CLASH OF THE TITANS

CLASH OF THE TITANS

The rivalry between the two greatest clubs in the history of English football re-ignited once again this weekend as both Liverpool FC (LFC) and Manchester United FC (MUFC) meet again seeking  early drifts into their traditional “top four” positions. One must hover recall, that this is not just a soccer rivalry but also a clash of the most influential cities – oh yeah, in England.

The rivalry between the two clubs can be traced back to the industrial times when both Manchester and Liverpool were competing for the control of the northwest. While Manchester was mainly a manufacturing city, the importance of Liverpool on the hand lay in its ports and therefore Manchester had to depend directly on Liverpool for importation and exportation of goods. But this trend was not to last forever. The Manchester Ship Canal was built and completed in 1894 making it the longest ship canal in the world as at then. The implication of the canal was that Manchester did not Liverpool again as goods could bypass Liverpool directly to Manchester and out, this in turn meant less dues for Liverpool. Along this line, an all round rivalry was drawn – Not surprising, it has extended into soccer. 

Both clubs are known as the greatest English Football club having won over 50 major trophies each. This rivalry is fueled more by individual players on and off the field. For example in 2007, John O’shea of Manchester United  scored a last minute winner which the then captain Gary Neville celebrated in front of Liverpool fans while kissing the crest on his jersey and shouting angrily at Liverpool fans and branding it a “lifelong dream” for O’shea. In the 2011-12 season, the rivalry was again brought to lime light when Manchester united defender, Evra claimed to have been racially abused by Liverpool Striker – Luis Suarez. This was later confirmed by the FA panel and led to the suspension of Suarez for eight games. However on   11 February 2012, when the two clubs met again at Old Trafford – Manchester United’s home, Suarez refused to shake hands with Evra before kickoff but went ahead to shake hands with the next Manchester united player in line – De Gea. Rio Ferdinand and Danny Welbeck were annoyed by Suarez’s action and they therefore declined his handshake. Manchester united went ahead to win the game with Evra scoring the winner in a 2:1 thriller and celebrated in front of Liverpool fans.

Similarly the transfer market has not witnessed a move by a player from either club to the other in 49 years with Phil Chisnall being the last player to cross sides – from Manchester United to Liverpool in 1964.

CLUB ACHIEVMENT

TEAM	LG	FA	LC	EUROPEAN CUP	UEFA CUP	CWC	COM SHIELD	USC	IC	CLUB WORLD CUP	TOTAL
LFC	18	7	8	5	3	0	15	3	0	0	59
MUFC	20	11	4	3	0	1	20	1	1	1	62
COMBINED	38	19	12	8	3	1	35	4	1	1	121

*LG – League, LC – League cup, CWC – Cup Winners Cup, USP – UEFA super cup, IC – Intercontinental cup.

PAST ENCOUNTERS (Last Five head to head Games)

Date	Home Team	Score	Away Team	Venue	Competition
15 October 2011	Liverpool	1–1	Manchester United	Anfield	Premier League
28 January 2012	Liverpool	2–1	Manchester United	Anfield	FA Cup
11 February 2012	Manchester United	2–1	Liverpool	Old Trafford	Premier League
23 September 2012	Liverpool	1–2	Manchester United	Anfield	Premier League
13 January 2013	Manchester United	2–1	Liverpool	Old Trafford	Premier League

7 Quick facts about the Match

1.      Manchester United have been given eight red cards versus Liverpool in the Barclays Premier League; more than against any other team. Could it be a dirty tie again?

2.      Daniel Sturridge has scored 10 goals in his last eight appearances in all competitions for Liverpool - a big threat to Man U’s defense.

3.      Liverpool last started a Premier League season with three consecutive wins in 1994/95 when Roy Evans was in charge.

4.      Last season’s 2-1 win was the first time in five seasons that Manchester United won at Anfield in the Premier League, having drawn one and lost 3.

5.      Steven Gerrard has scored four goals in his last six Premier League appearances against Manchester United; including a goal in each of the last two encounters at Anfield – Could he repeat it this Sunday?

6.      David Moyes masterminded just three wins in 22 Premier League clashes with Liverpool when he was Everton manager, drawing seven and losing twelve. None of those wins came at Anfield – Will he make history this Sunday?

7.      Only Robin van Persie has scored four times in his last three Premier League appearances against Liverpool (twice for Arsenal and twice in two games for Manchester United).

The match kicks off at 1:30 pm at Anifield on Sunday 01 September 2013. Good luck lads.