A visibly dissatisfied Ralf Rangnick described Manchester United’s 4-0 defeat by Liverpool at Anfield as “embarrassing and humiliating”, with Jurgen Klopp’s side taking a two-point lead ahead of Manchester City hosts Brighton in the Premier League title race on Wednesday went.
Rangnick made the surprising selection from Phil Jones in an unfamiliar three-man defense that was broken through by Luis Díaz after just five minutes. Two goals from Mohamed Salah and a goal from Sadio Mané completed Liverpool’s league double against United 9-0 on aggregate.
Rangnick said: “It’s embarrassing, it’s disappointing, maybe even humiliating. We have to accept that they are now six years ahead of us. When Jurgen Klopp came [in October 2015] They changed the club and not only raised the team, but the club and the city to a new level. That has to happen with us in the next transfer window.
“We have to be critical of ourselves. The way we played in the first 45 minutes wasn’t what we wanted to see or play in any area. Since we didn’t have all of our defensive midfielders available, we opted for the back five. I made the decision immediately after the Norwich game [a 3-2 win]. Norwich had five or six great chances and without David de Gea we could have conceded three or four.
“I don’t think the first half had anything to do with our formation. The way we conceded the first goal was definitely not part of our game plan. It affected our confidence. The first half wasn’t good enough. We switched from a five-man chain to a four-man chain [at the break] and the first 25 minutes of the second half were better.”
The defeat leaves United in sixth place, three points behind Tottenham in fourth after playing a game in hand, hurting their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League.
“I don’t think they’re checked out mentally, it’s just a different level,” Rangnick said. “They have better players than us and that really showed in the result today.
“There will definitely be a change, that was clear to me in the first three or four weeks. It’s extremely embarrassing for us. We just have to admit that they are better than us – I would say they have 25 Formula 1 cars in their squad.
“What I say in the dressing room stays there, but in general it’s similar to what I say now. In the first half we were spectators of what happens on the pitch when you play against a team like Liverpool. If you can’t win the ball, put some pressure on because we just didn’t attack. It almost looked like we were scared of being outplayed.”
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While Paul Pogba could miss the next two games after limping away in the first half, Klopp hailed a “perfect” night for his side. “It was top-level, a great evening, there’s nothing to complain about football-wise,” he said.
Commenting on the 9-0 aggregate result against United, Klopp said: “It’s for the fans if they want to celebrate, not for me. I’m not here to humiliate my opponent. We started the game better than we finished it, in between we had a phase in which we had to adapt to the different high-press system organization of the opponent [after half-time]. We were significantly better in the first half.”
In the seventh minute, the whole stadium applauded Cristiano Ronaldo, whose little son died on Monday. “My favorite moment,” said Klopp. “Pure class at this moment.”