Monday 5 December 2016 20:08, UK
This week, Martin Tyler's stats and facts column looks at narrow defeats, hat-trick heroes and avoiding penalty punishment.
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Martin’s Starting Stats
I was at Anfield on Sunday to witness Liverpool’s first defeat since they lost at Manchester United on December 14. They had enjoyed 10 wins and three draws in the Premier League in between their defeats to Louis van Gaal’s side. This was only their second defeat in 18 in the league.
It was a fourth consecutive league win for Manchester United, but they did concede their first goal in that run. This was only their second win in their last seven Premier League visits to Anfield.
Wayne Rooney failed from the penalty spot in his 400th Premier League game. His record at Anfield is played 13, scored one, won six, drawn four and lost three. It was actually his first game at Anfield for three-and-a-half years - a ground where he was a mascot for Everton in November 1996.
It was Steven Gerrard’s 499th Premier League game – but the shortest of any of those 499 at just 38 seconds. It was also his second red card against Manchester United. He will miss the next two Premier League games – but should still have six games left to reach his 500. In all it was his 704th Liverpool game.
Juan Mata scored his second and third goals against Liverpool in his career. The other was in the 3-0 win in December. He didn’t score for Chelsea against Liverpool, but did win the FA Cup against them in 2012. He also scored against Liverpool in a 3-1 International Trophy win in pre-season. It doesn’t count as an official game, but Louis van Gaal was talking it up afterwards – he seems to think they have done a triple over Liverpool this season!
Daniel Sturridge played in his 150th career Premier League game, scoring his 61st Premier League goal and his fourth against Manchester United in all competitions. All four have come in his last six appearances against them. His last goal for Chelsea was in a 5-4 League Cup win over Liverpool in October 2012.
Doing doubles
Have Manchester United ever done a league double over Liverpool and not finished above them? (Pete, Liverpool fan)
MARTIN SAYS: The omens aren’t good for Liverpool, Pete. On the 12 previous occasions that Manchester United have completed a league double over their North West rivals, they have ended the season above them on 10 of them.
The exceptions came at times when Liverpool generally had the upper hand over United. In 1969/70 Wilf McGuinness’ side twice got the better of Bill Shankly’s men but finished the campaign three places below them in 8th.
The only other occurrence was in 1986/87, very early in Sir Alex Ferguson’s reign at Old Trafford. The Scotsman outdid his fellow countryman Kenny Dalglish home and away - including a 1-0 win at Anfield on Boxing Day 1986 - but while Liverpool were narrowly beaten to the title by neighbours Everton, United finished the season down the table in 11th.
Since then however, United have done the double over Liverpool six times before this season and been looking down on them come the end of the season each time.
Certainly Brendan Rodgers’ side will have to overcome not only the odds but the weight of history to pip Louis Van Gaal’s team to a Champions League place in May. In the Premier League era, Liverpool have only ever twice finished above Manchester United; last season and also 2001/02.
Hat-trick heroes
Hi Martin, love your column! I was wondering if any Man Utd players have ever scored a hat-trick at Anfield? (@davidkimster)
MARTIN SAYS: According to our records, no Manchester United player has scored a hat-trick at Anfield in football history.
A number have come close during the Premier League era, with Gary Pallister, Andy Cole, Diego Forlan and Ryan Giggs all bagging a brace on Merseyside as well as Juan Mata on Sunday (and you might also include Jamie Carragher’s two own goals in a 3-2 win for Manchester United in September 1999).
We can only find five players who have scored a hat-trick for Manchester United against Liverpool – and they were all in home matches. The players were James Peters (1895), Sandy Turnbull (1907), Joe Spence (1928), Stan Pearson (1946) and Dimitar Berbatov (2010).
That said, only six players have scored hat-tricks for Liverpool against Manchester United - Sam Raybould (1905), Bill McPherson (1908), Dick Forshaw (1925), Fred Howe (1936), Peter Beardsley (1990) and Dirk Kuyt (2011).
Of those, five were scored at Anfield and only one at Old Trafford – that was Fred Howe in a 5-2 win in November 1936.
Had Wayne Rooney handed Juan Mata the ball on Sunday, and he had beaten Simon Mignolet from 12 yards, the Spaniard would have become the first United player to hit a treble at Anfield and only the third man in the Premier League.
Many of you will remember Andrey Arshavin’s four strikes for Arsenal in the 2008/09 season as part of an unforgettable 4-4 draw.
We have to go back 14 years before Arshavin’s heroics, and 20 years ago from today, to the last time Liverpool had their defences breached to such extent when Coventry City striker Peter Ndlovu bagged a treble in the 1994/95 season. That came in a 3-2 win for Coventry at Anfield.
The other player that springs to mind is Julio Baptista of Arsenal who scored four in a 6-3 League Cup win at Anfield in January 2007. Baptista also missed a penalty – and that penalty was awarded by Martin Atkinson who also awarded the one that Wayne Rooney missed on Sunday.
Narrow defeats
Hi Martin! I’m becoming increasingly annoyed by QPR continuously losing by one-goal margins this season. I think it’s 12, if I’m not mistaken? Is this a record in Premier League history? (John, QPR fan)
MARTIN SAYS: You are correct that so far this season QPR have lost by a solitary goal on 12 occasions. However, this is not yet even a club record for Rangers who fell a goal shy 15 times in the 1995/96 season for a share of the Premier League record.
They join Bolton Wanderers who also lost by a single goal on 15 occasions in 1995/96 as well as Manchester City and Sunderland, the pair repeating the ‘achievement’ 10 years on during the 2005/06 campaign.
Of course, it is a record that the current QPR side will be keen to avoid, especially given that of the four previous sides to suffer that fate only Stuart Pearce’s Manchester City escaped relegation, finishing 15th nine years ago.
Though not a Premier League record, QPR's 12 defeats by a single goal is the most of any top flight side this season, Leicester have suffered the next most losing 10 games by a one-goal margin and Hull are third with nine.
Unsurprisingly perhaps, having lost fewer games than anyone else, Chelsea have also lost the least by one goal. They have been narrowly beaten just once with Arsenal, Liverpool and both Manchester clubs the next best, tied on four apiece.
1995/96 – Bolton Wanderers – 15 losses by one goal
1995/96 - Queens Park Rangers - 15 losses by one goal
2005/06 - Manchester City - 15 losses by one goal
2005/06 – Sunderland - 15 losses by one goal
2014/15 – Queens Park Rangers – 12 losses by one goal to date
Deadly doubles
Not paying the penalty
In my opinion, Jose Fonte was lucky to avoid giving a penalty away as his challenge on George Boyd went unpunished at St Mary’s. This means Southampton are yet to concede a penalty in the Premier League this season. Has any side gone through an entire season without conceding a penalty? (Cameron, Burnley fan)
MARTIN SAYS: If Southampton navigate their remaining eight games without conceding a penalty, they will become only the fifth Premier League side to do so.
The first team to achieve the feat were Newcastle United in the 1995/96 season – that was when the North-East club came so close to claiming a first league title in 69 years.
Two seasons later, in the 1997/98 season, Bolton Wanderers achieved the same feat but it proved to be irrelevant as Colin Todd’s side were relegated to the First Division.
Arsenal went through the 1999/2000 without conceding a Premier League penalty. The Gunners were unable to capitalise on this achievement, though, as Manchester United retained their title by a record-breaking 18 points to Arsene Wenger’s second-placed side.
It was the old cliché that away teams would never win a penalty at Old Trafford. However, in Sir Alex Ferguson’s final season, 2012/13, Manchester United managed to replicate that away from home as well, as they ended the season as champions and with an unblemished penalty record.
1995/96 – Newcastle United – No penalties faced
1997/98 – Bolton Wanderers - No penalties faced
1999/00 – Arsenal - No penalties faced
2012/13 – Manchester United - No penalties faced
2014/15 – Southampton - No penalties faced to date
