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Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville was left stunned by Liverpool skipper Virgil van Dijk's lack of awareness after the Reds went behind early on against Manchester United.
Bryan Mbeumo opened the scoring at Anfield for Man United after just 62 seconds, leaving Liverpool supporters stunned. The goal was not without controversy, however. A contested long ball saw Mbeumo, Alexis Mac Allister and Van Dijk go up to try and win a header, only for the latter to clatter his Argentine teammate in the head with his elbow.
Mac Allister went down and needed to be treated by physios after the incident. However, before receiving treatment, referee Michael Oliver waved play on, resulting in Mbeumo scoring.
The United forward raced in behind the Liverpool backline, latching onto an excellent pass from Amad Diallo to fire home past Giorgi Mamardashvili.
Van Dijk failed to track the run-in behind of Mbeumo, with the Liverpool skipper seemingly passing him off to teammate Ibrahima Konate. And it was Van Dijk's lack of awareness that left Neville, speaking on Sky Sports, stunned.
"Mac Allister goes down, but what stuns me is Van Dijk," said Neville alongside former Reds defender Jamie Carragher. "Mbeumo runs off him; he can't see him. That is the big surprise.
"Mbeumo reacts like a boxer off the ground, and he is away. Mamardashvili can't keep it out, a stunning start for Manchester United. I can’t work out if Van Dijk is trying to play him offside. He points towards Konate as if to say, 'That is your man.' It is a strange handover from him
Offering up his thoughts on the incident, Carragher added: "I have been frustrated that players have taken advantage of that rule. There was an incident in the Arsenal game yesterday near the dugout, and the referee pulled it back.
"I am very surprised Michael Oliver hasn't brought it back."
It is understood that Oliver did not see Mac Allister on the ground, hence his decision to allow for the game to continue. The Liverpool midfielder was down for over three minutes receiving treatment on the pitch, with the 26-year-old returning to action sporting a black, full head bandage.
Liverpool boss Arne Slot was also left clearly frustrated by the incident and was seen deep in conversation with the fourth official after the goal
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