Liverpool produced a legendary Anfield display in the 240th edition of the North-West’s flagship derby, beating eternal rivals Manchester United 7-0 to emphatically add fuel to their chase for a seventh straight top-four finish.Everton almost get back on track, but it ends in nothing but a nervous wreckEager to avenge August’s loss at Old Trafford, which brought their first league defeat in this fixture since 2018, Liverpool took charge of the opening exchanges. However, it was United dynamo Bruno Fernandes who spurned the game’s first golden chance, glancing his header narrowly wide from six yards out as both teams fought for control. A scrappy first half then had a full-blooded finale, as Casemiro’s headed goal was ruled out for offside, before Cody Gakpo gave Liverpool the lead with a composed finish from 10 yards, sending Anfield wild.Joy for Liverpool then turned into an ecstatic celebration shortly after halftime, as Darwin Núñez doubled the Reds’ lead just minutes into the second period. A dinked cross from youngster Harvey Elliott saw the Uruguayan unable to miss from a matter of yards, giving the Reds what looked like an unassailable lead. United visibly imploded from there, quickly conceding a third. This one had a finer touch of class by comparison, with Mohamed Salah and Gakpo combining superbly, before the Dutch forward applied the cheekiest of lobs which beat David de Gea and put Liverpool in dreamland.It was just a matter of when the fourth would arrive, and Salah eventually obliged with 25 minutes to go, as the Egypt international smashed in a howitzer of an effort to become the first Liverpool player to score in six consecutive appearances against Manchester United. The next goal on an awful afternoon for the Red Devils came in the form of another Núñez header, which saw hordes of visiting supporters leave the stadium.While there may have been a desire to retain energy ahead of a crucial second-leg Champions League tie against Real Madrid in the Spanish capital, Salah and Roberto Firmino refused to take pity on their stricken opponents. They tapped in goals number six and seven with insulting ease to cap off a thoroughly memorable afternoon for the Anfield faithful, while rubber-stamping Liverpool’s first seven-goal haul against the Red Devils since April 1916.Having made a thorough mockery of both the form book and their visitors, Liverpool now sit just three points adrift of fourth-placed Newcastle United, while leaving the utterly annihilated visitors 14 points behind neighbours Manchester City. The Red Devils’ already-improbable title dreams now lie in smoldering ruins, but worse could be yet to come, after TV cameras spotted Bruno Fernandes pushing an official to cap off a nightmare display.129 – Mohamed Salah is now Liverpool’s all-time leading scorer in the Premier League, netting 129 times in 205 appearances in the competition. King. pic.twitter.com/bMd7RIm2wb— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 5, 2023 PREMIER LEAGUERound 26SaturdayMan City – Newcastle 2- 0 (1-0)/Foden 15, Bernardo Silva 67/Arsenal – Bournemouth 3-2 (0-1)/Partey 62, White 70, Nelson 90+7 – Billing 1, Senesi 57/Aston Villa – Crystal Palace 1-0 (1-0)/Andersen 27 og/Brighton – West Ham 4-0 (1-0)/Mac Allister 18 pen, Veltman 51, Mitoma 69, Welbeck 89/Chelsea – Leeds 1-0 (0-0)/Fofana 53/Wolves – Tottenham 1-0 (0-0)/Traore 82/Southampton – Leicester 1-0 (1-0)/Alcaraz 35/SundayNott.Forest – Everton 2-2 (1-2)/Jonhson 19, 77 – Gray 10 pen, Doucoure 29/Liverpool – Man.Utd. 7-0 (1-0)/Gakpo 43, 50, Nunez 47, 76, Salah 66, 83, Firmino 88/Monday23:00: (2.15) Brentford (3.50) Fulham (3.60)***odds are subject to change***
