October 20.
Manchester United versus Liverpool.
Old Trafford.
Premier League Round 9.
The North West Derby.
This was not just a match, it was pressure, history, hatred, pride, and ambition all packed into ninety minutes.
After eight rounds, Manchester United had eight wins.
Liverpool also had eight wins.
Manchester City were close behind, waiting for either giant to stumble.
The entire Premier League seemed to hold its breath.
📰 Sky Sports: Manchester United and Liverpool Collide With Perfect Records on the Line
📰 BBC Sport: North West Derby Could Shape Early Premier League Title Race
📰 The Athletic: Injuries Hit Both Sides Before Old Trafford Showdown
📰 Manchester Evening News: Ling Starts as United Look to Halt Liverpool's Charge
📰 Liverpool Echo: Klopp Demands Courage as Reds Face Mourinho's Champions
📱 @PremWatch ✔
United perfect. Liverpool perfect. City waiting. This is the first proper title-race earthquake of the season.
📱 @UnitedStand ✔
Ling starts. Old Trafford is shaking already.
| ↳ 📱 @LFCView
| Reply: Trent revenge arc begins today. Highway 66 closure notice incoming.
📱 @NeutralPremWatch
Both teams have injuries, both teams have pressure, and both teams know City will feast on any dropped points. Perfect derby setup!
...
Peter Drury's voice carried over the broadcast as the players walked out.
"OLD TRAFFORD, UNDER THE LIGHTS, UNDER THE WEIGHT OF HISTORY!"
"Manchester United and Liverpool, two empires staring across the same old battlefield, two perfect starts, one perfect storm!"
Jim Beglin added, "There are injuries on both sides, Peter, but that won't matter once the whistle goes. This fixture has a way of dragging everything out of players."
"And at the heart of it all," Drury continued, his voice rising, "Jeremy Ling — the crown jewel of Carrington, the man every rival now measures himself against."
The match was intense from the start.
Liverpool pressed fiercely, even without their full-strength forward line.
Manchester United, missing Kanté and Maguire, played more cautiously than usual.
Thiago Silva organized the back line, while Matić and McTominay shielded the center.
For thirty minutes, neither side gave an inch.
Until the 37th minute.
Bruno Fernandes carried the ball through midfield and slipped it toward Ling near the edge of the penalty area.
Van Dijk immediately stepped up.
The Dutch defender pressed into Ling's back, using his body to block the turn.
But Ling did not retreat.
He held him off.
One touch.
Half-turn.
Right foot loaded.
"LING..."
Peter Drury's voice suddenly sharpened.
"HE HOLDS OFF VAN DIJK—HE SETS THE GUN—HE FIRES!"
Boom!
The ball tore toward goal like a cannon shell.
Alisson reacted quickly and got a glove to it.
But he could not stop it and the ball crashed into the net.
Old Trafford exploded!
1–0.
"OH, THAT IS THUNDER FROM THE BOY WHO BECAME A KING!"
"Van Dijk stood firm, Alisson reached far, but Ling has struck through the storm, through the resistance, through the very heart of Liverpool!"
"OLD TRAFFORD HAS ITS VOICE BACK, AND IT IS ROARING HIS NAME!"
Jim Beglin could only sigh. "That is pure strength and technique together. Van Dijk doesn't do much wrong there. Alisson doesn't do much wrong either. Sometimes, you just face a player capable of making good defending irrelevant."
Ling sprinted toward the corner, punched the air, and roared back at the stands.
The Manchester United fans answered with a wall of sound.
But Liverpool did not collapse.
Klopp's team had suffered enough over the past two seasons to develop resilience. Their pride would not allow them to lie down at Old Trafford.
Alexander-Arnold, in particular, played with a fire that seemed almost personal.
He had carried the shame of "Highway 66" for too long.
Tonight, he wanted a response.
In the 78th minute, Liverpool finally found it.
Trent received the ball on the right flank.
Alex Sandro stepped up to press.
Trent shifted the ball half a yard, created the angle, and whipped a curling cross toward the far post.
Origi ghosted in behind the defense.
One touch.
Goal.
1–1.
"ALEXANDER-ARNOLD... OH, WHAT A BALL!"
"AND ORIGI ARRIVES!"
"LIVERPOOL LIVE! LIVERPOOL BREATHE! LIVERPOOL STRIKE BACK AT OLD TRAFFORD!"
"The boy haunted by humiliation has found one golden delivery, and this old rivalry has another twist!"
Jim Beglin nodded. "That's an excellent cross. Sandro gives him a yard, and Trent punishes it. He's had criticism, plenty of it, but that is the kind of delivery Liverpool need from him."
The equalizer made third-placed Manchester City grin from ear to ear.
They faced Crystal Palace this round and easily secured a 2–0 victory.
When the final whistle blew at Old Trafford, the score remained 1–1.
After Round 9, the three giants were back on near-level terms again.
It was foreseeable that the Premier League title race this season would be even fiercer than last season.
📰 Sky Sports: Manchester United and Liverpool Draw 1–1 in Fierce North West Derby
📰 BBC Sport: Ling Thunderbolt Cancelled Out by Origi as Perfect Starts End
📰 Manchester Evening News: United Held at Old Trafford as Liverpool Find Late Reply
📰 Liverpool Echo: Alexander-Arnold Answers Critics With Assist in Derby Draw
📰 The Athletic: City Benefit as United and Liverpool Share Points
📱 @UnitedStand ✔
Ling bullied Van Dijk and scored a rocket. Trent crossed once and stole two points from us. I hate football.
| ↳ 📱 @StretfordEndTom
| Reply: That Drury line about "the boy who became a king" is going straight into edits.
📱 @LFCView
Trent assist at Old Trafford after all the Highway 66 jokes. That meant something. You could see it on his face.
📱 @CityZenBlue ✔
United and Liverpool kicking lumps out of each other while City quietly win 2–0. Lovely weekend.
📱 @PremWatch ✔
Ling vs Van Dijk. Trent redemption. Origi big-game nonsense. Proper North West Derby.
...
October 25.
Champions League group stage, Round 3.
Manchester United hosted Genk at Old Trafford.
Facing this club from the Belgian Pro League, Manchester United, now back in form, showed no mercy.
In the 17th minute, Grealish won a penalty in the box, and Ling calmly converted.
Manchester United 1–0 Genk.
Soon after, Manchester United frequently penetrated through the center.
Just before the end of the first half, Ling earned another penalty.
This time, his shot to the left was saved, but he followed up in time and scored the rebound.
A brace from the spot.
In the end, Manchester United defeated Genk 3–0, taking a perfect nine points from three Champions League group-stage matches and temporarily topping the group.
📰 Sky Sports: Ling Scores Twice as Manchester United Beat Genk 3–0
📰 Manchester Evening News: United Stay Perfect in Champions League Group Stage
📰 The Athletic: Mourinho's Side Cruise Toward Early Qualification
📱 @UnitedStand ✔
Grealish wins penalties, Ling scores them, United win. The system is simple and deeply annoying for everyone else.
...
October 28.
Premier League Round 10.
Norwich City versus Manchester United.
In the 21st minute, Mahrez delivered a cross from the right.
A Norwich defender made a clearance error, and Scott McTominay fired home from near the penalty spot.
Just eight minutes later, Kanté intercepted in the backfield and sent a long pass over the top.
Ling found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper, used a feint to beat him, and slotted into an empty net.
In the end, Manchester United secured a 3–0 away victory, taking three points from Carrow Road.
📰 BBC Sport: Manchester United Beat Norwich 3–0 to Keep Pressure at the Top
📰 Sky Sports: Ling and McTominay Score as Mourinho's Side Cruise Away
📱 @StretfordEndTom
United away win, clean sheet, Ling goal. Routine business!
...
October 31.
English League Cup Round of 16.
Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea and Manchester United met for the third time this season.
In the previous two encounters, Chelsea had lost by large margins.
This left Lampard fuming.
So he decided to park the bus at the back, much like Mourinho had done before.
Lampard, Mourinho's protégé.
But this tactic did not work against Manchester United.
Even with a rotated squad, United had Ling leading the attack.
Their morale was sky-high, there was no question about it.
In the first half, Ling scored with a Batistuta-style long-range strike, beating Caballero.
Then, Chelsea's bus simply fell apart.
The "Special One" paced back and forth on the sidelines.
Chelsea's performance this season had been poor, and the league title and Champions League were already out of reach.
They were pinning their hopes on smaller cups like the League Cup and FA Cup to keep their season alive.
If they were knocked out before the quarter-finals, would he be sacked mid-season?
But it had to be said.
When a club legend took over as manager, the former stars tended to fall silent out of respect.
If Mourinho were managing Chelsea instead, he would likely already be branded a villain by now, with helicopters flying banners demanding his departure.
In the 78th minute of the second half, Manchester United exploited the space left behind by Chelsea's high press.
They launched a rapid counterattack down the flank, with Mahrez cutting the ball back to the near post.
Ling slid in and finished clinically.
The outcome of the match was all but sealed.
Even though Chelsea suddenly woke up and launched a frantic, aggressive onslaught, they were repeatedly thwarted by the defensive wall — Mourinho's parked bus, the very thing Lampard had tried and failed to copy.
📰 Sky Sports: Manchester United Knock Chelsea Out of League Cup
📰 BBC Sport: Ling Double Sends Mourinho's Side Into Quarter-Finals
📰 Manchester Evening News: Chelsea Beaten for Third Time This Season by Ruthless United
📰 Daily Mail: Lampard's Cup Hopes Crushed as Ling Strikes Twice at Stamford Bridge
📱 @UnitedStand ✔
Chelsea tried to park the bus against Mourinho of all things. Mourinho watched, smiled, and showed them the licensed version.
| ↳ 📱 @StretfordEndTom
| Reply: Lampard downloaded the tactic but forgot the password.
📱 @ChelseaBlueTalk
Third loss to United this season. I'm tired.
📱 @TacticalTim ✔
United's rotated side still had Ling. That's the unfair part. You can rotate the system, but the final boss remains!