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Liverpool's persistence pays off as Shaqiri sinks Manchester United

PAUL ELLIS / AFP / Getty

If at first you don't succeed ...

Xherdan Shaqiri came off the bench to score twice on Sunday at Anfield, as a pair of deflected efforts from the powerful Swiss winger gave Liverpool a thoroughly deserved 3-1 victory over Manchester United.

After a barrage of shots and complete territorial domination from the opening whistle, Shaqiri's introduction in the 70th minute finally pushed Liverpool over the edge; he needed just 10 minutes to hit the net twice and lift the Reds back atop the Premier League table.

Jurgen Klopp's side, the lone unbeaten team in England's top flight this season, sits one point ahead of Manchester City.

Though Liverpool needed a slice of fortune on each of Shaqiri's tallies to lock up the victory, they dominated the contest from the get-go. Klopp's men ultimately outshot United 36-6, with the latter only testing Alisson twice.

Were it not for an uncharacteristic blunder from the Brazilian goalkeeper, Jose Mourinho's beleaguered outfit almost certainly wouldn't have gotten on the scoresheet at all. The high-priced shot-stopper, who has been excellent since his arrival from Roma, spilled a simple cross and allowed Jesse Lingard to bundle home the equalizer after a superb Sadio Mane goal had given the home side the lead just nine minutes earlier.

That was the lone blemish on the day for Alisson and Co., though.

Liverpool pushed frantically for the go-ahead goal in the second half, and Shaqiri, who has proven vital as a depth option for Klopp all season, delivered after being introduced late in the contest.

"I'm completely over the moon. The way the boys played was outstanding ... It was brilliant, I love it - fantastic performance and so deserved," Klopp said after the match.

As for his counterpart, the pressure continues to mount.

United sit sixth in the league table, 11 points adrift of fourth place and a full 19 back of table-toppers Liverpool. They've already conceded more goals this season (29) than they did all of last year (28), and Mourinho continues to make puzzling lineup decisions that zap the creativity of his team; Paul Pogba was left on the bench for the entirety of Sunday's loss.

Are the Portuguese manager's days at Old Trafford numbered?

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