Man United target once ‘humiliated’ Liverpool with first-half hat-trick, Jurgen Klopp’s worst ever loss

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Manchester United’s rivalry with Liverpool is historic and fierce and the Red Devils will be desperate to dethrone their Merseyside rivals.

Liverpool winning the Premier League last season means they have now equalled Manchester United’s record with 20 top-flight league titles.

Sir Alex Ferguson famously said he wanted to knock Liverpool off their perch, and now it is up to Ruben Amorim to do the same as he leads a rebuild at Old Trafford.

That rebuild has started this summer with over £130 million being spent on Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo, but Ineos are eager to add more reinforcements, especially up front.

United have held talks with Ollie Watkins over a potential move, and his record against Liverpool only makes the move more appealing.

Ollie Watkins once ‘humiliated’ Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp

Before last season, Liverpool’s last Premier League title came in the 2019/20 season under Jurgen Klopp.

They failed to defend their title in 2020/21, though, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s United finishing ahead of Liverpool in second.

During that season, Klopp suffered his biggest ever defeat in a 7-2 loss to Aston Villa.

Ollie Watkins scored a first-half hat-trick to completely stun the league champions. The now 29-year-old striker scored with his left foot, right foot and with a header to complete a perfect hat-trick in just under 40 minutes.

After the full-time whistle, Watkins was asked if it was the best performance of his career: “Yeah, definitely.

“I’ve scored hat-tricks before but it was against Newport away on a boggy pitch with about 2,000 people there.”

As reported by The Independent, Liverpool were “humiliated” by Watkins and Villa, with Klopp adding that his side “lost the plot”.

Latest update on Man United’s interest in Ollie Watkins

So far this summer, Amorim has shopped in the Premier League to add top-flight experience to his squad.

Mbeumo and Cunha both arrive having starred in the Premier League last season, and a move for Watkins would follow a similar pattern.

Watkins scored 16 goals and provided eight assists in the Premier League last season, despite playing much of the second half of the season as second choice to Marcus Rashford.

Watkins is expected to cost around £60m this summer, making him a cheaper alternative to Benjamin Sesko. At 29 years old, he would be Ineos’ oldest signing so far but he still has a few years remaining in his prime.

READ MORE: Man United’s top three striker targets all share key trait, Ruben Amorim knows what he wants

Villa have shown interest in Alejandro Garnacho, leading to whispers of a potential swap deal. Garnacho wants to stay in the Premier League and Watkins is open to joining United, so it is certainly one to keep an eye on.

Jason Wilcox has held talks with Villa over a potential deal for Watkins, but United will likely have to sell before committing to a big-money deal for the forward.