'The new Sheriff' - Ten Hag's instant impact at Man Utd evident in Liverpool rout

It is remarkable that it has taken so long for a United manager to try to instil this modern approach to a team that has been left behind by Manchester City and Liverpool.

The high press will be pivotal to Ten Hag’s plans – and even if there were doubts about the ability of a squad previously set up to counterattack to take on those principles, his work with them is already paying off.

United repeatedly forced Liverpool into mistakes from which they capitalised. It is the type of high-risk football fans have been crying out for at Old Trafford.

It’s not called risk and reward for nothing. On a number of occasions, United were left wide open when the press was broken – notably when Liverpool hit the post twice in the space of a minute in the first half.

The best teams know how to keep hold of the ball to limit the danger of being caught on the break – and they also know how to deploy gamesmanship to cut out fast breaks.

There was a naivety about United at times – as thrilling as their attacking play was.

On paper, a forward line of Jadon Sancho, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford is full of pace, trickery and goals. Getting them to consistently produce has been the biggest issue at United – at least in the cases of Martial and Rashford.

But here they were, showing their immense potential as a front three to give defences nightmares.

Martial, in particular, looked like a man with a point to prove – scoring an excellent goal and constantly chasing down the ball.

Rashford looked as fit as he has in a long time, even if his finishing still needs to be sharpened.

And Sancho was bubbling with menace – intelligently looking to set up team-mates, as well as netting a sweetly-taken opening goal.

Most notable was the manner in which they rotated with all three capable of playing right across the front to drag Liverpool out of shape and create spaces to attack.

United have been a tough watch for the majority of the past nine years. Here they played with a freedom rarely seen in recent times.

Players were taking risks, with midfielders racing in to join the attack – and full-backs chasing beyond the wingers.

Ten Hag has repeatedly drilled into his full backs the need to cut inside the forwards to create options or decoys.

Meanwhile, Fred’s wonderful chipped goal from the edge of the area spoke of the confidence the new manager is already instilling into his players.

But with that adventure can come a cost.

On a couple of occasions in the first half Liverpool pounced on the space vacated by the rampaging runs of Diogo Dalot. They might not have capitalised – but it was an area of vulnerability they managed to expose.

Ten Hag intends to play with very attacking full-backs, so it is a weakness he will need to address as the season approaches.

Building out from defence is another key part of Ten Hag’s philosophy, which would explain his faith in Harry Maguire and is his pursuit of Martinez, who United are closing in on.

The arrivals of De Jong, who United have stepped up talks with Barcelona for, and Eriksen, who has agreed a three-year deal, will help to give the centre backs outlets in midfield that they have previously lacked.

Another part pre-season training has involved close control in tight spaces, with players expected to be able to work their way out of danger, rather than going long.

There were elements of playing out from defence, with Eric Bailly’s rampaging run for the fourth goal a spectacular example.

But there were also occasions when United opted for a quick diagonal ball to wide areas that did not come off.

That was an example of the way Ten Hag is happy to mix between quick and slow build-up – but the biggest key is accuracy, which is why De Jong and Eriksen are seen as pivotal recruits.

Of course, Ten Hag wasn’t going to get carried away with one friendly win against a much-weakened opposition.

“It will take a lot of time,” he said afterwards. “I have seen a lot of mistakes. Liverpool played three teams, they were not at their strongest. We will not overestimate this result.”

It was the right tone to set for a football club that has become too accustomed to failure after knowing almost nothing but success under Sir Alex Ferguson.

Ten Hag won over United officials during the interview process because of his demands of himself and his team.

If the club are ever to get back to winning ways, they will need to accept some hard truths.