At this stage proof is hardly needed but if it is, yesterday's League Cup final should do the job - Manchester United are absolutely tailor-made for Liverpool and the way they play.

It was the classic Liverpool game - go a goal in front and then say "go on then, try to break us down". United tried, but failed, Liverpool scored again, game over.

I didn't think Liverpool would score in the first half. After 35 minutes it was such a poor game it looked certain to be 0-0 at half-time. There was, of course, an element of fortune in Steven Gerrard's goal because the deflection gave the ball more pace and elevation and gave Fabien Barthez no chance, so that was an unbelievable bonus for Liverpool. I would say it completely changed Gerard Houllier's thinking at half-time. He was able to tell his players to do what they're good at: "Sit back, soak up the pressure, get the second one and it's all over".

Once they'd got the lead there was no onus on Liverpool to change their game, their natural approach was going to prove perfect with United chasing the game. It's what Liverpool are good at, soaking it up and then counter-attacking. With Dietmar Hamann in there it meant, along with Gerrard and Danny Murphy, Liverpool would have a shield of three midfielders in front of the back four.

United, who didn't play particularly well but improved in the second half, discovered - on the rare occasion they got through - Jerzy Dudek stopped everything.

I was at Anfield the day United beat Liverpool. It had all the signs of a 0-0 game, until Dudek stepped in. He'd had a bad month but he hadn't suddenly become a bad goalkeeper. He was always going to come back, it was just a crisis of confidence for him. It is a nice story when you consider the magnitude of the mistakes he made against United. It's one of those things, it happens so often in football, things turning around full circle for a player. The old "villain-to-hero" tale in the space of 90 minutes.

To a large extent it was like watching the Liverpool of 18 months ago - very solid, get a goal, win. What they're good at is suffocating teams in midfield, which is what they did yesterday. We only saw Ryan Giggs in flashes, we never really saw David Beckham or Juan Sebastian Veron, and Roy Keane was running around trying to put fires out. Paul Scholes and Ruud van Nistelrooy were on the periphery for most of the game. But that tells you something about the job Liverpool did, they just kept Manchester United so quiet.

Dudek was the obvious man of the match but I thought Hamann played very well. He gives Liverpool stability in front of the back four, there's nothing flash about him, he wins his tackles, gets the ball and passes it. He's always there and he allowed Murphy more chances to get forward.

Michael Owen looked sharp too - if you supply him he'll score, simple as that. He was fed about 20 passes in the first half which were 10-foot high in the air, so he had no chance. All of a sudden the penny dropped and they started feeding him properly, and he looked a class player.

I don't think the result is an indication of any great crisis for United; they will probably just dismiss it - this, after all, is the team that had come off the back of a 3-0 win against Juventus in Turin, with an understrength line-up. So it's not a great worry for them but I think what they will have to address is the lack of power and athleticism in the squad.

For me there is no argument Manchester United are a better footballing side than Liverpool but Liverpool are stronger, better athletes - United look quite small in comparison. Another thing that struck me - United played on Tuesday, Liverpool played on Thursday, yet it was United who looked more leg-weary in the closing stages.

As for Liverpool - well, they've now won one of the four trophies available to them at the start of the season, so that's not bad. But there is no doubt there will have to be a complete rethink during the summer, as regards how they play in the Premiership. They have to come up with different ways of winning games.

The way they beat United would bring them 65, 70 points in a season - it doesn't get you 85-plus, which is what wins you the Premiership. And that has to be their ultimate target.

In an interview with Mary Hannigan