Why United are aiming for rare double

Why United are aiming for rare double

It is very rare that Manchester United face Merseyside neighbours Everton and Liverpool in consecutive games, but that is the case with our huge Emirates FA Cup quarter-final with Jurgen Klopp’s men looming large.

There has only been one instance of the Reds facing the two clubs in succession in the Premier League era. That came during the 2007/08 season, when Carlos Tevez struck the only goal at Anfield, just before-half time. A week later, a couple of days before Christmas, two Cristiano Ronaldo strikes accounted for Everton at Old Trafford, earning a 2-1 triumph.

They were key wins as United went on to lift the Premier League title, while also enjoying success in the UEFA Champions League, as Sir Alex Ferguson’s side flexed their muscles.

In the 2010/11 campaign, we did have consecutive league clashes with the two Mersey outfits, firstly drawing 3-3 at Everton, as current Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta snatched an injury-time equaliser for the Toffees. What followed was a memorable 3-2 home victory over Liverpool, courtesy of a Dimitar Berbatov hat-trick.

However, there was a Champions League game with Rangers, that finished 0-0, sandwiched between the two fixtures.

A clever corner routine leads to Carlos Tevez’s winning goal at Anfield in 2007.

The previous occasion of a double header came before the start of the new league, in 1989/90, the year we won the FA Cup, Ferguson’s first trophy since taking charge of the club.

A goalless draw against Everton, a couple of months before the cup final against Crystal Palace, preceded a 2-1 home loss to Liverpool. John Barnes netted twice for the visitors, although we pulled one back through an own goal by Ronnie Whelan. These league fixtures were hot on the heels of the FA Cup quarter-final victory at Sheffield United, courtesy of Brian McClair’s winner.

There have been other double headers in the past, judging by the research of trawling through the archives. In 1981/82, Ron Atkinson’s men lost to a Craig Johnston effort for Liverpool at Old Trafford, before an entertaining 3-3 draw at Goodison Park, with Steve Coppell netting twice and Ashley Grimes on the scoresheet.

In another campaign that ended with an FA Cup triumph, ironically against Everton, we did play the Blues twice on the trot earlier in the 1984/85 season. A humbling 5-0 reverse away from home was compounded three days later, in October 1984, by an exit from the League Cup. We were eliminated 2-1, by an own goal by ex-Toffees defender John Gidman, despite Alan Brazil scoring for the Reds at Old Trafford.

Those results highlight just how good a win, and performance, it was at Wembley, when Norman Whiteside’s extra-time beauty sealed a classic triumph for the 10 men.

At the beginning of the 1972/73 term, our second fixture was at Anfield, as Frank O’Farrell’s side lost 2-0, before going down by the same scoreline at Goodison, four days later.

In 1970/71, again quite early in the season, we defeated the Toffees 2-0 at Old Trafford, with the goalscorers Bobby Charlton and George Best, and then earned a point away to Liverpool, with Brian Kidd finding the net in a 1-1 draw.

There were no other Mersey double missions since the end of the Second World War, aside from facing Everton twice in quick succession in 1965/66, losing 1-0 in the FA Cup semi-final at Bolton Wanderers’ Burnden Park and then drawing 0-0 at Goodison in the league.

Let’s hope, after beating the Blues last weekend, that United can emerge victorious again on home turf, in Sunday’s 15:30 GMT kick-off against Liverpool.

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