Manuel Ugarte dominated but his 44-touch teammate had his best game of the season vs Liverpool

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Manchester United made a mockery of pre-game predictions by coming away with a draw at Anfield against Liverpool which could have been a win.

Far from being a smash-and-grab, Manchester United went toe-to-toe with arguably the most in-form team in all of Europe and almost came away with the bragging rights.

United had plenty of heroes in the game, from Manuel Ugarte dominating in the middle of the park to Noussair Mazraoui shining with and without the ball.

Bruno Fernandes perfectly balanced chance-creation with possession-retention and Leny Yoro had a star-making tackle in his limited time on the pitch.

However, one player who is flying under the radar made so much of that happen with his best game of the season coming when the stakes were the highest.

Kobbie Mainoo stitches it all together in midfield

Paul Scholes said after the game that Manuel Ugarte is an untouchable at Man Utd right now but added that Kobbie Mainoo is his ideal midfield partner too.

Mainoo, who has struggled to match the heady heights of last season when he looked a class above everyone on the pitch, gave a reminder of his qualities against Liverpool.

Tasked with progressing the play while Ugarte did sweeping actions without the ball, Mainoo was at his street football best with his slick play.

He skipped past the ferocious Liverpool press with smart feints and dribbles and always showed for a pass to create numerical overloads in midfield.

Mainoo overcame the tendency to play it safe and risked losing the ball to probe Liverpool with progressive passing, while also balancing it perfectly with smart sideways passing too.

He completed just 22 passes on the day but this was a game about quality, not quantity, as he made every single one of those passes count. Two of his 44 touches were in the opposition box but without him in the middle of the park, United wouldn’t be anywhere near as comfortable.

Mainoo is getting used to Ruben Amorim’s system

These are ominous signs for the rest of the league that after some growing pains, Kobbie Mainoo is looking at home in Amorim’s system.

His absence was conspicuous at the start of Amorim’s tenure but it should have been understandable because injuries robbed him of crucial training time when Amorim was just starting out.

He has effectively been asked to learn a new system and role while playing games and that has led to mistakes, misunderstandings, and a fall in levels.

Now that the team has a settled look to it and Mainoo is getting clarity over his role, he has started coming into his own and showing the potential that made him the toast of English football just a few months ago.

This will only become better with playing time which bodes well for United because beyond Ugarte and Mainoo, a rebuild could be coming in the midfield.

At least their first-choice pairing looks settled and thriving.