Why Liverpool Fans Can't Stand Manchester United

Sunday afternoon at Anfield sees the first league meeting of the new season between archrivals Liverpool and Manchester United, and the home supporters are sure to give the Premier League champions a hostile reception, as the Red Devils are a team they loathe.

These two great bastions of English football have been slugging it out for years now, although one peculiar aspect of their intense rivalry is that the Reds and their enemies from Old Trafford have very rarely ever gone head-to-head in a battle for the league title.

However, with both sides having so far made unbeaten starts to their league campaigns and United arriving on Merseyside with a new manager for the first time since December 1986, this particular clash promises to be extra special.

But in all honesty, whenever Liverpool play United there is a tension in the air, as Reds fans cannot stand David Moyes’ men for a number of reasons.

Ferocious Fergie

While the Scot will not be taking his usual place in the dugout at Anfield on Sunday lunchtime for the first time since Ron Atkinson brought the Red Devils to Merseyside in February 1986, his spirit still lives on in the form of new United boss David Moyes.

Reds fans absolutely detested Sir Alex Ferguson, the man who came down from Aberdeen in November 1986 to replace cuddly “Big Ron” Atkinson and immediately announced that he wanted to “knock Liverpool of their f***ing perch.”

That is why previous boss Rafa Benitez was so adored by the Anfield faithful for being one of the few managers in the past quarter of a century to actually have the gumption to stand up to the bullying Scot, and none more so than when he raised the issue of Ferguson’s haranguing of referees in his famous “facts” rant in January 2009.

Equally, it was also partly why another former Liverpool coach, Roy Hodgson, was never going to last long at Anfield after the now England manager initially refused to take Ferguson to task for saying Fernando Torres went down too easily in a league meeting at Old Trafford in Sept 2010.

Either way, the arrival of the antagonistic Ferguson in the north west 27 years ago played a huge role in ratcheting up the tension even further between these two gladiatorial foes.

A Geographical and Historical Rivalry

The cities of Liverpool and Manchester have been rivals for far longer than the two football clubs ever have, with both originally competing for supremacy in the north west during the Industrial Revolution.

At that time, Liverpool was considered to be the world’s pre-eminent port, while Manchester led the way when it came to the textiles industry.

And it was those initial, non-footballing rivalries that then went on to shape the two teams’ subsequent fierce battles on the pitch in the 20th century.

The Cup with the Big Ears

While Manchester United may have become the first English team to have won what was then called the European Champion Clubs’ Cup in May 1968 against Benfica at Wembley Stadium, it is the Merseysiders who have since gone on to become the most successful English team in the history of the competition.

And this is a fact that Liverpool fans like to constantly remind their rivals from Old Trafford about whenever the two teams meet, with the Reds having won five European Cups to United’s only three triumphs in Europe’s premier club competition.

Consequently, it is this bitter European Cup rivalry that has proved a strong factor down the years in shaping the hatred between the two sides, with each trying to claim superiority over the other in this field.

However, at present, Liverpool still remain the kings of Europe …

The Late Shows

Ferguson used to claim that United’s infuriating ability to constantly steal matches right at the death against the run of play was just part of the club’s DNA and history, whereas the rest of the watching public would simply bemoan the total injustice of it all.

And none more so than Liverpool’s supporters, who more than anyone have been forced to endure a number of such heart-wrenching moments over the years, especially in FA Cup clashes between the two sides.

In particular, there was Eric Cantona’s last-gasp volley through what seemed like the entire Liverpool team crowded in the Wembley penalty area to win the 1996 Cup final, and with it, United secured their second Double in the space of just three years.

Then, three years later, it was the turn of super sub Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to break Liverpool hearts once again (see above) with an even later winner in a fourth-round tie at Old Trafford, as the Red Devils went on to claim an historic Treble.

And that is even before we begin to mention Rio Ferdinand’s last-minute header to hand United a 1-0 win in the Premier League in January 2006, with Gary Neville’s subsequent over-the-top tub-thumping celebration in front of the Reds fans.

In a League of Their Own

When Liverpool won their 18th, and still last, top-flight title in May 1990, their archrivals were still languishing well behind on just seven First Division crowns at that point, having not won the title at that point for 23 years.

In fact, so confident were the Reds faithful their own record would never be surpassed that following United’s 3-3 draw at Anfield in the Premier League in January 1994, the home fans in the Kop unfurled a banner reading: “"Au Revoir Cantona and Man United ... come back when you've won 18".

However, incredibly in the space of just 20 years, United now lead Liverpool by 20 titles to 18, with the threat of yet more to come in the future, which is why Reds supporters so loathe the team from Old Trafford and are so desperate to start seeing a reversal in fortunes.

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