Manchester United Topples Liverpool to End Two-Year Champions League Absence

Manchester United is headed back to the Champions League. A 3-2 win against Liverpool on Sunday confirmed United’s return to European club soccer’s top competition after a two-year absence. Kobbie Mainoo settled a thrilling Premier League clash at Old Trafford with his first-time strike from the edge of the area after defending champion Liverpool had fought back from two goals down. The victory saw head coach Michael Carrick achieve the target he was set in January when he was handed the job until the end of the season. Rescuing United’s season from freefall, he has led the club to third in the standings and produced statement wins against Arsenal, Manchester City and now Liverpool. Victory will strengthen calls for Carrick to be given the role on a permanent basis. “When Michael comes, he came with magic. Alex Ferguson vibes,” United forward Matheus Cunha said with reference to the club’s iconic former manager. “At the end of the day, this is just the start of the journey. It’s the beginning, a beautiful beginning.” Ferguson had planned to watch the match at Old Trafford but left the stadium and went to the hospital as a precaution when feeling unwell before kick off. The fact United secured a Champions League return against its fiercest rival Liverpool only added to the scenes of celebration after the final whistle. It was the first time United has completed a league double of home-and-away wins against the Merseyside club since the 2015-16 campaign. United is six points ahead of fourth-placed Liverpool with three rounds of the season to go. It marks a significant improvement on last term when it was 42 points behind Arne Slot’s title-winning team. Cunha put United ahead after six minutes with a left-footed strike from inside the box and Benjamin Sesko doubled the lead in the 14th when bundling in from close range. United’s dominance should have produced more goals with Bruno Fernandes wasting a good chance to add a third. But the game was turned on its head after the break as Dominik Szoboszlai pulled one back for Liverpool two minutes into the second half and then a mix-up in United’s defense allowed Cody Gakpo to equalize in the 56th. United regained its composure and Mainoo’s strike saw Old Trafford erupt in celebration. Liverpool knows what it needs to be back in the Champions League next season. “I wouldn’t say concerned is the right word, but I’m completely aware of the fact that we need three points,” Slot said. “That’s why I was so annoyed that we didn’t pick them up today. Although we didn’t deserve to get these points in the first half, it’s completely clear that if you are 2-2 coming back from 2-0 down, then you should at least go away here with the result, which we didn’t do.” Bournemouth’s Champions League bid Bournemouth earlier strengthened its unlikely push for Champions League qualification with a 3-0 win against Crystal Palace. Bournemouth is sixth in the standings, with the top five guaranteed to qualify for the Champions League. That could be extended to the top six if Aston Villa wins the Europa League and finishes fifth. Reporting by The Associated Press.