What we learned from Man Utd’s rout of Liverpool: From Darwin’s debut to Sancho’s statement of intent

One of the most interesting aspects of pre-season, every year, is seeing which young players can catch the eye and offer a glimpse of the future. Plenty were given the chance to here, on both sides.

For United, there was an impressive showing from Zidane Iqbal, a 19-year-old, Manchester-born Iraq international, who slotted in impressively in midfield in the second half, and a reminder of the quality of Amad Diallo, who set up Pellistri’s goal on the counterattack.

Liverpool, meanwhile, will have liked what they saw from home-grown left back Luke Chambers in the first 30 minutes, and from attacking midfielder Tom Hill in the final half hour. Hill, 19, is back playing after nearly two years out through injury, and looked eager to make up for lost time, forming part of a front three which also contained Nunez and Salah. The Formby-born teenager was unlucky not to cap his display with a goal.