Manchester United vs Liverpool: 10 jaw-dropping stats from Man Utd's crucial victory over Liverpool

Manchester United vs Liverpool was a match of massive surprises. The Red Devils had entered the 2022-23 season with something approaching optimism under Ten Hag but shambolic defeats against Brighton and Brentford left the club bottom of the league and ramped up the pressure on the former Ajax boss instantly.

Something had to change against arch-rivals Liverpool and Ten Hag ran the changes before the Old Trafford clash. Out went Cristiano Ronaldo, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw and Fred with Antony Elanga, Scott McTominay, Tyrell Malacia and Raphael Varane replacing them.

And Ten Hag was rewarded with a strong start as United tore into Liverpool. Elanga hit the post before Jadon Sancho scored a composed strike to send the United faithful into raptures.

After surviving a scare when Bruno Fernandes almost nudged the ball over the line, Marcus Rashford doubled United's lead with a clinical finish to leave the Red Devils on the verge of improbable success.

And, despite Mohamed Salah halving the deficit with a late effort, United held on to move out of the Premier League relegation zone and kickstart the Ten Hag era at Old Trafford.

After the Manchester United vs Liverpool match, United are now above Liverpool in the embryonic Premier League table and we've collected 10 incredible stats that demonstrate the importance of their win.

Manchester United vs Liverpool: 10 jaw-dropping stats :

1. Jadon Sancho opened the scoring with a composed finish that sent Old Trafford into raptures. It was Sancho's fourth Premier League goal for United, which also includes strikes against Chelsea and Manchester City. He's clearly the man for the big occasion.

2. And his performance set the tone for a much-improved United display. Sancho completed two successful dribbles and made one key pass alongside his goal and caused Trent Alexander-Arnold untold problems.

3. Lisandro Martinez enjoyed an excellent first-half performance; he completed 100% of his successful dribbles, made three ball recoveries, two clearances and one crucial block on the line to prevent Bruno Fernandes from scoring an own-goal.

4. Marcus Rashford scored for the first time since 22 January against West Ham, ending a 17-game and 997-minute run without a goal.

5. His second-half strike was his fifth for United against Liverpool – only Wayne Rooney (6) has scored more.

6. While only Jamie Vardy (9) and Harry Kane (8) have scored more against Liverpool during Jurgen Klopp's reign.

7. United were the first side to take a 2-0 lead in a Premier League match against Liverpool since the Reds' 7-2 spanking at Aston Villa in October 2020.

8. The Red Devils have still not lost a home league match when leading at half-time since Ipswich Town beat them 2-1 in May 1984.

9. And United have still never lost a Premier League match against Liverpool when they've been leading at half-time, winning 18 out of 21 such matches and drawing the remaining three.

10. It was also their first league victory against Liverpool since a 2-1 success under Jose Mourinho in March 2018 and just their second in the last 13 fixtures against their bitter rivals.