Premiership: Liverpool two up at half-time

Liverpool 2, Man Utd 0 (latest)

Liverpool and Manchester United were England colleagues in the World Cup qualifier against Finland a week ago. Today they were the best of enemies.

Twelve of the 32 players either starting or on the bench at Anfield today were part of Sven-Goran Eriksson’s England team that won 2-1.

Jaap Stam, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Andy Cole were rested from the United squad after international duty and minor knocks.

Back came David Beckham after being left out of the last two United games, along with Ryan Giggs, who has missed five games with hamstring trouble. Paul Scholes was on the bench with Andy Goram.

Liverpool left Michael Owen on the substitutes’ bench after his England efforts, while Patrik Berger - out since November with a knee problem - was in from the start after two reserve run-outs.

Steven Gerrard, too, who did not travel to Albania with England, was also in for the mouth-watering scrap with Roy Keane.

Barthez had to make a smart save from a Hyypia header, from Murphy’s freekick, while Sander Westerveld needed to be very alert and careful with a fizzing Giggs drive from 20 yards after Liverpool had failed to deal with another cross from the left.

But any anxiety about that was forgotten on 16 mins when Gerrard took a pass from Robbie Fowler after Murphy’s header and unleashed a stunning 25 yarder that arrowed like a missile high over Barthez’s right hand and into the top corner.

Anfield went berserk. But United are never more dangerous than minutes after conceding. On 19 minutes Westerveld could only palm away a Roy Keane drive and somehow his defenders managed to hack the ball away.

Berger’s angled drive seared across the six yard box, and Keane was involved in his first altercation, with Jamie Carragher, in the aftermath of a poor challenge by Berger on Gary Neville, Poll needing all his man management to calm that one down.

Phil Neville was booked for a foul on Hamann on 28 minutes, and a minute later Heskey got through on the left to see a shot deflect off Phil Neville and Barthez’s legs just wide of a post.

It was one-way traffic for Liverpool for the latter part of the match - so it came as no surprise to the Anfield faithful when Robbie Fowler was put through and drilled a shot past Fabien Barthez in the 41st minute.