90+1 min Four minutes of added time. RVP tries to score with a backheel for the second time today. Easy for Reina.
90 min Sturridge shoots after being played in from a quick free kick. He finds the side netting. No, Daniel. No.
89 min It's all Liverpool. They're dominating possession, and the game is taking place entirely in United's half. You feel they'll have a clear chance before the final whistle.
86 min Liverpool piling on the pressure, but can't find the composure in the area to equalise. Sturridge guilty of some poor decisions. Plus ça change.
85 min Suarez nearly manufacturers the chance he's been waiting for with typically determined, dogged runing inside the box. He's crowded out in the end but it falls for Sturridge... Who blazes over.
81 min Good stuff by Welbeck, who charges forward on the right and makes himself available for a return pass from RVP. Amusingly, he falls over the ball on the touchline. Then laughs. Semi-brilliant scenes. Here's Danny Sturridge celebrating his goal, a bit:
80 min ...as if by magic, Joe Allen is replaced by Jordan Henderson.
79 min Now Vidic is coming off, he's replaced by Smalling. The game has stalled somewhat. We're in that uncertain period in which lots of subs come on.
77 min Phil Jones on for Kagawa as United look to plug the growing gaps in midfield.
76 min Johnson another in the book. Not quite sure why, I only saw the on-screen graphic aftermath, my television decided to freeze on an image of Brendan Rodgers. It was terrifying.
75 min Decent delivery from Gerrard and Vidic heads behind for a corner. Howard Webb, though, sees fit to award a goal kick. Hmm... Quite the momentum-killer for Liverpool, who have bossed the last 10 minutes.
74 min Evra sees yellow for a subtle but real clip of Downing's heels. Free kick deep on the right-hand side which Gerrard will take.
72 min Borini tees himself for a gorgeous dipping volley after Strurridge siezed on a weak pass from Evra. Just wide. Alex Ferguson's concerned enough to march down to the touchline and shout some stuff.
71 min Sturridge livid with himself after getting the better of Ferdinand and getting the ball onto his left foot on the left-hand side of the box but dragging a shot wide at the near post. Excellent crossfield ball from Allen to find him. Liverpool really threatening now, and Henry Winter reckons Sturridge is the reason:
69 min Suarez having nothing that even vaguely resembles his best game. Sturridge plays a slightly awkward pass in front of him on the left-hand side, but Suarez's touch isn't fantastic and he can't control it. Out for a goal kick.
68 min Replays suggest that Evra goal may well have been Vidic's. Not sure Evra's effort would have been going in, and Vidic got the last touch.
66 min Clash of heads from the corner, with Vidic and Agger needing treatment. Both fine now. Hooray!
64 min Great save from Reina! Kagawa hits a shallow-trajectory curler first time after Welbeck's attempted through ball rebounds fortunately to him. Reina tips it round the post. Marvellous.
63 min Here comes Borini for Liverpool, replacing Sterling. There's a slightly red hue to the pitctures coming from Old Trafford, I suspect after some Liverpool fans let off a particularly visible flare:
62 min RVP goes low with this free kick and it deflects slightly but Reina claims it comfortably enough.
61 min Another free kick in worrying range for Liverpool. Their defence look a little more organised this time.
57 min GOAL!! Man Utd 2 Liverpool 1 (Sturridge)
Gerrard shows admirable strength to win a ball off Carrick 30 yards out. He drives forward, shoots low and hard, and brings a great save out of De Gea, who can only palm it to Sturridge. He's alert and composed to slot home and we have a game back on our hands!
57 min Where now, Liverpool? Decent start to this half but you can't defend so poorly from set pieces and expect not to be punished by players who love headers as much as Patrice Evra.
54 min GOAL!! Man Utd 2 Liverpool 0 (Evra)
Skrtel lucky not to see a red card, but Liverpool are punished all the same. Liverpool's defence look entirely worried as RVP prepares to swing the ball in from the free kick. It's a lovely cross and Evra's there, basically unchallenged, to head in at the far post. Deflection off Vidic on the way in, but Reina was probably beaten either way.
53 min Ooh, Skrtel is a lucky boy. High ball over the Liverpool defence which Welbeck runs onto. He's away from the Liverpool centre back but pulled back... And Skrtel is only booked.
52 min Liverpool looking more dynamic and more threatning since half time, with Sturridge introduced. The break with promise and play in Wisdom on the right. His shot / cross / error is poor and wide / over / poor, though.
49 min Free kick to United 30 yards out. Six man Liverpool wall. RVP takes, gets it over the wall and also comfortably over the bar. That's not how you score a goal, Robin. Here's Henry Winter's take on things from half-time:
48 min Welbeck drifts across the edge of the area and tries a shot. He puts it well(beck) wide.
46 min A double sub. In that both teams have made one. Sturridge replaces Lucas for Liverpool, while Valencia is on for Young for United. Also, the second half has started.
14.19 United could be far further out of sight than they already are. Even 1-0 looks insurmountable for Liverpool on this evidence. They've entirely failed to make the best of Suarez and have passed horribly when in good positions. Allen is having a rotten game, Gerrard hasn't been much better. United hardly revelatory in attack, with Welbeck wasteful on a number of occasions and Young and Kagawa failing to make much of an impact, but they look by far the most dangerous side here. See you in 15.
HALF TIME
45+4 min Lucas booked for a trip on Young. RVP swings in the resulting free kick but Liverpool clear it without much difficulty.
45+2 min Two minutes of added time, but the game has been stopped for most of it while Reina receives treatment. He's back to his feet but looking groggy. Sub keeper Jones is off the bench but looks like Reina will make it til half time.
45 min Nearly 2-0! Tremendous first touch from Rafael to bring down a tricky ball, then squares it across goal the six yard box. RVP tries an impudent backheel, which isn't a bad idea, but Skrtel is able to clear off the line. Reina and Kagawa collided in the aftermath, the Liverpool keeper is down and looking quite unwell. Seemed to take a Kagawa knee right in the stomach.
44 min Liverpool ending the half promisingly. They've had a corner and Gerrard on the ball in a decent position. They take neither oppotunity to create anything meaningful. Here's Van Persie doing some shouting after scoring:
41 min Decent cross from Young after typically impeccable play from RVP to charge forward and play him in on the right. Cleared as far as Cleverley who flashes a volley wide. I realise the first sentence of this update, and the update below it read like I am a Manchester United supporter. I assure you that I am not. There's just a massive disparity between the way United are attacking (competently) and the way Liverpool are (very badly).
39 min Another hugely disappointing attempt to play in Suarez! So frustrating from Liverpool. Suarez collects it 30 yards from goal, at last. He tries to play a one-two with Gerrard but the England captain's return ball is disgracefully misjudged and out for a goal kick. Rubbish, Steven.
37 min Something more than entirely unsubstantiated nonsense on Mourinho from the venerable Paul Hayward:
35 min Liverpool having an increasingly rare go at attacking. Cleverley clears with authority after an untidy Johnson pass. Slight sense Liverpool have given up on this already and would take a 1-0 defeat. Here's Phillip H:
Speaking as a migrant to Bristol, I would have to say the Bristol City / Bristol Rovers thing.. I used to live to the east of Bristol, when Bristol Rovers played half-way to Bath.. Now I live in the shadow of Ashton Gate. And when City get relegated and bury any chance of a new stadium for the next decade, they must be wondering if it is all worth it ?
33 min Young's jogging back on now. I'll tell you about something other than Ashley Young as soon as something other than Ashley Young warance being reported.... Welbeck! Allen with another big mistake, he's having a mare, and the striker collects the ball and makes space for a shot with some tidy control. Agger blocks excellently in the nick of time.
32 min Young has hobbled off, but no sub as yet.
30 min Ooh, Ashley Young is down clutching his thigh after a fairly innocuous clash with Agger. Cleverley eventually puts it out. Looks like a knee-based hurt-thing. He's still down.
28 min Liverpool's service to Suarez letting them down once again. Allen gets a pass entirely wrong from the left-hand side, attempting to thread it through the inside-left channel for the striker to run on to, but instead putting it out for a goal kick. Hmmm.
26 min There's that defensive slackness from United. Evra dawdles with the ball in the box and Allen's not slow in closing him down. Looks like he wins a corner off the Frenchman but Howard Webb disagrees. Look who's here!
Probably because United are playing Real Madrid in the Champions League rather than his imminent coronation as United manager. Maybe.
24 min A chance for Liverpool to break, with Gerrard collecting the ball in surprising amounts of space in the middle. A lack of urgency from him and his team, and he eventually plays it to Wisdom who's belatedly run up the right-hand flank. He crosses but it's poor and easily cleared. The anti-Preston brigade is growing. Here's Anthony Peregrine:
Spot on, Mr Melander. PNE away to Bury in the late 1970s. Off the train, straight into the arms of a police escort to Gigg Lane. Was like being marched off for transportation. My wife wasn't that impressed. It was her wedding anniversary treat. "A police escort – through Bury?" I asked one of the coppers. "Frankly, sir, if you come from Preston, you need an escort through Bury, whether or not there's a foootball match on."
I must stress that I quite like Preston. Did you know it had the first KFC in the country? That is my one Preston fact. Enjoy it.
21 min Where is Luis Suarez? He can't have touched the ball more than twice so far. Liverpool need to do something to get him into the game, especially now after his opposite number Van Persie has just demonstrated his gigantic unerring effectiveness.
19 min GOAL!! Man Utd 1 Liverpool 0 (Van Persie)
Wonderful, uncomplicated football from United. Kagawa, Welbeck and Cleverley all involved in a sequence of patient passes not far from the area which eventually plays in Evra on the overlap on the left. He pulls back the required low cross, RVP has moved off Agger at the entirely correct time to make space for himself and the finish flashes past a despairing Reina.
17 min Liverpool growing into this, with Sterling impressively keen to get involved. He's popping up repeatedly on the left, showing for the ball and driving forward effectively. Still no real suggestion that the United defence is going to be unlocked any time soon, though.
14 min Good delivery by Gerrard from a tricky, flat angle. Manages to make the free kick into a dangerous curling cross, but Vidic is there to nod it out of the area.
13 min Liverpool have stemmed the tide some, and Gerrard now has another chance to cause some box-based worries for United with a deep free kick. Marc Melander reckons there is an outstanding candidate in relation to the question posed above:
If you want some proper bigotry allow me to propose Preston North End and any of their Lancashire rivals. PNE fans get up earlier to hate Burnley for longer.
11 min Let-off for Reina who tries a risky ground-based pass which is wayward. United fail to meaningfully capitalise. Liverpool now trying to calm themselves down by hanging onto the ball, and Suarez, dropping deep, draws a foul from Young. Here's that friendly and certainly amicable handshake between Suarez and Evra before the match:
9 min Young takes a United corner from the left. It's not great. Kagawa fouls Sterling in the box. It's a free kick to Liverpool. That's generally what happens after a foul, liveblog fans.
8 min Big game for Kagawa today, huh? Am I correct to think that most United fans are keen to see him given a bit more of a run in the side? He wastes his first meaningful touch of the ball with a meek ball into the box towards a non-existent Wayne Rooney which Liverpool clear with ease. United beginning to dictate the game.
5 min Still Liverpool winning the battle for possession, but United clearly the more dangerous side, albeit on the counter. Evra making himself useful on the overlap on the left and delivers a reasonable cross. Easy for Reina. Game is yet to settle, like so much disappointing snow.
3 min Nothing thrilling to report from the opening exchanges. Liverpool seeing most of the ball thus far but have done roughly a quarter of naff all with it.
1 min Here we go then, United get us started. Liverpool are wearing all black with red socks, given that United wear their traditional black socks. Odd, unbalanced kit. Bad omen. Definitely definitely definitely.
13.29 Gary Neville's on co-commentary duties. Is that wise? Has this been forgotten?
13.27 Pointless handshake time. No snubs this year. Here's Peter Munson on pathetic rivalries:
As a kid I used to go to Vicarage Road and lived in fear of a Luton game. They ware mostly crap matches, but the Luton fans bought so much misery. I guess Watford had some Elton money and that probably annoyed them. (notice I have tempered my language out of respect for Daily Telegraph readers).
13.25 The teams are on their way out. Are you excited? I really, really am. Bring on the tiresome 2-0 United win! That would be a shame. Here are my demands:
• Six goals. At least
• A red card
• A really bad dive
• A fan in tears
• A triple substitution
• A foul throw
I don't ask for much.
13.20 Here's your friend and mine James Restall with Exactly The Sort Of Thing I Was Hoping For with regards to the question above:
For some reason, animosity still exists between Leyton Orient and Brighton fans following a rather eventful 4-4 draw back in 1997. If I remember correctly, Ray Wilkins (spending the twilight years of his career with the Os) was floored by a Brighton fan and Scott McGleish was attacked. Our chairman Barry Hearn said after the game that the fans' actions could sound "death knell" for Brighton as a club. This encounter may live long in the memory of some supporters but when McGleish received negative chants lining up for Orient against Albion between 2009 and 2011 the vast majority of the fans sitting around me didn't have a clue what was going on. While strong words were clearly exchanged at the time, surely it's time to forgive and forget?
See also: Wycombe v Colchester. That's proper tasty.
13.15 Good luck shifting these, pal:
Any idea what's going on with that Liverpool emblem?
13.03 Time for today's first pertinent statistical tweet from our friends at Opta:
12.55 Here's the first of a great number of jokes about Howard Webb we're going to be dealing with today, from Marley P:
Could the return signing for United of Howard Webb win the game for them? In Fergie time again...?
12.45 Here are the teams:
Manchester United: De Gea; Rafael, Vidic, Ferdinand, Evra; Carrick, Cleverley, Kagawa, Welbeck, Young, Van Persie
Subs: Amos, Jones, Valencia, Anderson, Giggs, Smalling, Hernandez
Liverpool: Reina, Wisdom, Johnson, Agger, Skrtel, Lucas, Gerrard, Allen, Downing, Sterling, Suarez.
Subs: Jones, Carragher, Henderson, Sturridge, Borini, Shelvey, Robinson.
Referee: Howard Webb
12.30 Afternoon liveblog fans
It's Grand Slam Sunday! Whatever happened to Grand Slam Sunday? It seemed to fall quietly by the wayside in a rare example of Sky Sports deciding that perhaps it had gone a bit overboard with the hyperbole.
It's tough for football matches to live up to their billing if they're billed so relentlessly as world-altering events roughly on a par importance-wise with the moon landing.
By just quietly slipping a Sunday featuring this game and Arsenal v Manchester City the hope is that Sky will reverse-psychology football into believing that we're not that bothered about Manchester United v Liverpool.
This means Manchester United v Liverpool will be desperate to prove itself, and demand our attention with a glut of goals, diving and throw-ins.
We are, of course, bothered about Manchester United v Liverpool. United are a force to be reckoned with going forward but don't seem capable of fielding a defence capable of concentrating for a full 90 minutes.
Liverpool are improving and Luis Suarez is pretty good at football.
Since the nasty business relating to him and Evra has had another three and half months to calm down there's a sense that the usually-entertaining slanging matches between the two clubs can safely re-commence.
Fergie's said he doesn't know where Liverpool are in the table. Carragher's said he was happy City won the league instead of United. De Gea's made a rude joke about Lucas' mum's weight. Probably.
Make no mistake, this is on. Possibly in the style of Donkey Kong.
Team news to follow stay tuned, why not enjoy this preview in the meantime:
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Manchester United v Liverpool
Old Trafford
Kick-off: 13.30 GMT.
TV: Live Sky Sports 1, Highlights BBC ONE Match of the Day2.
Manchester United (Possible, 4-3-1-2): De Gea; Rafael, Ferdinand, Evans, Evra; Valencia, Carrick, Cleverley; Kagawa; Hernandez, Van Persie.
Test: Rooney (knee).
Liverpool (Possible, 4-3-3): Reina; Wisdom, Skrtel, Agger. Johnson; Lucas, Gerrard, Downing; Sterling, Suárez, Sturridge.
Out: Borini (foot), Enrique (hamstring), Kelly (knee).
Referee: Howard Webb (Matches 16, R2 Y57).
Team News
Nani and Anderson both return to the Manchester United squad for Sunday's high-octane Premier League encounter with Liverpool at Old Trafford.
The pair have been sidelined for 14 and eight games respectively with hamstring injuries but are available to bolster Sir Alex Ferguson's options.
Wayne Rooney (knee) has a very slight chance of being available while Phil Jones is also likely to be saved for Wednesday's FA Cup replay with West Ham.
Meanwhile, striker Daniel Sturridge is in contention for his Liverpool league debut for his new club at Manchester United having joined from Chelsea last week.
The 23year-old scored on his first appearance in the FA Cup win at Mansfield on Sunday and could keep his place at Old Trafford, where, the likes of the rested Steven Gerrard, Jose Reina and Glen Johnson will all return.
Forward Fabio Borini is back in the squad having been sidelined since mid-October with a broken foot.
Match Notes
Can this fixture still be described as English football's 'big one' or has Liverpool's recent decline rendered this meeting of the country's most successful clubs as nothing more than a regional dispute?
Manchester City's emergence has shifted United's focus to the east of their city from the other end of the East Lancs Road, but history counts for much.
Liverpool may have fallen away, but they remain the yardstick by which United are measured, which is why this game still matters.
Betting: Home 4-5, Away 16-5, Draw 5-2.
Stat of the game: There are have been 14 red cards in Premier League meetings between these sides.
Mark Ogden's prediction: Manchester United 2 Liverpool 1.
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