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[Premier League] Mbemo scores a lightning goal! Manchester United leads Liverpool 1-0 at the start

3:58am, 20 October 2025【Football】

Sports Weekly reports from all media

The finale of the 8th round of the Premier League was the "Double Reds", with Liverpool facing Manchester United at home. Before the international break, Manchester United beat Sunderland 2-0 to stop the decline, but the team's performance was erratic, winning one game and losing one. Boss Ratcliffe also publicly expressed his trust in coach Amorim. The two-week break gave the Red Devils some breathing time. Liverpool has just suffered a three-game losing streak, and the problem of covering up consecutive wins at the beginning of the season has been completely exposed. The defending champion Xia Chuang has undergone quite a shake-up, and running-in and stabilization still require a process.

Only 1 minute into the game, Amad made a direct pass, Mbemo inserted into the right rib of the penalty area and pushed the goal. Manchester United scored in a flash, 1-0!

In the 20th minute, Liverpool counterattacked continuously in the backcourt, and Huckpo's shot hit the post and bounced out.

In the 24th minute, Amad hit the center with an inverted triangle, and B Fee's shot hit the outside post.

In the 27th minute, Manchester United got consecutive opportunities in the frontcourt, and Liverpool's penalty area was in turmoil.

In the 31st minute, Ha Kebo made a pass from the bottom, and the ball in the B fee changed line and popped out of the post.

In the 35th minute, Konate made a direct pass from midfield, and Isaac's single shot was resolved by Lamang's foot.

In terms of track record, Manchester United has not won in the past 8 away games in the Premier League (2 draws and 6 losses), which is close to the worst record (11 games) in the early days of Ferguson's tenure. Amorim's team has conceded 9 goals in 4 away games in all competitions this season. In the Premier League, only Burnley and West Ham have a higher expected goals conceded value. While opponents expect goals per shot, Manchester United has the highest expected goals in the Premier League. This shows that Manchester United's defense is very unstable.

At the same time, Manchester United only scored 9 goals in the first 7 rounds, but they had the most shots in the Premier League. The expected goals value of 14.1 was also the highest. In addition, 2 goals were own goals by the opponent. Therefore, on a technical level, their actual goals were 7 fewer than the expected goals. They are among the worst in the five major European leagues.

Liverpool spent a lot of money to strengthen the front line, but the biggest problem exposed was the stability of the defense line. Arnold was criticized for playing on the right side, but after he left, Liverpool's defense on the right became the hardest hit area. Frimpong still needs to adapt to the Premier League. Whether Bradley starts or Szoboszlai plays as a guest, it is difficult to reassure people.

This season in the Premier League, 43.5% of the opportunities created by Liverpool's opponents came from their right wing, while only 28.2% were from the other side. For Liverpool at this stage, right-side defense is their weakness. Coupled with the unstable performance of central defender Konate, Slott's team has only achieved zero seals against Arsenal and Burnley since the beginning of the season.

Of course, considering the special significance of the Double Red Club, the two teams have gone through more than ten days of preparation, and their performance cannot be judged by common sense. For example, Salah had a sluggish start to the season, but he is a historical Red Devil killer. He has scored 13 goals and 6 assists against Manchester United in the Premier League, more than any other player. As long as he scores one more goal, he will become the sixth player in Premier League history to directly participate in more than 20 goals against a single opponent. Now that Egypt has secured their place at the World Cup, he can focus back on his club.

In general, Manchester United's defense is unstable, and their offense is vigorous but inefficient; Liverpool's defense is also unstable, and their offense fails to show its due strength. It can be expected that this will be a lively game for both sides. Coupled with the open playing style and the bonus of historical grievances, there is reason to believe that this double red will not present a boring situation like when Liverpool played Arsenal.

Liverpool starting line-up: Mamardashvili, Van Dijk, Konate, Kyle Kets, Szoboszlai, Isaac, McAllister, Salah, Bradley, Huckpo, Hrafenberch

Liverpool substitutes: Woodman, Joe Gomez, Wirtz, Chiesa, Curtis Jones, Ekitic, Ronaldo Burson, Frimpong, Ngumoha

Manchester United starting line-up: Lamang, Dalot, De Ligt, Maguire, Mount, Bruno Fernandez, Cunha, Amade, Casemiro, Mbemo, Luke Shaw

Manchester United substitutes: Bayander, Mazraoui, Zirkzee, Dorgu, Yoro, Ugarte, Haven, Sheshko, Menu