Manchester United’s February standouts need to step up following Anfield humiliation

Manchester United's Anfield defeat has been described as “out of character” by Gary Neville and was a chastening wake-up call following the euphoria of the Carabao Cup success only seven days earlier.

It was certainly out of character for the four United players who made our journalists’ shortlist for the February Player of the Month award.

Marcus Rashford missed a huge chance at 0-0, while Casemiro was careless in possession and overwhelmed by a Liverpool side who came into the match level on points with Fulham.

And as for Luke Shaw and Bruno Fernandes…

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Both seemingly hell-bent on escaping the carnage by any means possible, some fans would argue they summed up Erik ten Hag’s “unprofessional” barb.

Shaw was given the runaround by Mohamed Salah and was lucky to escape a red, while Fernandes threw his toys out of the pram big style with antics unbecoming of a Manchester United captain and more in keeping with, dare we say it, a certain Portuguese former clubmate.

The quartet were not the only culprits as United capitulated but given their extraordinary Februarys, their falls from grace were the most marked.

Rashford came into the game on the back of a seven-goal month, Casemiro was being lauded as the signing that transformed United into winners, while Shaw could justifiably lay claim to being the Premier League’s best left-back. Fernandes, meanwhile, had emerged from the shadow of Cristiano Ronaldo to provide United’s beating heart.

And while the quadruple talk was always fanciful, similarly a 7-0 defeat, however embarrassing, doesn’t mean the season cannot be salvaged.

What it will need, however, is the four players to recapture