Premier League 2018-19: 5 things we learned as Shaqiri propels Liverpool to top spot with United victory

After the heroic win against Napoli that saw them progress to the next stage of the Champions League, Liverpool faced their fierce rivals Manchester United on Matchday 17 of the Premier League.

United came into the game on the back of a 2-1 Champions League defeat at the hands of Valencia. And United's blue neighbours, City, had put pressure on Liverpool after their 3-1 victory over Liverpool's Merseyside neighbours Everton.

But none of that affected the Reds and they won 3-1 thanks to a brace from Xherdan Shaqiri. This win put Liverpool back to the top of the Premier League table.

Here is a list of five things we learned from the game:

#5 Clyne can still do a job for Liverpool

Liverpool have endured some injury problems at the back in the last couple of weeks with Gomez, Matip and Alexander-Arnold all missing due to injury. Luckily for Klopp, Clyne and Lovren had both just returned to training and were fit for the big game.

Clyne had not started a league game for the Reds this season and some would have thought he would have been off the pace. However, that was far from the case and he looked rather comfortable at right back.

The England international was rarely troubled and dealt well with Rashford on the left. He deserves massive credit for coming in and performing as well as he did after such a long time out of the first team, and that too in such a big game for Liverpool's season.

Clyne also offered great support going forward. He often overlapped Mane to create space for the cross by dragging players out of their positions or just as another option for Mane when the cross wasn't on.

The former Southampton man has been linked with a move away from the club in the coming transfer window. But with performances like this one, he could prove to be a solid back-up to Trent Alexander-Arnold.

#4 This is a completely different Liverpool

Liverpool FC v Manchester United - Premier League

Manchester United have had the better of Liverpool in recent years, thoroughly dominating this fierce rivalry. Jose Mourinho has also had a very good record when facing Liverpool over the last few years.

United were unbeaten in the last eight games against Liverpool in the league, and Mourinho was also unbeaten in his last six games at Anfield. The Reds hadn't beaten United since 2013, when Sturridge scored in a 1-0 victory.

However, the comfortable victory today showed that this is a completely different Liverpool side that Klopp has built. The Reds outclassed United and managed 36 attempts on goal whilst having most of the possession.

This was one of the most dominating performances in the fixture's history and it just shows how much this Liverpool team have improved.

It wasn't even Liverpool's strongest side, yet they still bossed the game. Milner, Gomez and Alexander-Arnold all missed the game, but it didn't look as though Klopp missed them too much with such a stellar performance from his men.

Liverpool now sit 1 point clear at the top of the table after this convincing victory, and 19 points clear of Mourinho and United.

#3 Mourinho's days at United may be numbered

Mourinho is world-renowned as one of the best managers to grace the beautiful game, but in recent times at Manchester United things haven't been going his way. Whether it's not getting the players that he wants or falling out with his own players, it seems to be going from bad to worse at United for the Portuguese manager.

He's spent over 400 million pounds since he took over at Old Trafford, but his squad seems to be in pieces. Lukaku hasn't been scoring as much as he used to, and Pogba looks like half of the player that they signed from Italian giants Juventus.

Worse still, the former Chelsea manager's tactics look out of date, and they go completely against the United way.

His United side have been massively out of sorts this season. After the Liverpool defeat, they now languish in sixth place, 11 points off the top 4. They are also closer to bottom club Fulham (17 points) than they are to Liverpool at the top of the table (19 points).

If he can't change the fortunes at United, and continues to go about his business the way he is right now, Mourinho's days could be numbered.

#2 Fabinho is settling in well

Fabinho arrived at Merseyside from Monaco in the summer for a fee of £40 million. It has taken a while for him to get regular game time, but in recent weeks he's made the defensive midfield position his own.

His first outstanding game came against Red Star in the Champions League. He rarely lost a duel in the match, and his passes always seemed to find their man. After a few solid performances in recent games, he produced another outstanding one today.

The Brazillian international was immense in the middle of the park for Liverpool and dictated the tempo of the game. Fabinho usually plies his trade as a defensive midfielder, but he also showed his excellent playmaking abilities today.

Whilst winning 4 defensive duels in the middle of the park, the 24-year-old also created two chances and assisted Mane's opener in what turned out to be a stellar performance.

Fabinho has really impressed on a couple of occasions now, and if the Brazilian continues what he is doing he could continue to keep club captain, Jordan Henderson, out of the starting 11.

1# Shaqiri has been a bargain for Klopp

Shaqiri was relegated with Stoke last season, and in order to ensure that he didn't face a season in the Championship, Liverpool triggered a clause in his contract which saw him arrive at the club for a fee of £13.5 million.

Shaqiri's signing created mixed reactions at Liverpool, with some wondering why Klopp and Edwards decided to sign someone from a relegated club, and others hoping he could prove to be good cover for Salah and Mane.

But Shaqiri has been more than a back-up to Klopp since he arrived at Liverpool. He has been an integral part in the way the German has set up his side this season whenever he has played.

The Swiss came off the bench in the game against Manchester United and scored two goals, which proved to be the winning goals. Both goals may have been aided by a deflection but that hardly matters; Shaqiri's haul shows that he is a big game player and someone Liverpool can rely upon, if needed.

This brace against Mourinho's United now takes his goal tally to 5 for the season in just 13 games, with six of these games coming as a substitute. Four of his goals have come in his last five games at Anfield. The Swiss international also has three assists in all competitions for Liverpool this season.

At £13.5 million, the 27-year-old now looks like a steal.

Edited by Musab Abid