United escaped with a draw against Liverpool (Photo by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images)
Manchester United legend Gary Neville says the tactics deployed by Erik ten Hag are ‘mental’.
The Red Devils held Liverpool to a 2-2 draw at Old Trafford on Sunday, despite Jurgen Klopp’s men laying siege on United’s goal during the opening 45 minutes.
Liverpool should have comfortably put the game to bed, with United failing to have a shot until Bruno Fernandes scored from almost 50 yards.
United then went ahead thanks to a sublime effort from Kobbie Mainoo, but Mohamed Salah scored from the penalty spot to ensure the points were shared.
And Neville has praised Mainoo for somehow managing to thrive in the ‘mad’ and ‘mental’ tactics that Ten Hag deploys in midfield, where United man-mark their opposition.
Mainoo scored his third goal for the club (Picture: Getty)
‘You’ve got to be pretty special to produce a moment like that in a one-off, but in a game like this against Liverpool as a young kid, there aren’t many that do that. Honestly, there’s not many that do that,’ Neville told Sky Sports.
‘He’s a fantastic talent. He’s playing in a team that lacks any type of organisation in midfield. You have him, Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes in there and the three of them – individually – are really good players but you look at them and think: ‘Where is the cohesion in how they play?’
‘It’s mental! It’s madness! It’s chaotic! You can’t use any other words than that. He has a great temperament, he takes the ball, he can do most things pretty well, it’s exciting for Manchester United.’
United take on Bournemouth on the south coast in their next fixture and the club likely need seven wins from their remaining seven matches to salvage any hope of a Champions League qualification spot.
Liverpool face Atalanta in the Europa League on Thursday, before resuming Premier League duty against Crystal Palace.
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