That recent 5-2 defeat at Anfield against Real Madrid certainly smarted. It smarted as much as any defeat I can remember. That 1-0 defeat to Utd in the white suits FA Cup Final in 1996 hurt, because it was them. But the game itself was a non-event.
But against Madrid, there were times in the second half when it felt like we were an insect having its legs and wings pulled off one by one. That's not a feeling to enjoy, especially at Anfield, and especially in the Big One. It emphatically wasn't the worst performance amomgst the big defeats I am about to cover; in fact it was one of the best, and ended with a scoreline that did not reflect the game.
But it still felt like a very sobering dismemberment, the sort we don’t get too often, mercifully. And where can you look for context, for solace, other than history? What can we learn from them? How often do they happen? How were we doing at the time they happened – were we in a trough already or did they come out of the blue? And what effect did they have subsequently?
Because we have been mullah-ed plenty of times before, as well as administering a good many more mullah-ings to others (and it's hard to mention that without mentioning Utd again, in a much more enjoyable recent context. 7 times table anyone? :) )
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