Manchester United beat Liverpool 4-3 in a scintillating FA Cup quarterfinal at Old Trafford last Sunday. The Red Devils booked a place in the last four, where they will take on Coventry City. It was a great win for Erik ten Hag’s men, who should start dreaming of their first title triumph this season.
They have been quite ordinary in the Premier League this season for a club of their stature, and hence, should be willing to make amends by winning the FA Cup. They have won the competition 12 times, but their last triumph came eight years ago in 2016.
Manchester City Stands in the Way of Manchester United
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City will take on Chelsea in the other FA Cup semifinal. The Cityzens will be the favourite to win the match and reach the final on yet another occasion. Should they manage to do so, and should Manchester United be able to beat Coventry, we will see yet another Manchester derby in the final.
United has repeatedly been found wanting against the mighty Cityzens, with their latest reversal happening a couple of weeks ago, when City beat United 3-1. United have often looked a distant second-best against their city-rivals and ten Hag will look to reverse that tide should the opportunity present itself once again.
The win against Liverpool should boost United’s morale
However, the exciting win against Jürgen Klopp’s formidable Liverpool must have given United some hope. It is not easy to beat the mighty Reds, who were almost at full strength and were leading 3-2 until the dying minutes of the game.
The way United shunned all inhibitions during the last 40-odd minutes of the match and scored three times during that period, must have appeased ten Hag. The likes of Marcus Rashford, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Scott McTominay and Amad Diallo came up with good performances to guide the Red Devils towards a memorable win.
Playing with a back-three helped United towards the latter stages of the match
United played with a back-three and also three men in the midfield during the latter stages of the match against Liverpool. It helped them increase numerical supremacy in the middle third, which proved to be quite effective.
Amad, McTominay, and Christian Eriksen played in the midfield for the Red Devils for a sustained period of time to see them through. It will be interesting to see whether ten Hag adopts the same approach in the upcoming matches.
Manchester United played with an ultra-defensive approach in their last few matches against the Cityzens, which allowed the latter to dominate the proceedings effortlessly. United’s defence was not able to hold on to the pressure for long and capitulated in the end.
The Red Devils cannot afford to be too defensive in their approach should they come up against Manchester City in the final of FA Cup. In order to win a silverware, they will have to be braver in their approach and should be prepared to take the attack to the opposition. It is absolutely essential for them to succeed against other big teams.