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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Mark Wakefield

Paul Merson makes 'scary' Liverpool vs Man United claim amid Gary Neville point

Paul Merson has explained why he found it “scary” watching Liverpool beat Manchester United.

The Reds claimed a 7-0 victory in the Premier League clash at Anfield on Sunday. It was Liverpool’s biggest win over their bitter rivals in their history.

Liverpool went into the half-time break 1-0 up, and scored six second-half goals to complete the resounding victory. Mohamed Salah, Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo got two goals each, with Roberto Firmino also on the score sheet.

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Merson has referenced comments made by fellow pundit Gary Neville, who was commentating on the fixture. Merson says he found it “scary” seeing some of the action unfold at Anfield.

"When Gary Neville is telling us on the TV that Bruno Fernandes is throwing his hands up because he wants to come off - it's mind-blowing. It was scary,” Merson told Sky Sports.

“They were never in the Premier League title race in a million years. 7-0 is so embarrassing. There are no excuses. I don't care if you have two players sent off, you shouldn't get beaten by seven with that quality of players.

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"They downed tools. They gave up. I hate saying that but it was a complete and utter mess. The name of the game is to make sure this doesn't undo everything - it's about how quickly you bounce back. Good teams bounce back.

"There are ways of losing football matches, sometimes you're unlucky. But you don't lose like that. They've got top quality players and it shouldn't have unravelled like that. Liverpool had United on the floor and they wanted to keep them down there."

Merson went on to say that he thought United got their tactics wrong. He also says why he thinks Trent Alexander-Arnold ‘wouldn’t have believed his luck’ with the approach from the visitors.

"The manager, for me, has been getting away with it,” said Merson. “Yes, he's done great in a way.

“But Wout Weghorst as a No 10, I'm not having that. How is he a No 10? How is the manager getting away with that? It's Manchester United Football Club and you've got Weghorst as a 10 - he can't turn and run, he can't pass through the eye of a needle. What is the thinking?

"I'm not blaming Ten Hag because they lost, but why play Marcus Rashford against Virgil van Dijk? He plays out wide every week.

"You've got Liverpool's weakest defender in Trent Alexander-Arnold having a free ride. Trent wouldn't have believed his luck.

“Man Utd got it tactically wrong. I couldn't believe it when I saw the set-up of the team - there is only one manager who could have got away with that and that is Ten Hag."

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