Man Utd and Liverpool both sought to transform their attack last summer and the fact things have gone better at Old Trafford could be a sign that the tide is turning.
Bruno Fernandes
Manchester United are aiming to do the double over Liverpool this weekend
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It's been painful for Manchester United fans not only to see their side fall away from the Premier League's upper echelons over the last decade, but also to watch Liverpool take their place.
United supporters find it easier to write off Manchester City's success, but those years when their Merseyside rivals have sustained a title challenge have been difficult to bear. There is no greater evidence of that than the final day of the 2021/22 season, when City's dramatic comeback to deny Liverpool another title was celebrated in the Selhurst Park away end.
Not every season ended that way, however. There have been campaigns when Liverpool have been pipped at the post, and others when they have fallen away dramatically, but there have also been two years that have ended with the title back at Anfield, drawing them level with United at 20 league titles each.
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That makes the next one particularly important. Last summer, when Liverpool backed up their league win by investing £446m in their squad, and United had just finished 15th and empty-handed, it looked like they were in the ascendancy.
That hasn't proved to be the case. Liverpool's spectacular investment has backfired, and their season is ending with a race to get into the Champions League and their title-winning head coach under pressure. They are three points behind United and if Michael Carrick's side win at Old Trafford on Sunday, it should mean that they finish on top this season.
Both teams have been through enough highs and lows in recent years to understand that guarantees nothing, but the effects of last summer's recruitment will offer some hope to United officials that the tide is turning. While Florian Wirtz (£116million), Alexander Isak (£125million) and, to a lesser extent, Hugo Ekitike (£69million) have failed to ignite Liverpool's attack, United got it right when transforming their attacking options.
They spent £206.5million in signing Matheus Cunha from Wolves, Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford and Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig, and all three can look back fondly on their first season in Manchester with the promise of more to come. But they've probably all been overshadowed by £18.2million goalkeeper Senne Lammens, who is pound-for-pound probably the signing of the season in the Premier League.
Liverpool's recent success was built on the quality of their recruitment. They did spend big, noticeably on Alisson and Virgil van Dijk, world record fees for a goalkeeper and a defender at the time, but they delivered and have offered value. They spent what were then considered mid-range sums on the likes of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah, but in the process built a devastating attack.
Meanwhile, United lacked a clear recruitment strategy during those years, lurching from one plan to the next and handing a succession of failed managers too much power in the transfer market. Things have started to change.
Under director of football Jason Wilcox and director of recruitment Christopher Vivell, United now have a more joined-up approach to recruitment, while their investment in data has led them to close the gap on Liverpool in that department.
Last summer's recruitment, as well as the signings of Ayden Heaven and Patrick Dorgu in January 2025, hint at improvements, and if that continues to be the case, it will be transformative for United. At Anfield, they will hope this season was a one-off, and that those record-breaking deals for Wirtz and Isak aren't signs of a Midas touch being mislaid.
No club can afford to get nine-figure transfers wrong, but at the moment, that is the reality facing Liverpool. It is still early days, and those players might come good, but for once it is United's recruitment department that has the upper hand, and in the race for title No.21, that could be crucial.