Kuyt 34, 39, 65       Hernandez 90 + 2

Manchester United crashed to their third EPL defeat in five games, at arch-rivals Liverpool, after a first Liverpool hat-trick for Dutch striker Dirk Kuyt.

Dimitar Berbatov hit the post with a 16^th-minute right-footed effort from 20 yards. But this was a rare United threat.

Liverpool nearly took a second-minute lead when Luis Suarez diverted Raul Meireles’s pass goalwards.

And Suarez created Kuyt’s first goal, jinking his way past three United defenders in the penalty box and rolling the ball across the six-yard box for Kuyt to tap in on 34 minutes.

Liverpool doubled their advantage five minutes later, Kuyt nodding home from five yards after Nani’s badly-misplaced defensive header put the ball into the danger area.

A horror tackle by Liverpool’s Jamie Carragher on Nani sparked a fraught end to the first half after the Liverpool man was only booked.

United created chances after half-time, Berbatov coming closest when his close-range header on 55 minutes was chested off the line by Meireles.

But Kuyt completed his hat-trick on 65 minutes when United keeper Edwin Van der Sar parried Suarez’s free-kick into his path and he fired home.

Javier Hernandez headed United’s stoppage time consolation from Ryan Giggs’ right-foot, right-wing cross.