MyRAWK is a group of dedicated and independent Liverpool FC supporters in Malaysia, committed to the epitome of the Spion Kop cause, virtue and spirit. We'll be organising match viewing gatherings that involve a lot singing and chanting, just like the Kop at Anfield. Stay tuned to our blog as it will serve as one of our channels to keep in touch with our fellow LFC supporters. You'll Never Walk Alone and Justice for the 96!
This match pretty much gained top billings over the weekend with the wanted-away Gareth Barry (but never submitted his transfer request, duh!) playing against the team of the man who spent the whole summer chasing after his signature, our Rafa the Gaffa.
Those expecting fireworks would have been sorely disappointed as both teams lined-up to stifle each other. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t really complain too much if we played a little more defensively away from Anfield but this time, Rafa’s lost it. He had 2 strikers in the starting line-up i.e. El Keano but stuck Keano to the left and Torres was upfront by himself. Now, how does that exactly work? Worse still was when Torres tore his hamstring after a quarter of an hour.
O’ Neill was also guilty of defensive tactics even though they had home advantage. They never looked like they set up to win the game. And boy, am I glad we didn’t manage to buy Barry. He was pretty crappy to say the least. Nothing that Xabi or Yossi couldn’t do.
For me, the positive to bring out of this match is Carra and Skrtel are rocks and did not concede, Ngog seems like a gem and we came away unscathed. Nevertheless, it is 2 points dropped. I cannot help but feel yet again we cannot take advantage of other team’s slip-ups. By this I mean Chelsea. We could have been top of the table for 2 weeks but for Rafa’s defensive tactics and putting a table where the lamp* should be.
Are we looking at degenerating into a Houllier-esque meltdown? Honestly, I don’t know but let’s hope we dig ourselves out of this run of unconvincing performances soon. For once, I am glad that the league is on International break. We are still unbeaten, no? Yes we are but for how long?
*In reference to Rafa’s famous ‘table and lamp’ dig at the Valencia board during his last days at the club.
UCL: Liverpool 1 vs 0 Standard Liege – The Great European Escape Pt II, By Jon Cheah
Having barely scraped through the 2 wins in the EPL and the 1st leg draw in Liege, most will be wondering how long more can our lucky streak continue. The previous lackluster performances have got most Reds jumpy and on the edge of their seats. However, most will be sure that a typical European night will bring the best out of the team and the vocal home support will roar them on.
Unfortunately what conspired on Wednesday night didn’t follow the usual Anfield European tie script. In a somewhat more polished outing compared to the shambles that happened in Liege, we still couldn’t contain the youthful and energetic Standard team. Their quick counter attacking play kept our defenders and Pepe on their toes throughout the entire match.
We showed glimpses of good buildup play early in the 1st half with great interlinking play around Standard’s penalty box at the Kop end. But our final balls, touches and shooting were still pretty poor. On the other end, our defense was barely able to contain their fast counter attacking through Mbokani and Fellaini. Pepe was called into action twice to palm away two very good efforts from them. Skrtel, who was paired with Carra, was a lot more comfortable compared to Agger in the first leg.
Keane and Torres were both struggling to find their foothold throughout the entire game and were not helped by limited service from the midfield. But when clear chances did come their way, their finishing was poor. El Niño was not his usual self and was clearly put off by the physical marking on him. Keane was running everywhere trying to link up the play to no avail. We ended up resorting to long range speculative shots from beyond the penalty box through Gerrard and Alonso when we could not break down the stubborn and resolute Standard defense. Our severe lack of width was cruelly exposed time and again when we were crowded out in the midfield area and could not penetrate their flanks through Benayoun and Kuyt. The gaffer finally saw the need to solve the problem and brought in Babel to replace the Israeli international in the middle of the 2nd half. But the young Flying Dutchman was still not in his element after missing a chunk of preseason through injury and Olympics duty.
The turning tide came when El Zhar was brought in late in the second half to replace a Keane that is still trying to find his feet in the team. Kuyt was then moved next to Torres while El Zhar was given specific instructions to stay and hog on the right by-line. Our attacking play improved tremendously and we resumed more control over the remainder of the match. Arbeloa then came close to breaking the dreadlock right at the end of normal time with a ferocious drive that was palmed away by Arogon, the Standard keeper.
The same pattern of play continued as we pressed on for that elusive goal in extra time. Most would have been mentally prepared for the penalty lottery, but our Dutchmen conspired otherwise by working together to finally score THE goal. Babel did great work down the left and sent in a perfect cross for Kuyt to score with a tap in at the far corner. It was enough to send Anfield into a frenzy and £12million into the club’s coffers. That strike alone was enough to pay his entire transfer fee and then some from Feyenoord.
The indifferent start to the season has dumbfounded a lot of Reds even though some have argued that we are perennial slow starters. I personally disagree and believe that we cannot afford to repeat the slow starts anymore, especially when the standard among the teams in the EPL and UCL have been raised so dramatically. We risk being consigned to being “also rans” before we even hit the usual dramatic holiday period and knock-out stage.
The alarming and desperate need for outright wingers cannot be ignored and be emphasized enough. It is not some left footed utility player ala Barry that can play in 3 positions that we need. We must move quickly and sign Albert Riera or some other English winger that the gaffer is eyeing immediately as it will never be easy to fit into a new team once the season has already started. The new wide man will definately have a steep learning curve to adapt to the team. Till then, we better keep our fingers crossed and hope that the fickle minded lady luck stays with us for a little longer while we find our feet.
There was a lot of excitement in anticipation of the first home match at Anfield in the Premier League. I had wanted to see our new number 7 notch a goal in front of the Kop and witness a potentially deadly partnership blossoming between El Nino and Keano; or as one of the lads would call it, El Keano.
The first 10-15 minutes of the match appeared bright for the Reds as we looked to be in control with some nice runs and Kuyt had a fierce 25-yard drive turned away by Boro keeper, Ross Turnbull who was standing in for Brad Jones who was injured during the warm-up.
However, Boro was not to be overawed and understandably so having beaten Spurs on the opening day of the season. Their confidence saw them keep their shape and game plan of putting men behind the ball and hitting the Reds on the counter. We did not help ourselves as our performance were still not up to mark but I think we did better than when we played Sunderland last week.
The Reds were having a tough time penetrating Boro and the referee, Mike Riley did not help matters as he never provided Torres and Keane any protection from the Boro players. Towards the close of the 1st half, signs of the El Keano partnership reared its head as Keane side footed the ball to put Torres thrugh only for Huth to block his shot.
The Kop was buzzing and hoped that the players would come out and knock Boro back but more of the same awful performances by the midfield were in store. At that time, Stevie G was almost invisible; Xabi and Yossi kept giving the ball away. Kuyt with his Eveready-bunny performance was not going to help our cause at that point.
The clock was running down and Southgate called on Mido to add some attacking bite into proceedings. Boro were rewarded with a wonderful 25-yard strike 20 minutes from time by the Egyptian who scored his 2nd goal of the season, after coming on for Boro as he did against Spurs last week. It was deserved for the visitors as they took the game to us right from the get go.
It looked like one of those games where the Reds were going to be locked out as the visitors began to see the real possibility of a first victory at Anfield in 23 years. And who could blame them. We were dishing out drivel and it was quite evident as Babel didn’t even get a touch on the ball until about 10 minutes after his introduction.
We did start to approach the game with a lot more urgency but by then, my head and my heart were both telling me ‘we suck’ and were going to lose this one. Best we could get is a draw.
The drawing goal did come 5 minutes from time but via a very unlikely source of none other than our Carra-diator. The scouser let fly from the edge of the box and his luck was taken off Pogatetz as the shot deflected it off the Boro captain and wrong-footed Turnbull who was diving to his right. The Kop exploded and then all the nail-biting started. Could we? Couldn’t we? 3 points. Is it possible?
The only thing Riley did all night was to put out 3 minutes of injury time and some more after injury to a Boro player. With time running out, the script was set for Captain Marvel himself to rescue the 2 points that looked destined to be lost. Xabi’s best pass of the night was to float the ball over the top and it broke for Stevie G to lash into the top corner for a hard- fought win. This sort of play-like-crap-but-win-in-the-end performance were trademarks of championship winning sides like manscum and chelski. Hopefully, it’s our turn. Let’s not get carried away though because the performance in the last 3 games including the UCL qualifier against Liege will be punished eventually. Good wingers, anyone?
It was a highly anticipated match, especially with the never ending transfer saga involving a certain captain of a midlands club. On top of that the capture of our new number seven, Robbie Keane (Reggie Keane to some), made most of us looking forward to this match even more than usual. Sunderland have strengthened their squad themselves with a host of players, many of them the former colleagues of our own Robbie, and a certain spitter that we all love to hate.
The match started with both sides lining up with a 4 - 4 - 2, that surprised me a little, I would say that many would be expecting the 4 - 2 - 3 - 1 which served us so well towards the end of last season and with teams needing to hit the ground running rather than ease their way into the season, it was certainly a strange decision from Rafa, especially with Xabi missing from the starting line-up. His place was taken by Damien Plesis, a promising bright young star that had starring roles in last season's march towards becoming the national champion with the Reserves. Another surprise was the inclusion of Sami ahead of Daniel Agger, although that one is more understandable with Sunderland looking to pump lots of high ball into the area.
Many were cursing Rafa when Sami had a mad moment with his weak header inviting Diouf of all people to have a clear sight of goal, luckily, as usual, Carra came to our rescue, nicking the ball away to concede a corner. From there, both sides were sussing each other out with hopeful probing balls that came to naught.
Sensing that we are still feeling our way through the match, Sunderland grew in confidence, starting to ask more questions of us, often packing the midfield to choke us and not allowing much space. We were lucky that their players were feeling their way through as well and weren't as sharp. They did however, snap us into action and the Reds were passing with a little more zest and purpose towards the second period of the half, however, these moves were often broken down by Sunderland who packed their defense and covering midfielders, at times with as many as 6 in the box to track runs and frustrate the Reds, and frustrate they did. There were a few moments of brilliance from the Reds when they put some nice passes together to open up the Sunderland defense and got a few shots in, one such moment was when Robbie cleverly brought down the ball, swiveled and let one fly with his left boot which missed the right hand post by about a foot. So close yet so far.
Sunderland were happy to go into half time scoreless, but they know that half time came at the right time, for them, just as we were controlling the game and started asking serious question about them.
The second half started the way the first one ended, Xabi came on for Damien who had a bit of a back problem and Liverpool came flying off the blocks, stepping up a couple of gears and went looking for that first goal that would open the game up. The warning was there, we are not leaving until we get the 3 points we came for, it almost came when Kuyt somehow managed to conjure space for himself and tested Gordon with his left foot, the rebound dropped nicely for our strikers to follow up but both Robbie and El Nino went for the same ball and El Nino's shot actually came off Robbie and went out for a goal kick, much to our frustration.
Next was Xabi's turn to try when he let fly another beauty from inside our half that sent Gordon scrambling back, only to breathe a sigh of relief to see it sail wide by a couple of feet. By this time, Robbie was already taken off and replaced with another youngster who impressed in the reserves, Nabil El Zhar. He brought much pace to the right hand side with Kuyt moved to a more central role.
As the match was drawing to a close, it was Xabi who made the difference when he sent a searching ball towards Torres who let fly a daisy cutter that went all the way and bulged the net. That sent the travelling fans and M Bar into a bouncing frenzy, with the fans bouncing nonstop until the final whistle came.
It wasn't vintage Liverpool, more of a smash and grab job at Sunderland, but I will take the 3 points as it was the first game of the season and a usual, our lads are still some way from full fitness and understanding, not less between Robbie and Nando, but there are signs that this team can push on, with lots of improvement that can be made and especially our Olympians who are due back soon, it's a nice build up to the bigger tests that await us. With the new look team and depth; it certainly excites any Red in the world as we look forward to the Boro game at home next week with greater anticipation. Boro are no pushovers, as shown when they beat a more fancied Spurs 2 - 1, but we know we will be fitter, stronger and another week's worth of training under our belt and we certainly look forward for Robbie to make his competitive bow at Anfield in the League. Walk on...
Our long march towards Rome 2009 started in Liege, Belgium yesterday. Perhaps Standard Liege was considered an ideal opposition before the match but it was anything but that once the whistle blew for the kick-off.
Standard Liege was the Belgian champions last season and they had only lost once in the league then, which indicated the dangerous nature of our opposition. From the moment the ball was kicked, the Belgians seemed to have the extra spring on their heels and seemed to have an extra speed and an air going about their task of upsetting the Mighty Reds from Merseyside. The Belgians were truly up for the game and raised their game throughout. The Belgians’ coach, Laszlo Boloni had his wish granted for the Belgians to play above themselves and for Liverpool to play poorly on the night. It was so evident the Liverpool players were always second best during the match and their passing was haphazard at best. Even experienced players like Alonso, Kuyt and Agger kept giving the ball away.
As early as the seventh minute, the Belgians warned the Liverpudlians of their intent by having Fellaini’s header crashed against the inside of the post before Pepe managed to claw the rebound away from crossing the line into the back of the net. The Belgians claimed that the ball had gone in but the referee and his assistant stood by their decision not to award a goal.
Still, our players failed to heed the warning and in the 12th minute, Dossena was penalised for a raised hand to stop a cross and a penalty was duly given despite the protests from Arbeloa and Dossena that it was outside the box and that it was ball to hand. This time, the referee sided with the Belgians. Pepe, Liverpool’s penalty king was handed the arduous task of stopping Dante’ penalty. Luckily for Pepe and us, Dante’s penalty was somewhat more of a mishit and tame and for a keeper like Pepe’s caliber, managed to save another penalty and we survived a potential tie killer. Liege would have parked the bus from then on and hit us on the break.
Still, our back 4 of Arbeloa, Carragher, Agger and Dossena had trouble coping with the zippy play of the Belgians who were quick and decisive in their play and had belief and played with passion and their hearts to take the game to Liverpool. Significantly, these were all the attributes that were missing from the Liverpool team throughout the match. In the 66th minute, even the ever reliable Pepe Reina had almost missed a cross from Dante and it cannoned off his arms and the ball headed towards goal until Benayoun cleared the goal bound ball in the six yard box. And Pepe was by far the busier keeper of the two and had made countless saves. In one of their dangerous attacks, the young Brazilian leftback, Dante made a 30-40 yardglorious cross towards the penalty box taking our Carragher with it and De Carmago headed narrowly wide with Pepe scrambling to his sides and the ‘oohhs’ from the home crowd was deafening …….
Our play was tentative and hesitant and we hardly troubled the Belgian keeper. In the middle of the park, Plessis and Alonso took to the pitch whilst Gerrard was rested and Carragher was made captain for the night. Benayoun and Kuyt were on the flanks with Robbie Keane and Fernando Torres upfront. With no shots to show for their effort, our front line looked like a flop. The Belgians had our GBP48m frontline in their pockets with intelligent double team every time our front two had the ball and they were not able to muster any trouble for the Belgian keeper. And Torres’s frustration showed when he had a shot from 30 yards that flew wide – so did Xabi Alonso who had a mis-kick from a similar range that was closer to the corner flag than the Belgian goal. That pretty much sums up our attacking game ….. and the night
Even when Gerrard was called into action replacing our new GBP20million dollar man, Robbie Keane, Gerrard did not manage to galvanize his teammates. He could do no more than flash 2 free kicks goal bound - one zipped narrowly over the bar whilst the other was an easy catch for the Belgian keeper in the last few minutes of extra time.
The game bore a lot of similarity with last season’s away game against Besiktas and it was a nightmare to relive it over again. Only this time, we were lucky to have come out from the game with a scoreless draw when it could have easily been a loss. Well done to Standard Liege for they proved to be worthy opposition for our team and were better than us on the night. If Liege had had one striker on form or a high profile striker like Keane or Torres in their side, it could well have been a different story.
The sleeping RED giant from Mersey had better be awake in a fortnight if our ambition for a chance to lift No.6 in Rome 2009 still burns, for we will need a gigantic improvement from last night’s performance. After all, if we lose in Anfield in a fortnight, we will be out of Europe for the season and many would not be able to fathom such financial and reputation devastation.
Our final home game of the 07/08 season was played out while most of us were still hurting and disappointed with the lost at the UEFA Champion’s League semi-finals. Some felt worried not knowing if the boys were in the right frame of mind to play in this rather meaningless fixture as we have already secured the final spot for next season’s UCL. Thankfully, the Gaffer did not allow this to happen as the boys resumed their normal service.
The Man City road show came to Anfield and with our very own soap opera still on primetime, most Reds will sympathize with the City’s travelling support. Their show of support for Sven Goran Eriksson - a boyhood Red and their discontent with Thaksin; who was linked with taking over LFC, is clear and plain to see.
Our new home kit for the coming season made its debut in this match and it looks rather “retro” and simple. That was probably the highlight of the 1st half as what played out in the first 45 minutes, was an uninspired and at times looked tired performance from the boys(unsurprising, after playing a tough and long match in a rain soak pitch 3 days earlier). The Anfield crowd was silent and it was the City fans that filled the air with their tribute to Eriksson – their very own version of “Another Brink in The Wall” by Pink Floyd. Captain Marvel – Gerrard did managed to force a spectacular save from Hart in the 32nd minute: his curled shot that was heading for the far post was saved by the keeper’s finger tips.
The match and the crowd sparked to life in the 56th minute after the break when our golden boy – Torres, took advantage of some sloppy play from Ball to slot home his 23rd goal in the EPL (tied with van Nistelrooy for the record of scoring the most goals in a debut season by a foreign player and equaled “Sir” Roger Hunt’s 46 years old record of scoring in 8 consecutive home games). Numerous chances went begging later for Kuyt - who hit the post with his header, Babel – who sent his shot to row Z from 6 yards out and Lucas - who sent his spectacular overhead kick straight to the arms of Hart.
In a season overshadowed by the turmoil in the boardroom, the team has managed to gather their 3rd highest total points in the EPL – 73 points with a match to go and the 2nd highest total number of goals scored in Anfield – 79 goals. The dynamic duo of Torres and Gerrard scored a total of 53 goals with 4 other Reds on double digit totals. Who would bet against “El Nino” equaling Albert Stubin’s record of the highest number of goals in a debut season – 25 goals or breaking the record he is currently tied with van Nistelrooy in the match aginst Spurs?
Lastly, questions remain on the faith of Riise, Penant and Crouch. I for one wouldn’t be surprised with the outcome during the summer silly season. My only concern is for Alonso, whom I still hold in very high regards even though this has been a lackluster season of sorts from him. Things are definitely looking up from the reserve team – Plesis and Insua will definitely feature next season. I’m already exited by the taught of new exciting players heading our way…… and the season still has a game to go!
Goals: Torres (58) 1-0.
Liverpool (4-5-1): Reina; Finnan, Hyypia, Carragher, Insua; Kuyt, Mascherano, Gerrard (Voronin, 77), Lucas (Alonso, 73), Babel (Benayoun, 67); Torres. Substitutes not used: Itandje (gk), Skrtel.
Manchester City (4-4-2): Hart; Sun Jihai, Dunne, Corluka, Ball; Vassell (Garrido, 81), Ireland, Johnson, Petrov (Castillo, 66); Elano (Hamann, 66); Benjani. Substitutes not used: Isakson (gk), Fernandes.
The beginning of a new era – the era of the new Crown Prince of Anfield
RAFA retained his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation that has served the team so well in the recent unbeaten run of 6 matches and the only changes were Arbeloa for Hyypia in defence with Carragher and Skrtel in the middle. Arbeloa and Aurelio were tasked with the job of patrolling the sides. Xabi, the new proud dad, was restored in the middle of the park in place of Lucas and sat in front of the defence along side Mascherano whilst Babel and Kuyt was out wide. Gerrard and Torres was retained at the front and the crowd at Anfield was holding their breathe for the GT show.
Reading won the toss for the kick-off and opted to attack the Anfield Road end instead, a phychological ploy as every team in EPL knows that Liverpool prefers to attack the KOP end in the second half. Presumably, this psychological ploy might have worked as we started poorly and our passing was of our usual sub-standards; wayward and crucially, we looked like we playing Barnsley!
On the 5th minute, the referee of the day, Mr. Andre Marriner made the first of mistakes in the match, in awarding a freekick to Reading penalizing Arbeloa who had made a brilliant tackle to dispose Long. Replays showed that Arbeloa was spot on with his claim although it was to no avail. The Liverpool defence had anticipated a long pun into the penalty box but in the end it was driven a cross the penalty box for Matejovsky to hit a brilliant first timed half-volley that sailed across to Pepe’s right leaving him with no chance whatsoever to save it. In truth, it was a brilliantly executed free kick which left Pepe standing and had hardly moved as the ball nestled into goal. The Anfield crowd had been stunned but was not broken knowing that the team in red had plenty of time to get back into the match.
It was all Reading in the next 10 to 15 minutes, taking over the midfield as their confidence grew and the Liverpool players had a spell of misplaced and wayward passing. Slowly but surely Liverpool clawed back into the match with Alonso trying his hand at the goal from just outside the penalty box and it sailed agonizingly millimeters wide of Hahnemann’s left post.
Shortly afterwards, the GT combo showed glimpses of it brilliance again when Gerrard made a telling through pass to his partner in crime, Torres who bore down on Hahnemann’s goal only to have the Reading keeper beat him to it by hundredths of a second. It would have been a different story had Torres had been fresher and rotated and not played in San Siro against Inter last week. By then on 19th minute, Liverpool were in control of the midfield and Reading rarely threatened the Liverpool defence. But Babel, who had been penetrative on the left side of the attack, fed the ball to Mascherano in the middle of the park, just outside the penalty and he cleverly worked his way past Hunt and blasted a rocket shot to Hahnemann’s left giving the keeper no chance in the Reading goal. It was Mascherano’s first goal and it came in front of the adoring Kop and the Anfield stadium went wild celebrating this gem of a goal from their beloved Monster Masche!! So did all his Liverpool team mates. It was no less than what the lad deserved after his Monster performances in the red shirt since his move from Upton Park.
Rafa's 4-2-3-1 was now in full motion. Hahnemann had to be on his best to prevent a second when Ryan Babel sneaked past two defenders and smashed the ball on target goalwards. There was little backlift that would suggest Babel’s shot would sting the Reading keeper’s hand until it cannoned off Hahnemann’s hands into safety. Babel surely is a gem waiting to be cut into the perfect player for the GT combo given time to mature – probably for next season.
Babel then had a goal chalked off for offside in one of our more effective attacks from the right – a thunderbolt of a diving header but it was a correct decision by the linesman as Babel had been a fraction of a second too slow to react to the Reading defenders moving out.
Three minutes after the restart, Babel earned a free kick about 35 yards outside Hahnemann’s goal and our skipper chipped in a beautifully weighted cross into the penalty box and Hahnemann opted to stay on his line but his defenders hesitated and provided Torres with a free header which was duly accepted for his twentieth (20th) league goal and it was 2-1 to the home team. Torres header was headed with full confidence of a striker on form and he headed it magnificiently across Hahnemann’s right and was dutifully beaten by the pace of Torres’s header. The era of the new crown prince of Anfield, Mr. Torres has just begun …… hopefully with many more goals to come from a the humble Spaniard who is just 23 years old but already with vast international experience and a bag full of tricks and pace which scares the hell out of opposition defenders.
Tackles were starting to fly all over the pitch and frustration were boiling all over as Reading players had trouble keeping up the pace of the match. When Long was subbed by Dave Kitson, the former duly threw his shirt to the ground in front of the manager and was rightfully cautioned by Coppell as a mark of disrespect for the club.
Shortly after Kitson came on, he had a paper thin claim for a penalty after Carragher out muscled him with the ball slowly rolling towards goal before Reina picked it up. Had the claim been given by ref, Andre Marriner it would have been as frivolous as the one awarded against us in the Chelsea match.
There were several half chances created thereafter but the Reading defence, with some luck managed to clear the ball to safety for throw-ins or corner kicks. Frustration began to take its toll on the visitors’ players and Bikey who was lucky to have not been yellow carded earlier, was finally given one for pulling Gerrard down as he was bearing towards their goal. Bikey had already made several rash challenges on Torres, Gerrard, Alonso earlier in the match.
In the final minutes before the end, Reading had a claim for penalty when the ball hit Gerrard’s hand in the penalty box but in truth it was ball to hand and as Gerard’s hands were inwards covering his chest more than anything and the claims were rightly waved away. Seconds later, Hunt came close when Pepe Reina had trouble hold on to his shot. Pepe needed a second chance to hold on to the ball and the Spanish stopper quickly grabbed the ball with several Reading players bearing him down. Immediately after that, Gerrard was subbed by Hyypia to defend another Reading long ball into the Liverpool penalty area.
Hahnemann was instructed to go forward as a last throw of the dice for the freekick but it was cleared by the Liverpool defence and the ball duly landed on Alonso’s feet in the middle and Alonso tried one of his exquisite 70 yard shot from his own half with Hahnemann still behind him. Unfortunately for Alonso, his attempt landed several inches wide of goal. It would have been a fitting end to Alonso’s great day had that gone in after being restored to the team and becoming a father few days ago.
Lucky Lucky Liverpool - The Champions League Gods are smiling upon us! By William Tan
Liverpool were very very lucky at Anfield yesterday night against Inter Milan to have won 2-0 which flattered to deceive especially when Inter had been playing with 10 men for most of the match.
The first stroke of luck was when Materrazi was first shown the yellow card for tackling Torres from the side and taking him out when the latter was ‘running the channels’ – that was in the 12th minute. Materazzi committed the offence right under the nose of the linesman who flagged immediately even though Torres continued to control the ball and Belgian referee had no choice but to issue a yellow. Mancini claimed that the yellow card was harsh (as some pundits also commented) but I guess some referees wanted to stamp out these tackles from the side as per FIFA’s rules. Harshness was also dished out countless times when Crouch was deemed to have fouled the Inter players whenever he jumped for the ball after Crouch came on as a substitute in the 64th minute. Life has been hard on Crouch in Europe too in the past and even yesterday night at Anfield.
The 2nd stroke of luck came when Materazzi fouled Torres by pulling his shirt after the latter had pull away from Materazzi and fell over. Torres was vilified by the Inter players and fans as they claimed that Torres made a meal of Materazzi’s challenges. The Belgian referee was having none of it and duly banished Materazzi his 2nd yellow and Inter was on the back foot as they go down to 10 men in the first 30 minutes of the game! But this was an Italian team and they seldom concede goals even when down to 10 men. Liverpool would need more strokes of luck as the match wore on especially since Inter were going to play for a draw.
What have Rafa and his clueless men done to deserve such luck? Many a pundits wondered on the night too but several concluded that Torres had done a ‘Materazzi’ on Materazzi!! This conclusion was somewhat disrespectful of the fact that Torres did his best to continue playing even after he was fouled by Materazzi and Torres choose to play on but the Belgian referee felt that the fouls committed was worthy of a yellow in each instance as the advantage was taken away from Torres. I reckon that what Torres did was not wrong and it was questionable that some pundits claim that Torres made a meal of both tackles. Don’t they remember some of the Italian hard men in the past were known to have ended the careers of good strikers and one such name springs to mind – Marco van Basten. FIFA had introduced rules to protect quality strikers? FIFA had grown up ages ago … time for the players to do so too!
Liverpool really enjoyed a lot of luck in the whole match as by the end of the match, Inter Milan had 2 of their regular centre halves out and injured respectivly. If Liverpool could not win at Anfield on the night, then they probably don’t deserve the chance to win the tie at the San Siro in 3 weeks time.
After the Materazzi sending off, Liverpool was controlling the game, there was hardly any penetration as Inter defended for their lives ….. and were happy for a draw. Jamie Reeves thought the Inter defence was excellent in throwing their bodies on the line to stop everything that Liverpool threw at them. The match was literary played in the Inter half afterwards and the initiative was totally with Rafa’s men.
Luck, however, was not on Liverpool’s side as they were not awarded penalty when Viera, the former Arsenal captain handled the ball just as Gerrard lifted the ball over his head. In fairness, the Belgian referee was unsighted and in this situation, the linesman was suppose to have flagged but he was behind the play and Inter got away without conceding a penalty.
The game changed a little more open when Crouch and Pennant came on as a substitute for Lucas and Babel and the 6’7” goliath created all sorts of problems for the Inter defence who had earlier held its own for more than an hour. Crouch had some high balls crossed to him but he managed several half chances on his own and caused countless problems for Cordoba and Chivu in defence. Pennant was riding the lines and was make several dangerous crosses for the Liverpool frontline but all was easily dealt with by the Inter defence marshaled by the excellent Ivan Cordoba.
Then disaster struck on 75st minute, unluckily, Cordoba landed awkwardly when he tried to defend a dangerous cross from Pennant and the team doctor immediately signaled for substitution. Inter had to make a substitution to cater for the injury and Chivu moved to the centre whilst Burdisso moved to the left back. Lucky Lucky Liverpool, Inter lost their 2 centre halves in 1 match and that complexion of the game changed completely on this injury as Liverpool continued to inch closer to the Inter goal although in the few minutes immediately Inter defenders managed to get in the way of Liverpool’s attacks.
Then just as Capello made his exit from Anfield on the 81st minute, the unexpected happened when Pennant on the right made a curling cross from the right and evaded Torres, Crouch and at least 3 Inter defenders! It ball landed nicely for Kuyt on the far post and as he steadied himself to shoot, Maicon came to cover to narrow the angle. Unfortunately for Inter, Kuyt’s fierce shot cannoned into Maicon’s outstretched leg and caused an awkward bounce that deceived Julio Cesar in the Inter goal and The Kop erupted like a volcano bursting for joy. It must have been a really lucky Kuyt for on any other day or any other time, the ball would have richocheted out for a corner – like so many times yesterday night at Anfield.
As Anfield celebrate Kuyt’s goal at the Kop, Rafa was urging his players forward and it had looked unlikely for a second as the Inter defence continued to hold firm. A 0-1 away result from Anfield is very much still salvageable and manageable proposition at the San Siro for Mancini. That train of thought held true until the Liverpool captain, Gerrard made a shot into the left hand post beating at least 3 Inter defenders, bounced 3 times on the way to beating Julio Cesar at the Inter goal and hitting the far post before bouncing in nicely into the net. What are the chances of that happening in a crucial Champions League match and at such crucial stage? Both Liverpool goals involved the ball rolling past at least 3 Inter defenders each time and one of the goals even took a wicked deflection off Maicon and beating Julio Cesar. It was a rip-off as Lady Luck smiled on Liverpool and Rafa Benitez yesterday at Anfield.
The Kop and Reds supporters all over the world celebrated another famous ‘lucky’ victory at Anfield and the Champions League Gods must be smiling over Anfield yesterday night …….
Chelsea 0 - Liverpool 0 Match report by William Tan
Like so many matches that Liverpool have played this season, we controlled the tempo of the match and reduced Chelsea’s attacking ambitions to virtually nil except for a ‘real’ goal attempt by Ballack when they broke through in the final few minutes of the game. Other than that attempt at goal, Pepe hardly had a dive to make during the game …… no wonder the journalists called the game a boring drab draw.
They wanted to see Chelsea beat Liverpool and compound more misery on the Merseysiders especially now that Everton are 3 points ahead in the league table and that would sell their papers!
Chelsea’s other ‘attempt’ at goal was in the final minutes of the match when Ashley Cole crossed into the Liverpool 6 yard box and Riise were forced to head the ball back to Reina gently though it was sure to raise the heartbeat of a few supporters as it could easily have been an own goal. Even Bluenose, Andy Gray was excited at it probably secretly wishing that it had been an own goal ….. and Everton would have gone four points clear of Liverpool.
In truth, on a better day, Crouch could have had a hattrick if only he had his scoring boots on. Crouchy had several headers at Cech’s goal but some were weak headers that were easily handled by the Chelsea stopper whilst others were wayward headers – if only Crouchy had practiced his heading when he way younger, he could have been an even bigger star for us.
Of all the chances that Crouchy had, the best opening were created from Riise’s deep cross from the left which found Crouchy just outside the penalty box and headed it to Babel who took a deft touch and set up for Crouchy to shoot from just inside the penalty box – but it was milimetres wide of the Cech’s left post!
Chelsea’s midfield were totally outplayed by Mascherano, Lucas and Gerrard behind Crouch. Chelsea had Makelele and Lampard in the middle with Joe Cole and Wright-Phillips out wide. With such setup, it was clear Liverpool were playing 4-5-1 when defending but were capable of switching to 4-3-3 during counter attacks with Kuyt and Babel out wide respectively.
Throughout the whole match, Liverpool more than matched Chelsea in every department and created better chances which if it had been converted by Crouch, it would have been another step towards securing fourth place.
Post match commentary by Arvam Grant included his version of the penalty claim when Joe Cole turned Finnan and Mascherano were back covering and Joe Cole ran into a shocked Mascherano who saw the turn and attempted to pull out ala Finnan and Malouda in the Anfield match and the referee who was ten yards away, did not blink an eye and allowed play to go on.
In all fairness, it was more like Joe Cole making a meal of his turning into Mascherano although some pundits will claim that penalties have been given for such ‘soft’ offences.
It was most interesting to note that Arvam Grant harped on that penalty claim and not on his team’s inability to break a stubborn Liverpool backline marshalled by a new formidable pairing of Carragher and new punk …. Skrtel.
Both had played well against a pacey and tricky Anelka and Anelka hardly had a look-in at Pepe’s goal. Skrtel made crucial clearances and several hard but fair tackles – most notably in the last ten minutes when he timed his tackle beautifully and dispossessed Chelsea’s Alex before starting a run on Chelsea’s goal but was tripped by Alex before he could go far.
Pundits had been having a field day on Skrtel’s performances recently against Havant and Waterlooville and Sunderland but based on his performance last night against a top notch team like Chelsea, Liverpool have got another good transfer bargain.
Given time and Skrtel’s learning of a new language and his aclimatising with RAFA’s tactics and his new team mates, Skrtel could prove to be another good signing ala Torres and Agger except that this time, Skrtel’s fee was only GBP6 million although it is the highest fee paid by Liverpool.
It would be a formidable partnership made in heaven if we have Carragher, Agger and Skrtel in the backline in a 3-5-2 formation as Agger and Skrtel have decent acceleration over short distances.
But we all know that with RAFA, you can never predict his tactics, team formations and his line-ups.
Such competent performance in Stamford Bridge will be the platform for Liverpool to launch our final assault this season in the EPL for final qualifying spot (yes! that dreaded fourth spot again this season) in Champions League this season.
If we keep up this performance level for the rest of the season, we could possibly end up with third place as Chelsea would still have to play against Arsenal and Man Utd and under intense pressure, some teams might collapse.
This performance would also put us in good stead for the Champions League match against Inter Milan on February 20th at Anfield. Until then, we have the weekend FA Cup match against Barnsley at Anfield on Feb 16th to look forward to. Chelsea: Cech, Belletti, Carvalho, Alex, Ashley Cole, Ballack, Makelele, Lampard (Obi 71), Wright-Phillips (Malouda 64), Anelka, Joe Cole (Pizarro 86).
Subs Not Used: Cudicini, Ben-Haim.
Booked: Belletti, Carvalho, Alex.
Liverpool: Reina, Finnan, Carragher, Skrtel, Riise, Gerrard, Mascherano, Lucas, Babel (Pennant 71), Crouch, Kuyt. Subs Not Used: Itandje, Kewell, Benayoun, San Jose Dominguez.
Rafael Benitez put on the spot as late Mark Noble penalty adds to misery
Tom Dart
Is this the way it will end for Rafael Benítez, with a bang and a whimper? The bang was Jamie Carragher’s crass connection with Fredrik Ljungberg that gave Mark Noble an opportunity to score the winning penalty that he embraced with aplomb. The whimper was Liverpool’s performance.
“Let’s talk about football,” Benítez had said before last night’s match. It proved a dangerous statement, given a result and display as bad as this. Poring over the club’s balance sheets would have been less painful.
The defeat, as the Liverpool manager noted, was down to a mistake by one of the club’s most reliable players as West Ham United broke on the counter-attack. But the foul was a direct consequence of Liverpool leaving too few players back, which was caused by their desperation to find a goal that should have been scored long before.
There was an iota of possibility that Liverpool might win when Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres finally tuned into the same wavelength late in the second half, but despite Benítez picking arguably his strongest available line-up, this was a team lacking cohesion, confidence and sustained threat; insipid not inventive. After their poor recent form, Liverpool needed tempo. They produced tedium.
Benítez’s team were neither effective nor entertaining — a serious problem, given the change of climate at the club. With surgery on the finances apparently successful, the focus switches from the owners’ tactics to the manager’s. The key calculation is not the repayment of the club’s debts but how many points it will take to secure Champions League qualification.
Liverpool’s most recent victory in the league was on December 26, a sorry streak confirming that they are challengers not to Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea at the top, but to Everton and Aston Villa for that least attractive of prizes, fourth place.
True, West Ham are difficult opponents. Despite Alan Curbishley, the manager, pledging ambition, he opted for a formation that implied cautious prodding rather than concerted pressing. Curbishley calls it 4-3-3, which is putting a positive spin on it. Whatever, they are hard to break down.
The tactics showcased Carlton Cole’s ability to play as a lone striker as Franco Baldini, Fabio Capello’s assistant, watched from the stands. Cole has garnered some buzz in the run-up to the England squad announcement today, a remarkable achievement for a player derided as feckless by a large tranche of his club’s support a couple of months ago.
Hardly prolific, but an energetic physical presence in the Emile Heskey mould, Cole is one for the pragmatist more than the purist. Much like West Ham as a whole. It may be a welcome relief after the stress of last season, but they look certain to finish in mid-table safety. So they are a side that a team with Liverpool’s pretensions ought to overcome and needed to overcome.
The horror of defeat seemed such a distant possibility: injuries mean that West Ham are damned by faint predators. “We’re getting the most out of what we’ve got,” Curbishley said. “The run-in starts now — let’s see what we can do.”
Still, West Ham are as nervous in front of goal as an MP filling out an expenses claim. Their starting XI had mustered only 12 league goals between them. Cristiano Ronaldo had scored as many by Boxing Day. Liverpool? Even worse. All toil, no threat, they demonstrated as much killer instinct as a posse of pacifist vegans.
With West Ham going long and Liverpool going nowhere, the ball was not in danger of collecting many grass stains. But the contest gradually became more open. Harry Kewell kicked air from a menacing cross by Dirk Kuyt and Luís Boa Morte fluffed a decent opportunity 11 minutes after the break, shanking a shot pitifully wide when the ball dropped kindly on the edge of the six-yard box.
At least the pace of the contest picked up and Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres found more room. Lucas Leiva, a substitute, had a shot deflected wide, then put another effort past the post.
Inside the final 15 minutes, Lucas Neill thumped a shot wide, then Liverpool claimed a penalty after the ball appeared to strike the defender on the arm. With nine minutes left, Curbishley introduced Jonathan Spector, a defender, in place of Cole: the cue for a trickle of West Ham fans to flow towards home. But to everyone’s surprise, there would be an outcome that seems to edge Benítez closer to the exit.
West Ham United 1 (4-1-4-1): R Green – L Neill, A Ferdinand, M Upson, G McCartney – H Mullins – F Ljungberg, L Bowyer (sub: D Ashton, 57min), M Noble, L Boa Morte (sub: M Etherington, 57) – C Cole (sub: J Spector, 81). Substitutes not used: R Wright, N Solano. Goal: Noble, 90 pen.
Liverpool 0 (4-4-2): J M Reina – S Finnan, J Carragher, S Hyypia, F Aurélio – Y Benayoun (sub: R Babel, 72), S Gerrard, X Alonso, H Kewell (sub: Lucas Leiva, 61) – D Kuyt, F Torres. Substitutes not used: C Itandje, P Crouch, M Skrtel. Booked: Aurélio, Torres, Alonso.
Liverpool end Havant FA Cup fairytale By Derick Allsop at Anfield Last Updated: 3:13am GMT 27/01/2008 from the Daily Telegraph
Rafael Benitez was finally able to sit comfortably in his seat on the hour, secure in the knowledge that the threat of the unthinkably humiliating had passed.
His Liverpool team had to come back twice against these part-timers from English football's sixth tier and only then, with a two-goal cushion, could he be certain of avoiding an unenviable entry in the annals of this competition. Yossi Benayoun's hat-trick ultimately suppressed the Havant & Waterlooville uprising, but not before Liverpool had been subjected to one of the most embarrassing halves witnessed in this old arena of legends.
Liverpool, the most decorated club in the land, twice trailed in the extraordinary period and were reduced to the desperation of novices. Even without Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Jamie Carragher and Pepe Reina, it was a performance of inexcusable ineptitude that defied credibility.
Martin Skrtel, their £6.5 million central defender, had a debut from hell. Goalkeeper Charles Itandje was an eccentric liability. The midfield was sterile, the attack impotent.
But to dwell on Liverpool's flaws is to do Havant an injustice. Richard Pacquette, scorer of their first goal, gave Benitez's defence a torrid afternoon and Mo Harkin put on a demonstration of guile and ingenuity that made a nonsense of the clubs' respective statuses. They harried, they chased, but they also played with purpose and had the courage to take the game to Liverpool from the start.
The FA Cup has undeniably been devalued in recent times as the financial rewards of the Premier League and Champions League have grown. Yet just one story such as Havant's makes it still worthwhile.
Their 6,000 fans and those who turned the directors' box into an extension of their enclosure, savoured every moment of this once-in-a-lifetime experience.
At the final whistle, the Havant players scurried to their opposition targets in red to collect their trophy shirts. A standing ovation from the Kop and every other corner of Anfield put a final gloss on their adventure. Gracious it may have been. Relief it undoubtedly was. Peter Crouch's late goal flattered Liverpool but can have deceived no one.
Shaun Gale, the Havant manager, said: "To come to Anfield and give a performance of that magnitude makes me immensely proud. People laughed when we said we'd have a go at them here but we have created chances and scored goals.
"Liverpool obviously hit back and showed their class at the end but this has been fantastic for all of us. Not many non-League clubs could have done this. "We could have been battered but we weren't. We played the game our way and didn't sit back. We could even have made it 4-3 and made it an amazing finish."
Benitez admitted in his programme notes that the Premier League title is now out of reach and he must have been visualising the headlines - and the memo from the club's co-owner, Tom Hicks - as calamity loomed.
He fidgeted and gesticulated as he patrolled the technical area, the angst etched in his face. But eventually Havant were broken down, Liverpool were through and their flirtation with catastrophe will mean nothing come fifth-round day.
The Liverpool manager said: "You have to give credit to them. They started well and scored and we had to work really hard and do a professional job.
"But I had confidence and we were much better in the second half. The FA Cup is like this. It's a fantastic competition. A team five divisions below us shows how good and amazing the cup is."
Any prospects of a fairytale might have been unimaginable after just three minutes. Benayoun somehow headed wide of a gaping goal from Jermaine Pennant's centre. Havant served notice of their ambitions when Harkin and Alfie Potter combined to expose Skrtel's fragile nerves. Two minutes later the defender needlessly conceded the corner kick that yielded the opening goal.
Harkin delivered a regulation cross and Pacquette was more surprised than anyone in the stadium that he was left unattended to score with a simple header.
Even some of the home fans joined the applause for the unlikely, yet their mood changed to anxiety and exasperation as Liverpool fumbled and stumbled to exert a semblance of authority.
It could have been worse still for Liverpool. Itandje made a hash of attempting to repel another corner and was relieved Neil Sharp hooked over his bar.
Then, out of nothing, Liverpool were level. Ryan Babel played the ball to Lucas who curled a shot into the far top corner. Now, surely, sanity would be restored. Not a bit of it.
Steve Finnan lost control of the ball and Potter's shot took a deflection off the hapless Skrtel to beat Itandje again.
John Arne Riise had another unproductive effort before, approaching the break, Pennant fed Benayoun to claim a second equaliser and spare the team the derision of the crowd as they retreated the dressing room.
Liverpool turned up the tempo in the second half and Benayoun's second goal eased the apprehension of the gallery. Again Pennant was the provider, although Benayoun's turn and finish were of the calibre expected of a Premier League player.
Havant's central defender, Tom Jordan, had a header beaten out but Gerrard laid on the fifth for Crouch and dispelled any chance of a final twist to the tale. Gale said: "Now we've got to produce that level in the Blue Square South and try to get this club promoted from our league."
Man of the match
Mo Harkin (Havant) The most composed and creative player, particularly in that first half Match details
Liverpool squandered the chance to move back into the top four as the Reds were held to a 2-2 draw by Aston Villa at Anfield.
Peter Crouch scored an 88th minute volley to rescue a point for the home side, who had been left shell shocked by Villa's two goals in three minutes midway through the second half.
Yossi Benayoun had given Liverpool a first half lead as the home fans protested against the club's American owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks.
However, the Reds made to pay for missed chances as substitute Marlon Harewood hooked home an equaliser from close range for the home side.
Villa then took the lead in the 72nd minute when Olof Mellberg's shot took a wicked deflection off Fabio Aurelio and beat Pepe Reina.
Crouch came off the bench to save Liverpool's blushes but the Reds will know that this was an opportunity missed in the race for a top four finish.
Benitez opted to pair Fernando Torres with Dirk Kuyt in attack, in front of a midfield consisting of Benayoun, Steven Gerrard, Javier Mascherano and Harry Kewell. Alvaro Arbeloa, Jamie Carragher, Sami Hyypia and Fabio Aurelio made up the back four with Reina between the sticks.
The players were greeted by banners and chants aimed at Gillett and Hicks, while fans also publically backed a proposed bid for the club from Dubai International Capital.
Benayoun struck an early chance over the crossbar while, at the other end, Aurelio was lucky when the Brazilian was robbed of possession by Craig Gardner but his low cross evaded Gabriel Agbonlahor.
The Reds took the lead in the 19th minute. Kuyt did well to turn on Gerrard's pass and slip a pass into the path of Benayoun's run, behind the Villa defence. The Israeli's initial effort was blocked by goalkeeper Stuart Taylor but he reacted quickly to tuck away the rebound.
Kuyt was involved in Liverpool's next chance on 31 minutes when he set-up Aurelio but the full-backs shot was just wide.
Liverpool made a bright start to the second period as they looked for a second. Kuyt should have done better when a quick break resulted in Gerrard playing the Dutchman into space inside the box but his first touch was too heavy and it narrowed the angle resulting in his effort going over the crossbar.
Minutes later, Torres clipped a shot onto the roof of the net having been blocked by Taylor earlier.
The Villa 'keeper was forced to stop a low-drive from Kewell as the Reds piled on the pressure.
However, the visitors pulled level against the run of play on 69 minutes when Harewood acrobatically hooked Martin Laursen's header back across goal into the net from close range.
Martin O'Neill's team then stunned Anfield by taking the lead just three minutes later.
Ashley Young's cross found Mellberg, who as forward for a set-piece. His cross struck Aurelio and left Reina with no chance.
Benitez's response was to bring on Ryan Babel for Kewell, having already been forced to blood new signing Martin Skrtel for the injured Arbeloa in the build up to Villa's equaliser. Crouch soon followed for Benayoun.
The England international striker salvaged a point for Liverpool, with stoppage time looming, when he smashed the ball past Taylor from ten yards after Laursen had failed to deal with a set peice.
The result means that Liverpool have drawn their last four league matches and leave them trailing behind the league leaders by 14 points.
Afterwards Benitez was left to rue missed opportunities. "We were controlling the game and creating all of the chances, but we needed to score the second goal to kill the game off," said the Liverpool manager.
"If we'd have scored the second goal I'm sure we'd have scored more because we were playing well.
"I told the players after the game that if you cant kill off the game you will give the other team hope and that was what happened. They we were waiting for a free kick and they scored from two set pieces.
"We had the chances to win, but we didn't take them and in the end you have to be happy because we could have lost."
It takes something extraordinary at Anfield to upstage perhaps Liverpool's most beloved player, entering through a guard of honour to captain the side with his young son in his arms. But such is the wrath that Tom Hicks, Liverpool's co-owner, has incurred by revealing that he had a replacement lined up for Rafael Benitez that Jamie Carragher, marking his 500th appearance for the club by leading them to a 5-0 win over Luton in their FA Cup third-round replay, became a secondary consideration for the supporters here last night.
Benitez would not be drawn on how humiliated he has been by Hicks' comments about Jürgen Klinsmann – an "impressive man" as the American described the German on Liverpool's own website – but the size of the smile he wore revealed everything he felt about the crowd and his players, after a full-strength Liverpool delivered a ruthless five-goal riposte to Hicks. "The supporters here are amazing, always, so I was pleased and you don't need to say anything because they are fantastic," Benitez said. "I know you must ask about this but I prefer to enjoy today because we won 5-0."
Steven Gerrard, whose second-half hat-trick secured the win, said it was time to focus on the team, not the manager. "It's important that the headlines are about football and what's on the pitch," he said.
It was a night when everyone seemed to have investors in mind. Kevin Blackwell, who says he will quit on 9 February because Luton's administrators keep selling his players without telling him, learned second hand, just before kick-off, that TV presenter Nick Owen – as improbable a football club owner in his way as Hicks and George Gillett at Anfield – has made a financial loan which gives him exclusive rights to negotiate for Luton's purchase over the next six weeks. Blackwell did not say he would now reconsider, but in a statement implored that "whoever takes over" the club to look after it.
Hicks' statement had reverberated all day around Anfield where there is a feeling of bafflement at the highest level as to why Hicks had elected to go public on his California meeting with Klinsmann. The banners at the Anfield Road End expressed the fans' feelings: "Dubai SOS, Yanks Out" read one, a plea which might conceivably be answered if the Dubai Investment Company's daily conversations with Anfield yield results. "GH and RP [Gillett, Hicks and Rick Parry] Lies" claimed another, although Liverpool's chief executive is as frustrated as anyone by the current mess here.
Benitez just calmly leaned forward in the dug-out and raised a right hand to all corners of the ground as his name thundered around it. He could not afford any foul-ups on a night like this and fielded a full strength side – though he cited the six-day wait until Aston Villa's arrival as his reasons for doing so.
For 45 minutes, even this line-up – with Peter Crouch partnering Fernando Torres up front – struggled to convert. Torres fired over after Gerrard had teed him up, Crouch twice laid the ball back when something more direct would have done and Ryan Babel came closest when his curled effort from the left struck the base of the post. But the resistance was led by one Don Hutchison – revelling in a huge central defensive workload against a side for whom he played 50 times between 1990 and 1994 – who blocked and tackled Liverpool into a state of frustration and gave Luton their chant of the night for Benitez. "Sacked in the morning, you're getting sacked in the morning."
The game was up when Hutchison, for once, lacked the legs to stop Babel running past him on to Torres' perfectly weighted pass on the stroke of half-time and the Dutchman struck the ball beyond the despairing dive of Dean Brill into the far left-hand corner of the net.
Carragher's son, James, might have selected Torres' name for the jersey he wore last night ("He was given a choice of Gerrard, Carragher or Torres. No lad chooses a defender around here," his father said with a sigh) but this was Gerrard's show. First he headed home from close range after Crouch had flicked back a header from Jermaine Pennant's cross. Gerrard had supplied the corner from which Sami Hyypia headed a third (though Luton defender Matthew Spring helped it on its way), before scoring his second by racing on to a ball delivered to him in two touches by Torres and placing it past Brill.
The hat-trick, only Gerrard's second and Liverpool's first in the FA Cup since Stan Collymore's against Rochdale in 1996, was a viciously swerving 30-yard strike. The rendition of "Walk on" and yet more "Rafael" chants in the game's closing moments had particular resonance. Benitez, for whom Swansea or Havant and Waterlooville are next up in the Cup, might well conclude that humiliations like this week's can have a curious habit of strengthening your hand.
Middlesbrough versus Liverpool – match report by Will Tan
19 minutes to another Liverpool defeat!!!! Screamed the commentator shortly before Torres equalized with a superb shot from 30 yards!
I guess we, the Liverpool fans have gotten used to it nowadays …. as even commentators lately (and he’s not our regular bluenose closet RED, Mr. Andy Gray!) need to exaggerate to earn their money just like their media counterparts whose season target No.9 is Liverpool’s current manager, Mr. Rafa Benitez.
It was a match that started brightly for Liverpool early in the first half in which Steven Gerrard had a shot from outside the penalty which was comfortably saved by Schwarzer.
Middlesbrough were looking to play on the counter and to exploit the slowness of Hyypia on the left hand side of the pitch.
The uncertainty and tentativeness of Alvaro Arbeloa only compounded the situation when it was his lack of cover for the attacking Tuncay.
Against one of Tuncay, Arbeloa was left picking up the pieces. The header by Tuncay was then headed back towards Boateng waiting in the middle with Hyppis unable to do anything but watch.
As the bar flew towards, Aliadere in the far corner, Carragher was dragged out of position with Reina jumped to make his body as big as possible however, Aliadere’s header off the ball went back to Boateng and subsequently went over both Carragher and Reina. Boateng was a step quicker than Hyypia and was on hand to slide the ball into the net driving the home delirious crowd!
Middlesbrough was having the upper hand in the middle who chose to play on the counter but did not create much as the Liverpool defence stood firm during the 1st half.
There were countless offsides by the Boro players such as Downing, Tuncay and Aliadere which were testing the resolve of RAFA’s well-drilled defensive lines that are hardly appreciated by the pundits and commentators alike.
It was a strange 1st half in that the Liverpool players seemed bereft of basic passing as time and again, seemingly unable to find their teammates – it was like the old Gerrard Houllier’s last days as manager of LFC!!!
More like GH’s team than RAFA’s team! What’s happening with the players?
Have they lost their confidence in RAFA or have they started believing what is written in the papers?
The 2nd half was much better and it felt more like RAFA’s team and of course, when Torres scored with that wonderful strike, the commentators went berserk with comments like ‘Torres – just saved RAFA’s job!’ and ‘Torres – wonderful talent but wasted in a team like Liverpool’ etc ……
Hang on, don’t these commentators remember that Torres is doing what is paid to do? And what Torres loves to do? Scoring goals as a striker?
Don’t these commentators remember that Torres wanted to play for RAFA and not SAF though the latter courted Torres for several seasons?
Without RAFA, there would be no Istanbul 2005 and Big Ears permanently in the Museum and the most memorable FA Cup final in history in 2006 and there would certainly be no Torres in the current team!
Sshheeesshhh …. And they call themselves professional commentators! Blah!
After Torres scored, the game turn itself on like any game at Anfield this season. Middlesbrough went into back into its defensive shell and played totally on the counter as they took off Aliadere for Hutchinson, a youngster who would have no chance whatsoever to trouble the experienced pair of Carragher and Hyypia.
Who’s playing effective football ala GH and the Special One? Hmmm …. the home team of Gareth Southgate.
After Torres’s goal, RAFA made several changes by brining on Xabi Alonso, Babel and Kuyt for Arbeloa, Benayoun and Voronin respectively.
Tactically, Riise moved to leftback and Xabi and Mascherano took the centre with Kuyt on the left and Babel behind Torres whilst Stevie G had a roaming role.
For while, this seemed to wonders as the Boro defenders could not contend with the menacing strike combo of Torres and Babel. In one threatening attack, Torres pulled Huth away and Wheater backing off to Babel who was charging onto goal and Babel unleashed a thunderous shot from 30 yards only to miss by a few inches.
RAFA then switched Babel back to the right when Boro made some changes in salvaging and retaining the point for themselves.
In fact, Liverpool went on to search for the winner and had a couple of chances which went begging.
Stevie G had couples of chances from outside the penalty box which was saved and the other, at the end of injury time, curled agonizingly centimeters away from Schwarzer’s left post.
Hyypia also had several attempts at goal but it was not to be. Another disappointing draw in 4 successive matches. We probably deserve to win but that’s for another day.
For now, we would have to look over elsewhere for inspiration out of our current rut. As for now we have other teams such as Everton, Man City, Blackburn and Aston Villa to worry about other than the big three of Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea, though we still have one game in hand.
DID YOU KNOW? Liverpool have not won at Boro since 2002, when goals from Heskey and Riise won it 2-1 - with Middlesbrough's goal coming from current manager Gareth Southgate.
STAT ATTACK M'boro v LIV'POOL 41% POSSESSION 59% 2 SHOTS ON TARGET 6 5 SHOTS OFF TARGET 7 3 CORNERS 9 6 FOULS CONCEDED 13 11 OFFSIDES 5 1 YELLOW CARDS 1 0 RED CARDS 0
Torres made to suffer as Liverpool support act bungle again By JOHN EDWARDS, 3rd January 2008, The Daily Mail
Liverpool 1 Wigan 1
Fernando Torres delivered in his usual style, but Liverpool's over-reliance for goals on their £21million record signing continued to look the fatal flaw in Rafa Benitez's title masterplan at Anfield last night. The former Atletico Madrid striker's impact on English football has been remarkable and his 16th goal in 24 appearances should have been enough to add Wigan to the list of teams who have succumbed to his lightning skills.
With a second goal eluding them, though, Liverpool were always vulnerable to a moment's fallibility or opportunism and they were pegged back by a combination of both 10 minutes from time.
Steven Gerrard failed to clear his lines from a free-kick deep into the Liverpool area, and Titus Bramble pounced on the loose ball to fire an unstoppable drive beyond Pepe Reina from the edge of the box.
Much as Torres has been a revelation, acclimatising to his new surroundings in a matter of days and carrying Liverpool's attack almost on his own, the lack of goals from other areas presents dangers and is having an increasingly detrimental effect on Benitez's hopes of ending an 18-year drought in the League. Liverpool are now 12 points adrift of leaders Arsenal, albeit with a game in hand, and the customary Benitez lament of chances being created but not taken is beginning to sound distinctly hollow.
No amount of hard-luck stories will close the gap on the usual top three of Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea.
Rather, they will merely reinforce the view that, for all the money spent on expensive reinforcements, Liverpool are no nearer the champions tag that has proved out of reach since Kenny Dalglish's reign.
Benitez is close to capturing the central defender he needs as cover for Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger, but finding someone to share the scoring burden with Torres cannot be far behind on his list of priorities.
With Dirk Kuyt and Andriy Voronin looking more willing workers than prolific finishers, on the evidence so far, and Peter Crouch continuing to pay the price for seeing England recognition as a sign that he no longer needs to bother with the basics, the only other source of goals has been the ever-productive Gerrard.
When the Liverpool skipper is preoccupied with other duties and Torres finds himself creating openings, rather than pouncing on them, as was the pattern for most of a frustrating 90 minutes, Benitez's side look limited.
How Liverpool must have wished the roles had been reversed in the 22nd minute when Torres supplied the return pass in a one-two with Javier Mascherano, who side-footed weakly at Wigan's former Liverpool goalkeeper Chris Kirkland.
Torres laid on two further first-half chances for Gerrard that were squandered before providing a reminder of the aspect of his game that sets him apart from the rest — a flashing 42nd-minute header that brushed the roof of the net, with Kirkland beaten.
Wigan had more than held their own and even threatened in front of the Kop with a Michael Brown volley that flew narrowly wide and a hurried shot from Antonio Valencia, who should have done better than slice wide from the right of the area. An overdue example of the quality expected of title pretenders finally nudged Liverpool in front in the 49th minute as Gerrard released the overlapping Steve Finnan on the right for a low cross which Torres turned in with ease. For a few fleeting moments, the anxiety that had preceded it, fed no doubt by the galling memory of Sunday's fruitless quest to find a way through Manchester City's unyielding defence, seemed to disappear as Liverpool stormed forward in search of a second goal.
Harry Kewell was inches too high with a ferocious drive in the 74th minute and Gerrard was denied by a double save from Kirkland in the 84th minute that evoked memories of his Coventry heroics prior to Gerard Houllier investing so heavily in him nearly seven years ago.
All the earlier fragility returned in an instant, though, as Gerrard erred for once and Bramble, fresh from opening his Wigan account against Aston Villa at the weekend, took aim from the edge of the area.
'I was delighted for Titus, because he has had unfair treatment down the years,' said manager Steve Bruce, who left Anfield with a hardearned point for the second time this season, following Birmingham's goalless draw in September.
'People forget he is still only a young man and that he has played centre half for a team who have finished in the top five twice. So he can't be that bad.
'I can see him emerging as a really good player and he played his part in a very disciplined performance.
'You need your goalkeeper to play well when you come to Anfield, and Chris enjoyed it out there against his old club.
'There is a bit of belief about the players, a bit of confidence, and quite right too when you consider what they have done.
'We are out the bottom three, for a week and a half at least, so we can afford to smile.'
This is a very exciting time for us at MyRAWK - Malaysia's very own independent Liverpool community, having established ourselves recently. We are looking forward to the season and to share our unique match viewing experience with each and everyone of you hardcore Liverpool fans. With us, we have a very competent working committee that is slogging hard to ensure everyone enjoys being part of the MyRAWK community. With that I'd like to welcome you as a member of MyRAWK and look forward to meeting everyone at our match viewing parties or other activities.
The future is bright and certainly Liverpool RED!
You'll Never Walk Alone,
Jonathan Lim El Presidente MyRAWK
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07/08 EPL Position - Final
Rank
GP
W
D
L
GD
P
PD
4
38
21
13
4
39
76
-11
*GP - Games Played W - Win D - Draw L - Lost GD - Goal Difference P- Points PD - Points Difference From 1st
The match and the crowd sparked to life in the 56th minute after the break when our golden boy – Torres, took advantage of some sloppy play from Ball to slot home his 23rd goal in the EPL (tied with van Nistelrooy for the record of scoring the most goals in a debut season by a foreign player and equaled “Sir” Roger Hunt’s 46 years old record of scoring in 8 consecutive home games). Numerous chances went begging later for Kuyt - who hit the post with his header, Babel – who sent his shot to row Z from 6 yards out and Lucas - who sent his spectacular overhead kick straight to the arms of Hart.
Goals: Torres (58) 1-0.
Liverpool were very very lucky at Anfield yesterday night against Inter Milan to have won 2-0 which flattered to deceive especially when Inter had been playing with 10 men for most of the match.
Yossi Benayoun's hat-trick ultimately suppressed the Havant & Waterlooville uprising, but not before Liverpool had been subjected to one of the most embarrassing halves witnessed in this old arena of legends.
Gracious it may have been. Relief it undoubtedly was. Peter Crouch's late goal flattered Liverpool but can have deceived no one.
