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It is now appropriate to commence assessing Alexander Isak fairly as a £125m Liverpool striker, the Liverpool head coach remarked on Friday. In that case, judgment must be harsh, but as Britain’s most expensive footballer was seated next to Mohamed Salah on the Liverpool bench while the Premier League title holders attempted unsuccessfully to secure an equaliser against their rivals in their absence, it was not the manager's underperforming attack that deserved the fiercest blame at Anfield. The team's backline structure has disappeared.

Anonymous Performance from Key Forwards

Indeed, the Swedish striker was mostly anonymous in the centre-forward position and the Egyptian winger again poor as his personal struggles continued versus the team he typically plunders. The Sweden international had his first attempt on goal in the Premier League as a Reds player in the first half, excellently denied by United’s latest goalkeeper the young keeper. Salah squandered a glorious after the break chance in front of the Kop and could not protest when their substitution were shown. Cody Gakpo also struck the crossbar on multiple occasions and inexplicably failed to score a second moments after Harry Maguire’s decisive goal.

Unthinkable Loss Despite Opportunities

It seemed impossible for Liverpool to lose a match in which they generated so many chances, the manager claimed. But it is not impossible with a backline in this form, as Crystal Palace, Chelsea and now Manchester United have shown.

Backline Collapse Under Pressure

While overseeing a fourth consecutive defeat as the club's head coach, the first man to achieve this since a previous manager in years past, the coach must have felt dismayed at a backline effort that invited United to dominate as well as their initial win at the ground in nearly a decade. Filled with the identical errors that the team's coaching staff had worked on solving after the pause, featuring another dead-ball score, it was a display that completely derailed the title holders' second half comeback and lost them the game.

Advantage Lost Even with Improvement

The upper hand was finally with the hosts when the substitute cancelled out the forward's early opener. Liverpool could feel one more late win with substitutes one attacker, Curtis Jones and another forward igniting progress and the opposition in defensive mode. Rather, it was a further late top-flight defeat, the third in succession, after the team's dead-ball frailties re-emerged and Maguire found himself one of three United members unmarked past the centre-back in the 84th minute.

Organized Opposition Outperform

A powerful header into the goal that the player missed in the dying seconds of last season’s tie gave Ruben Amorim the finest victory of his challenging United reign. Despite the negativity surrounding the coach it was his squad that played with definite plan and a smartly implemented approach for the bulk of a compelling encounter. The initial back-to-back Premier League wins of the manager's reign were the result. The Liverpool side once more looked like unfamiliar at times, particularly when allowing a dead-ball score for the fifth occasion in the division this season.

Quick Opener Reveals Backline Flaws

The home side were found wanting from the start to the execution of the attacker's 62-second first goal. There was little impact on the first attempt from Virgil van Dijk, a probable consequence of having to pass opponents to connect with the pass, to be fair, and no pressure on the playmaker when he took possession and released Amad Diallo in open area on the right. the defender was slow to respond, the centre-back slow to recover and mark Mbeumo’s movement while Giorgi Mamardashvili, filling in for the unavailable Alisson in net, was easily beaten from the angle.

Officiating and Focus Questions

The manager could justifiably point to his head and ask where the foul was from the referee, an official with whom he has a feisty history, but also question the focus and communication among his defenders. The forward's goal means Slot’s team have managed only two shutouts in a dozen games this season, the most recent coming many matches ago at Burnley.

Repeated Targeting of Left Flank

The visitors exposed the left side repeatedly in a opening period in which Fernandes, Mason Mount and also Gakpo all nearly scored to increasing the away team's lead. Releasing Diallo early versus Kerkez was clearly part of Amorim’s tactic. It worked repeatedly in the opening 45 minutes. The £40 million summer signing from his former club endured a further tough evening in a club shirt. Set-pieces were also a problem for Andy Robertson’s replacement, who almost put the forward in on goal while making an challenge. The defender and Van Dijk seem on not in sync at present.

Manager’s Explanation and Acknowledgment

“We take a many risks,” Slot commented following United’s victory. “Following the 62nd minute we had multiple attacking members on the field. That’s perhaps why our structure for the set-piece was less organized as we usually are. Normally we would have additional defensive players on the pitch. Maybe it is a coincidence but it is not an excuse. The team understands we have to improve.”