Liverpool is back atop the Premier League after stalemate with shorthanded Manchester United

Liverpool reclaimed its spot atop the Premier League on Sunday, with Jurgen Klopp’s team leapfrogging defending champion Manchester City thanks to an entertaining but scoreless draw against injury-hobbled Manchester United at Old Trafford.

The tie gives the Reds, who haven’t won an English title in 30 years, a one-point lead over City with 11 games to go for both squads. Meantime, United missed an opportunity to move into fourth place with a win, although interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer stayed unbeaten through a 10th Prem match since replacing the fired Jose Mourinho in December.

Here are three quick thoughts on Sunday’s match:

A huge missed opportunity for Liverpool

Before the match, Klopp and Co. would’ve probably gladly settled for a share of the spoils, even after it was announced that United defensive midfielder Nemanja Matic would miss out after getting hurt in training on the eve of the contest.

But when Solskjaer was forced to burn all three of his substitutes before halftime because of injuries, things changed. The visitors bossed the game for most of the afternoon, enjoying almost 60 percent of the possession. Still, United relied on the counterattacking style that Solskjaer has used to great effect since his arrival to generate the better of the scoring chances.

Liverpool, on the other hand, looked flat. Mohamed Salah couldn’t muster his usual magic. Sadio Mane was invisible, too. Even second-half sub Xherdan Shaqiri, the hero of Liverpool’s rout of the Red Devils in Mourinho’s final game, was ineffective against a United side that defended like its hair was on fire.

As the final minutes ticked away, Liverpool didn’t even pretend to attack. Fair enough. But if they don’t go on to hoist the trophy, the Reds’ inability to finish off a wounded foe will be looked back at as one of the key reasons why.

Injuries the story for Manchester United

Let’s say it again: Solskjaer was forced to use all three of his substitutions before the first half was over. That’s some crazy incredible misfortune; the last time it happened to any team in the Premier League was back in 2015. And it seemed even more unlucky on the heels of the Matic news.

Ander Herrera had to be taken off barely 20 minutes in. Jesse Lingard lasted just 18 minutes after coming on for Juan Mata, who limped out of the game 25 minutes in. Lingard, who had just returned from injury, got hurt on the best chance of the match for either side after some slick buildup play by the hosts:

As if that wasn’t bad enough, United effectively played with 10 men for the entire second half. With no substitutions available, Solskjaer was forced to leave on a clearly struggling Marcus Rashford, who had his ankle kicked by Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson earlier in the match.

This two-horse title race is wide open

Tottenham’s shocking loss to Burnley on Saturday all but ended Spurs’ already-slim title hopes and virtually guaranteed a two-horse race between Liverpool and City down the stretch. By failing to grab all three points at the Theatre of Dreams, the Reds squandered any margin of error they may have given themselves with a slightly larger cushion.

Klopp has been good about keeping the mood around his team light in the face of mounting pressure to end their championship drought. But that pressure will surely intensify in the weeks to come. Every game will feel like a final. Only time will tell if Liverpool has what it takes to meet the challenge en route to glory, or if they’ll crumble instead.

Doug McIntyre covers soccer for Yahoo Sports. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.

More from Yahoo Sports:
• Pro-Confederate rally prompts Ole Miss players to kneel during anthem
• Boeheim on fatal car accident: ‘Will be with me for the rest of my life’
• Green sprains ankle in Warriors’ loss to Rockets
• AAF analyst defends himself after hot mic catches him saying ‘nobody’s watching’