be encouraged, especially considering he is the skipper of the biggest club in the world and not some “wee club in the northeast.”