Manchester United made three tactical errors in Liverpool FC thrashing

Manchester United's performance against Liverpool was so bad that much of the reaction has actually glossed over their own shortfalls in the match.

Erik ten Hag will want the 7-0 loss to be remembered as an aberration and a freak result that escalated enormously, but there were still some questionable tactical choices that can't be disregarded.

It is understandable why the United manager stuck with a similar tactical set-up that had seen his side defeat both Man City and Barcelona at home already this year, but it was naive to expect the same outcome when playing away from home.

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United's reserved start to matches and ferocious second-half performances have been aided in part by the Old Trafford atmosphere spurring them on, a luxury they did not have at Anfield.

Instead, it was the home side that was buoyed by a raucous atmosphere and encouraged to go for the kill at a time when United were already struggling to stay on their feet.

This also seemed to work against United given that rather than being stable and well-drilled in their approach, they were actually bordering on predictable and offered little in the way of surprise.

United ultimately don't control matches regularly enough and still rely on spells of brief dominance to deal damage to their opponents, meaning that when they went two goals down, they had little chance of getting back into the game.

In those wins over City and Barcelona they were always within touching distance of a comeback, but as soon as Liverpool scored again right after the break, United appeared to lose all hope of a way back into the game and soon imploded.

Questions must also be asked about the