Former Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge struggled to keep a straight face as Roy Keane and Sky Sports presenter Dave Jones misheard part of his match analysis. Discussing Manchester United goalkeeper Senne Lamence’s role in Liverpool’s equalizer, Sturridge said he was “turning the tables”, and the pair couldn’t help but laugh at the surprisingly similar-sounding expletives.
A visibly furious Sturridge could only reply: “Come on, guys” as he implored his Sky Sports colleagues to unite. Although perhaps not as panicked as Lamence himself after giving Liverpool a route back into the game.
There was little room for laughs in Keane’s verdict on the goal when Kodi Gakpo equalized and Koby Mainu’s winner settled matters as Liverpool mounted a fightback. Despite this, the former Manchester United captain was reluctant to criticize Belgian shot-stopper Lamence too much.
“Honestly, let’s just go long,” Keene said as he broke up Lamence’s pass. “What’s the point in making that pass? It’s too risky. What defines the players is their decisions.
“The goalkeeper was great. Let’s not be too hard on him, but when you’re under pressure and you see Liverpool press, you try not to miss.”
United’s blunder came after they held a commanding 2-0 lead in a dominant opening game. Matheus Cunha broke the deadlock and Benjamin Sesko scored in somewhat controversial circumstances.
Dominik Szoboszlai hit back in the 47th minute, and Gakpo took advantage of Lamence’s wayward pass. However, it was United who booked their place in the final thanks to Maynou’s brilliant performance.
United manager Michael Carrick was delighted to see his side’s resilience as they secured a place in the Champions League. “We’ve been scoring a lot of goals. We’ve been scoring goals in almost every game,” he said.
“If anything, our big weakness was that we worked out of possession and were difficult to play against. We tried to bring our strengths into the game. We had a great start to the game.
“I’m equally happy with the way the game ended. After two setbacks so quickly we could have almost been beaten, but the character and belief the players showed was really great. Mistakes happen.”
Asked about the future, Carrick said: “I’m happy with where I am at the moment and I want to get better. Let’s see what happens next.”
“I’m not thinking about that at the moment.”
