The Reds returned to Manchester from West Brom without any rest and the squad was immediately engaged in training in preparation for Thursday night's double red meeting.

For all Manchester United, only two opponents were the most crucial, one was the city derby against the noisy nouveau riche neighbours, and the other was the double red meeting against bitter rivals Liverpool.

The Double Red Club got its name because the teams they faced were Manchester United and Liverpool, both of which were strong teams in the United Kingdom.

Even, in a sense, the latter is more important than the former. Historically, the feud between Manchester United and Liverpool is stronger than Manchester City's.

Because before the arrival of the Middle Eastern tycoons, Manchester City was just a second-rate team mixed in the relegation zone or even the Championship, and it was not taken seriously by Manchester United at all. That is, in recent years, with the massive injection of money by local tycoons in the Middle East and the purchase of many good stars, the strength has swelled dramatically, and even shaken Manchester United's hegemony in the Premier League, which has made Manchester United pay more attention to this cousin in the same city.

For Liverpool, it was a decades-old hostility and hatred.

"My proudest moment was to pull Liverpool off that damn throne", Sir Alex Ferguson's famous quote may be enough to prove how deep the hatred between United and Liverpool is.

This hatred has become more pronounced since the beginning of the Premier League era, with Gary Neville and Wayne Rooney kneeling in celebration in front of Liverpool fans, Steven Gerrard kneeling three times at Old Trafford and the conflict between Patrice Evra and Suarez are all microcosms of the clash between the two Red Clubs over the past 30 years.

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The enmity between the two teams actually comes from the conflict of interests.

Manchester United is one of the most successful clubs in the history of English football and one of the most influential and successful teams in Europe and the world, winning 20 English top flight titles and 12 FA Cups. On the European stage, Manchester United have won three UEFA Champions Leagues, one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and one UEFA Super Cup, and are one of seven Treble winners in football history.

Liverpool is also one of the most successful clubs in the history of English football and one of the most successful football clubs in Europe and the world. Liverpool have won 18 English First Division titles, seven FA Cups, eight English League Cups, five UEFA Champions Leagues, three UEFA Cups and three UEFA Super Cups.

The so-called one mountain cannot tolerate two tigers, two equally outstanding teams, in a country, inevitably all kinds of comparisons and competition, which in turn caused hatred.

What's more, the rivalry and hostility between the two teams also involves geopolitical issues.

The cities of Manchester and Liverpool, separated by only 35 miles, were in direct economic and cultural competition, and the trigger was the opening of the Manchester Sea Canal in 1884.

Prior to this, Manchester had to export raw materials and finished goods through the Port of Merseyside, so it was incurring high costs.

To solve this problem, Manchester industrialists eventually decided to dig a canal, avoiding Liverpool, which became the third largest port in the United Kingdom.

As a result, Liverpudlians have a lot less income, and some people even lose their jobs because of it, and the conflict between the two cities was born.

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However, Manchester United and Liverpool were not hostile to each other at first, and even the relationship between the two teams was good at first.

In 1966, Liverpool fans voted Manchester United captain Bobby Charlton as the best 11. In 1977, when United beat Liverpool in the FA Cup final, Red Devils fans even sang a song of support for Reds boss Paisley at Wembley, as the Reds were about to play in their first European Cup final.

In the meantime, however, hostility has been growing.

In the '60s, the two teams reached their peaks under the leadership of Shankly and Busby, winning the league 24 times in the 40 years between 1973 and 2013.

After winning the European Cup in 1968, United missed the trophy for a long time.

Liverpool, on the other hand, ushered in the most glorious period in the club's history, and in the past 25 years, the three managers of Shankly, Paisley and Fagan have led the Reds to win the UEFA Cup and the European Champions Cup.

The trade-offs between the two teams have fostered rivalry and hostility.

This hostility grew deeper and deeper over time, accumulating to its peak as we entered the Premier League era.

On January 4, 1994, when Clough scored twice to help Liverpool draw 3-3 with Manchester United, excited Liverpool fans held up signs that read "Come back when you win 18 league titles".

And in 2011, when it took United 18 years to win their 11th Premier League title and 18th English top flight title, Manchester United fans finally unfurled the long-awaited banner: "You let us come back when we won 18 league titles, and now we are here!" ”

It was during this period that Liverpool watched Manchester United's championship win gradually catch up, and the contradictions between the two teams became more and more acute.

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Legendary winger Ryan Giggs once said: "Liverpool will always be our enemy because when I was a kid they won everything and were what all teams were looking up to. I was seven years old when I came to Salford and growing up I was taught to hate people from Liverpool. ”

Former Manchester United captain Gary Neville, who was similarly educated, said: "When I was younger, Liverpool were the dominant players in English football. Most of my classmates were Liverpool fans and I didn't argue with them a lot. ”

Ferdinand scored the decisive late goal against Liverpool in 2006 when Gary Neville ran almost halfway past Old Trafford and got to his knees in celebration in front of the stands where Liverpool fans were, only to be fined £5,000 by the FA afterwards.

Recalling the scene, Gary Neville said: "I almost sprinted for 60 yards, my brain went blank, they sang for 90 minutes but after the United goal they were all silent. I looked at those faces, and it was probably one of the coolest feelings of my life. The FA fined me £5,000 and to be honest, 100 more penalties and I'll do it anyway. ”

Facing Liverpool's sliding knees to celebrate is not only big Neville, but also the current Red Devils captain Wayne Rooney.

After scoring against Liverpool in 2005, Wayne Rooney ran to his knees in celebration in front of Liverpool fans and made a salute gesture, which angered Liverpool fans and even threw his phone down.

As an Everton fan and playing for Manchester United, Wayne Rooney clearly hates Liverpool even more, with the former Manchester United striker saying: "When I played for Everton, Liverpool was my biggest enemy, and after coming to Manchester United, the idea of beating Liverpool has become even stronger. It was humiliating for me to see them lift the Champions Cup. ”