[Player Ratings] Liverpool 2-1 Man United: Unlucky United Lose It Late At Anfield

It was a disappointing game for Manchester United as their hopes of reaching the 5th round of the F.A cup were dashed by Liverpool, after a late Dirk Kuyt goal won it for the home side.

United started off well and for the first 20 minutes of the game they looked the likely team to score first. Valencia hit the post with a long range drive which came from a long spell of United possession, before Liverpool’s Agger put Liverpool 1-0 ahead in the 21st minute with a well taken header.

United drew level with a 38th minute goal expertly assisted by youngster Rafael and placed perfectly in the bottom right corner by Korean sensation Park Ji Sung.

The second half didn’t take long to excite as Liverpool appealed for hand ball by Chris Smalling in the United box but referee Mark Halsey was quick to dismiss it.  Meanwhile United hit on the counter and a great chance fell to Danny Welbeck as he put the ball past Reina, but lacked the power to send it across the line and it was easily cleared by Martin Skrtel.

The last half hour saw Liverpool make 2 changes, Charlie Adam came on for Carragher and immediately tested De Gea with a shot across the goal which ended in a Liverpool corner.

With full time almost upon us and a reply at Old Trafford likely, sub Dirt Kuyt latched on to a long ball and fired past De Gea to win it for Liverpool. United were unlucky on the day and will feel aggrieved to have been knocked out after putting in a good display at Anfield.

Here are my player ratings for the United players.

De Gea 6/10 – I would have felt much better if the keeping duties had have been left to Lindegaard. For what its worth though De Gea tried his best and was often put under pressure which ultimately led to Aggers goal, but the Spaniard made some decent saves in the second half.

Rafael 7/10 – Cannot fault the young Brazilian with some excellent chance creation which ultimately led to United’s equaliser.

Smalling 7/10 – Although lacking in experience, i think he is slowly growing in to his role and looking more comfortable in the United shirt. Decent performance on Saturday.

Evans 5/10 – To be honest, i was quite disappointed with Johnny’s display. His positioning and passing were particularly poor.

Evra 7/10 – Let me first say what a good sportsman Evra is, the crowd at Anfield gave him a hard time whenever he had possession or was remotely near to the home fans and Patrice kept his cool. However, a good display was ruined by being caught out for Kuyt’s winner.

Valencia 7.5/10 – Saw a superb shot bounce off the post and was a constant menace throughout.

Scholes 6/10 – Kept things ticking over but not his most influential display in a United shirt. Subbed for Hernandez.

Carrick 6/10 – Again, not Carrick’s best performance as United failed to dominate the middle of the park.

Giggs 6.5/10 – Played reasonably well but didn’t have the influence on the final third that we come to expect from Giggsy.

Park 7/10 – Superb goal from the Korean and an ok game all round.

Welbeck 6/10 – Worked hard up front in the absence of Rooney, but will have far better days ahead of him.

Thanks to United fan Daniel Heath for submitting this guest blog post.