Manchester United vs. Liverpool: 5 Things Kenny Dalglish's Side Learned in Loss

Kenny Dalglish saw his side defeated 2-1 at Old Trafford by Manchester United, who returned to the top of the Premier League with that victory, while Liverpool languish in seventh place.

Liverpool started brightly, but failed to maintain their early adventurism. They sat deep for much of the first half, threatening only sporadically and from range, with Glen Johnson in particular trying his luck.

The second period was barely 60 seconds old when United went ahead, Wayne Rooney volleying home from a corner at the far post, before he doubled his tally three minutes later following an error from Jay Spearing.

Dalglish sent on Andy Carroll, Craig Bellamy and Charlie Adam in an attempt to change the pattern of the game, but his team simply could not cope with United's passing and showed far too little intention to get forward in search of goals.

Luis Suarez scored a fortunate late consolation, but that was Liverpool's only major chance of the second half, and they suffered a deserved and disappointing defeat at the hands of their rivals.

More Attacking Intent a Must from Midfielders When Playing One Up Front

Deploying the returning Luis Suarez as a lone forward for Liverpool has worked at times in the past, but the midfielders in the same team must shoulder a big responsibility to get forward and support the enigmatic Uruguayan.

Against Manchester United, Liverpool utterly failed to do this.

The wide players, Dirk Kuyt and Stewart Downing, were rarely seen in the United penalty box, and neither claimed a shot on goal.

Jordan Henderson, playing in the advanced midfield position, hardly had a touch of the ball at all, let alone a shot, and was so far away from Suarez at times that it seemed Liverpool had one less man playing.

Whether the Reds were set up as a 4-4-1-1, a 4-2-3-1, a 4-3-3 or whatever other numbers you want to pick out of a hat, not getting players in support of the lone forward is a recipe for disaster, and it showed against United.

Liverpool always look more dangerous playing with two central forwards, but even with only one, there are enough technically-gifted, attack-minded players to cause teams problems.

But a much better mindset is required to make the most of them.

Stewart Downing in Danger of Being a One-Season Player at Liverpool

Andy Carroll has come under the spotlight from various quarters who have suggested that Liverpool may be better off offloading the big forward after just a year, cutting their losses and moving on.

Where Carroll has the advantage of years ahead of him to come good on his large transfer fee, however, Stewart Downing does not.

Downing was not poor against Manchester United, he was diabolical. Woeful. Abysmal.

No hard work in defence, no adventurism or confidence to have a go at taking on his marker, no real thought into his runs off the ball or his passes to teammates...Downing's performance was a real black spot in what was already a bad day at the office for the Anfield side.

This is not the first time his performances have been such.

Come the end of the season, Downing will be 28 years of age, supposedly entering the final year or two at which he will be in the prime of his career.

Much has been made of his poor statistics with Liverpool, but never mind the numbers—it is the real-life performances which have been incredibly disturbing, with the former Villa winger not even nailing down a regular place in the starting 11 and looking far from a safe bet to be a game changer from the bench.

A vast improvement is needed from Downing, lest he be one of the first out of the Melwood door this summer—regardless of his big transfer fee last summer.

Nowhere near good enough from Downing.

Jose Enrique Needs to Find His Early-Season Form Again

In the early part of the season, Jose Enrique played in every game for Liverpool and was hailed as the best signing of the summer for the Reds, following his move from Newcastle United.

His tenacity in the tackle, pace when attacking down the wing and composure on the ball marked him out as an asset in both halves of the pitch for Liverpool. Though his shots were ambitious and wasteful most of the time, his crosses looked a far better bet to aid Liverpool's goal-seeking ambitions.

Since the turn of the year, however, he has suffered a serious downturn in form and looks half the player who played so consistently and excellently from August to December.

After a brief return to good form against Wolves followed by an absence through injury against Spurs, Jose Enrique was back to his poor form against Manchester United. He failed to deal with an in-form Antonio Valencia, whether it was in a straight foot-race or in stopping the crosses coming over from the right side.

Liverpool need Jose Enrique back to his best sooner rather than later, or else Kenny Dalglish will have a serious case to take him out of the side in favour of playing Glen Johnson on the left side and Martin Kelly on the right of defence.

At Full Strength, but No Game-Changers from the Bench for Liverpool?

Able to pick from a squad with no injuries or suspensions against Manchester United, Kenny Dalglish opted to name a squad which left attacking options Andy Carroll, Craig Bellamy, Jonjo Shelvey and Charlie Adam on the bench.

Not a bad variety of talents in all fairness, but as it turned out, none were able to change the pattern of the game against United sufficiently to exert any undue pressure on the table-toppers.

Shelvey, obviously, couldn't make any impact, as he was not brought on.

The other three got fairly significant game time, but only a Charlie Adam free kick, which was perhaps slightly over-hit, resulted in anything positive for Liverpool, with Rio Ferdinand failing to clear and Luis Suarez scoring from close range.

It will be a worry for Dalglish that his side were unable to match United in the second half, but perhaps an equal worry should be that he was unable to call upon any particular name from the bench who could be such a driving force to swing the tide of the game back in his side's favour.

Time to Forget the League and Champions League, and Concentrate on Domestic Cups

With Liverpool only having gained a solitary point from their only two Premier League fixtures this month, it is time for the Reds to put firmly in the backs of their minds the chase for a top four spot and concentrate on returning to winning ways in the next two games in search of domestic trophy success.

Next week sees the Reds entertain Brighton and Hove Albion at Anfield in the FA Cup fifth round, with a quarter final berth at stake.

One of the few big Premier League teams left in the competition after the exits of both Manchester sides, Liverpool will fancy their chances of making it a double Wembley appearance this season, but will need to do a professional job against a Guy Poyet team who have already been beaten once this season by the Merseysiders.

After that game, it is indeed Wembley-bound for Liverpool, as they face Cardiff City in the League Cup final, with a huge chance for Liverpool to end a six-year wait for silverware.

It is time for Liverpool to forget the Manchester United game, the poor display and result that went with it, the chase for the Champions League and everything else that goes alongside fourth place. The only thing that needs to occupy the minds of Liverpool players and staff now is two victories in the next two games in order to ensure that the season as a whole remains competitive and successful.

Winning breeds winning, as they say, and there is no better chance for Liverpool to get back into contention for a Champions League spot by the end of the season than to win two cup matches in succession—and claim a long-awaited trophy in the process.