Wednesday 11 February 2015

Balotell Fires Reds Past Spurs

After a stalemate in the Merseyside derby at the weekend, Liverpool looked to continue their stay at the top of the form table with the hosting of fellow in-form side Tottenham last night. Daniel Sturridge made his first start coming back from injury while Steven Gerrard featured from the start for the third time in a week.

A slow start from both sides at a chilly Anfield saw Liverpool take the first chance as Daniel Sturridge advanced on goal before forcing a low save from Hugo Lloris which was followed two minutes later by Steven Gerrard's free-kick sailing over the bar.

After retaining his place from the weekend, Jordon Ibe looked to build on a good performance and came close to claiming an assist when he picked out Sturridge who hit for goal only to be denied by a stunning stop from Lloris. However, the Spurs 'keeper was picking the ball out of the net two minutes later when an aerial challenge between Jan Vertonghen and Sturridge saw the ball find Lazar Markovic who advanced on goal and slotted past Lloris to open the scoring.

The visitors could have gone two behind five minutes later when Ryan Mason's back pass was cut-out by Sturridge who looked to test Lloris but could only sent the ball over the bar. Mason's error had gone unpunished and instead of being 2-0 down, Tottenham were soon level as Eric Lamela slipped a pass through to Harry Kane who slotted past Simon Mignolet to make it 1-1.

Liverpool's response saw Ibe test Lloris after a pacy run before the young winger found Sturridge who in the final seconds of the first half, performed a backheel flick which cannoned off the post and the Reds attack continued into the second half which saw Sturridge's advance into the box on 52 minutes result in a penalty.

Steven Gerrard stepped up and fired past Hugo Lloris to put the hosts in front but the lead lasted just eight minutes as Spurs drew level after Christian Eriksen's free-kick had forced Simon Mignolet into a strong save, Harry Kane crossed for Moussa Dembele who clipped the ball into the net.

Liverpool changed tact with Steven Gerrard being replaced by Dejan Lovren which allowed Emre Cam to move into midfield which came close to a quick impact when he found Phillipe Coutinho who in turn supplied Lazar Markovic who forced a stop from Lloris.

Both sides made further changes as the game entered the final 15 minutes with Sturride and Markovic replaced by Adam Lallana and Mario Balotelli while Spurs brought on Nacer Chadli in place of Christian Eriksen. As the game entered the final ten minutes, Liverpool's changes paid off as Adam Lallana clipped the ball across the box and into the path of Mario Balotelli who fired past Lloris to put the Reds in front with his first league goal for the club.

Tottenham pushed to level for a third time but were unable to prevent Liverpool from securing a huge victory and completing a league double over them. 

Saturday 7 February 2015

Reds Late Show Seals Palace Trip

Ahead of the Merseyside Derby at the weekend, Liverpool travelled to face Bolton in the FA Cup fourth round replay on Wednesday night looking to continue their good form in 2015.

Steven Gerrard returned to make his historic 700th appearance with Joe Allen also included in the starting 11 while Jordan Henderson dropped the bench which included Daniel Sturridge who hoped to continue his comeback from injury.

Liverpool started the better of the two sides with Adam Lallana picking out Steven Gerrard in space in the seventh minute who forced a save from Andy Lonergan before the Bolton stopper saw a stray shot from Philippe Coutinho sail wide of his goal.

Bolton responded with a high shot from Eidur Gudjohnsen in the 16th minute before David Wheater connected with a header from a free-kick which Simon Mignolet saved comfortably. The best chance of the game came from Raheem Sterling who after being supplied by a Moreno-Lallana combination, clipped a shot at goal only to see it cannon off the post.

Sterling looked to turn creator just before the interval as he combined with Gerrard to find Coutinho whose shot narrowly missed the outside of the post. Bolton seemed to be buoyed by still being in the game at half time and their position improved just before the hour mark as a run into the box from Zack Clough saw him tripped by Martin Skrtel resulting in a penalty. Eidur Gudjohnsen slotted past Mignolet to give the hosts the lead but their joy was soon soured with the dismissal of Neil Danns for a second booking in the 66th minute.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, Bolton continued to threaten with Clough shooting pastthe post after a clever run before Feeney swept in a dangerous cross which saw Mignolet save crucially with Gudjohnsen just inches away from connecting.

Liverpool came achingly close to drawing level when Jordan Henderson's shot deflected off David Wheater before grazing the post before a pacy run from Daniel Sturridge resulted in a blocked shot which saw Sterling try his luck only to be denied in a similar fashion.

Emre Can fired a powerful shot at goal in the 83rd minute which saw Andy Lonergan tip the ball onto the crossbar but the Bolton stopper was soon beaten as Can clipped a pass forward into the path of Raheem Sterling who volleyed through the legs of Lonergan to level the tie at 1-1.

Extra time looked to be on the cards as the game ticked on into added time but when Jordan Henderson found Philippe Coutinho in space, the visiting fans began to believe and their faith was rewarded when the Brazilian swept in a superb shot which cannoned off the bar and over the line.

Bolton came just five minutes from a dream tie in the fifth round away to Crystal Palace but the Eagles will welcome Liverpool hoping to repeat their stunning 3-1 win from earlier in the season. 

Tuesday 3 February 2015

Sofa So Good For SCS

After exiting the Capital One Cup at the hands of Chelsea in midweek, Liverpool returned to league duties with the visit of West Ham United who sat just above the Reds going into Saturday afternoon's meeting.

Due to the packed fixture schedule, the Reds rested Steven Gerrard from a squad that saw Mario Balotelli miss out but saw the first inclusion of Daniel Sturridge after his return from five months out injured.

The reverse meeting between the sides saw the Hammers cruise to a 3-1 win last September which saw them lead 2-0 inside seven minutes this time around it took that long for the first chance to appear as Lazar Markovic hit wide after a good build-up.

Since scoring in the previous meeting, Raheem Sterling has become a shining star for Liverpool and he looked to continue his good form by setting up Jordan Henderson which saw the captain force a save from Adrian after 19 minutes. Sterling turned creator again five minutes later when he found Philippe Coutinho who drew a parrying stop from Adrian as Liverpool built up momentum.

West Ham responded with former Reds striker Andy Carroll latching on to an free-kick but the result was a tame shot which was easily taken by Simon Mignolet. In what seemed to be a trend of the game, Sterling continued to create for the hosts and after going down in the area saw the ball make a fool out of Stewart Downing before Markovic sent the ball wide of the target.

Sterling's effort were justly rewarded six minutes after the interval when a forward pass from Alberto Moreno saw Sterling chest the ball onto Coutinho who completed the one-two to send Sterling in on goal which allowed him to slot past Adrian to open the scoring.

The Hammers response came in the 64th minute when a stray shot across goal from Enner Valencia forced Mignolet into a strong diving save. The biggest cheer of the afternoon came when Daniel Sturridge came off the bench in place of Markovic to mark his return after five months on the sidelines.

His firs impact took just eight minutes when he connected to a pass from Sterling and forced Adrian into a stop but seconds later, he showed just why the fans have craved his return as he latched onto a clever pass from Coutinho before firing past Adrian to the joy of the celebrating Kop stand.

For many, the heralded SAS of last season will still be missed but at the final whistle it seems a new dawn is building for Liverpool in the form of an SCS and long may it continue.

Tuesday 27 January 2015

Ivanovic Ends Reds Wembley Dream

After being held to a goalless draw by Bolton at the weekend in the FA Cup, Liverpool continued their domestic cup duties a trip to face Chelsea in the Capital One Cup semi final second leg tonight.

Liverpool stuck with the same starting 11 as the first leg and were lucky not to fall behind early on when Diego Costa found Willian in space only to see Lucas deny the Blues midfielder with a block in the fifth minute. Tempers flared in the 12th minute when Costa appeared to stamp on a floored Emre Can but no punishment was given and it served as the first incident of what would be a fiery encounter.

Branislav Ivanovic swept in a dangerous cross in the 18th minute when was achingly close to finding Eden Hazard but his fellow Belgian teammate Simon Mignolet claimed the ball first and quelled the danger. A controversial moment came in the 23rd minute when Martin Skrtel looked to have fouled Diego Costa in the penalty area but referee Michael Oliver waved play on to the clear dismay of the Chelsea dugout.

Alike in the first leg, Philippe Coutinho proved to pose a threat as he attempted a close shot on the half hour which drew a save from Thibaut Courtois before combining with Steven Gerrard to pick out Jordan Henderson who hit wide of the target.

Oscar looked to test the Reds defence but could only hit past the post with his first effort from a free-kick before shooting wide from free play but the last meaningful action of the first half came from Coutinho who saw his chance deflected wide for a corner.

 A fairly quiet start to the second half from both sides saw the first notable chance come in the 58th minute as Hazard blazed wide before Cpsta drew a strong save from Mignolet who led a counter for Liverpool that ended with Gerrard's shot from range finding the grasp of Courtois.

Liverpool were fortunate not to fall behind in the 65th minute when a sliding attempted clearance from Jordan Henderson put Diego Costa in on goal and almost certain to score but a superb tackle from Simon Mignolet denied the Spaniard and kept the score level.

Chelsea continued to pepper the Liverpool goal with chances from Oscar and Ramires drawing saves from Mignolet before a combination between Coutinho and Gerrard saw the latter hit a tame shot towards Courtois.

The introduction of Balotelli and Lambert meant Liverpool's attacking threat was given a boost and when the Italian combined with Coutinho and Gerrard, the latter blazed over the bar before Eden Hazard thundered a shot from long range which Mignolet saved superbly.

The last chance of the 90 minutes came from Raheem Sterling whose run and shot failed to trouble Courtois meaning the tie would be extended into an extra-time period. Balotelli blazed a chance over in the first few minutes of the period but just two minutes later his miss proved costly.

A free-kick from Willian out on the right found the head of Branislav Ivanovic who evaded the zonal marking from Liverpool to head into the net with Mignolet helpless to prevent the strike which despite giving Chelsea the lead, meant Liverpool still only needed to score once to stay in the tie.

Liverpool's best chance came in the 100th minute when a clever cross from Raheem Sterling found the head of Jordan Henderson whose header went achingly past the post before Sterling himself had a good chance go wide after Balotelli's cross.

Time ticked on and Liverpool continued to push for a vital goal and when Balotelli collected the ball on the left, he chose to try a shot from an acute angle rather than find an open Rickie Lambert at the back post which could have brought the Reds level but it wasn't to be as as Chelsea held on and secured the trip to Wembley. 


Battling Bolton Hold Rueful Reds

In the second of three cup ties in the space of a week, Liverpool hosted Championship side Bolton in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday evening.  Bolton's starting 11 included the veteran attacking duo of Eidur Gudjohnsen and former Reds front man Emile Heskey who would spearhead the attack at a combined age of 73.

Liverpool made a few changes from the midweek draw against Chelsea with Glen Johnson, Joe Allen, Adam Lallana and Javier Manquillo returning to the starting 11 and on a day where all of the Premier League top three exited the competition, Liverpool had to be wary of suffering a similar fate.

The home side made the better start with the first chance to score coming after 12 minutes as a long range tester from Jordan Henderson drew a save from Adam Bogdan who was called into action again minutes later by a chance from Philippe Coutinho.

Raheem Sterling had a superb chance to open the scoring on the half-hour mark when he raced down the left wing before coming inside and hitting a tame shot which was blocked strongly by the Bolton defence.

Despite all of their chances, Liverpool could have gone behind in the 33rd minute when Dean Moxey unleashed a powerful volley from the edge of the area which travelled just past the post but Liverpool countered and went close with a powerful effort from Glen Johnson which forced Bogdan into a superb save.

Bolton looked to make a good start to the second half and came close to opening the scoring when a dangerous free kick from Eidur Gudjohnsen crept over the crossbar just seven minutes after the restart. This was followed by a neat passing combination between Coutinho and Sterling which saw the latter force a save from Bogdan.

Liverpool's attacking threat seemed to focus around Coutinho who had a double shot blocked before seeing a third effort denied and followed up by a chance for Javier Manquillo which drifted wide of the target.

At the other end, Eidur Gudjohnsen shot wide before going sending an effort just over the bar after being picked out by Dean Moxey from the left wing. Liverpool were eager to avoid a replay due to a packed run of fixtures and in the final ten minutes, peppered the Bolton goal with a number of chances.

Adam Lallana attempted a chipped effort which Bogdan claimed well before Coutinho connected to Henderson's free kick with a fluke shot which Bogdan did well to keep out and in the final seconds, the last chance fell to Lucas whose shot failed to trouble Bogdan who fully deserved the man of the match award.

Wednesday 21 January 2015

Sterling Effort From Reds Denies Blues

After securing a 2-0 win away to Aston Villa at the weekend, Liverpool played hosts for the visit of Chelsea in the Capital One Cup semi-final first leg last night. Brendan Rodgers made just one change from the weekend with Steven Gerrard returning in place of Fabio Borini while Academy star Jordan Rossiter was named among the substitutes.

A cagey first ten minutes saw Liverpool become the more attacking of the two sides but the first chance of the evening came in the 12th minute as Jordan Henderson picked out Raheem Sterling who pulled the ball across the area only to find a Chelsea defender.

Sterling looked to be in with a chance two minutes later when Philippe Coutinho threaded a pass towards the young striker but the ball was intercepted by a vital block from Gary Cahill. The best chance of the game came in the 16th minute as Steven Gerrard looked to test Thibaut Courtois and did so superbly with an effort from long range which forced the Belgian stopper to tip the ball over the bar.

Despite Liverpool having numerous chances early on, they soon fell behind to Chelsea's first effort of the evening which came in the 18th minute after Emre Can fouled Eden Hazard with the Belgian playmaker stepping up to slot the resulting penalty past Simon Mignolet to give the Blues a 1-0 lead.

Liverpool's first chance to draw level came in the 27th minute when an in-swinging corner from Coutinho found the head of Martin Skrtel at the back post but the Slovakian was unable to hit the target with his effort which went wide of the post.

Chelsea came close to doubling their lead from the restart in the second half as a clever through pass was dummied by Cesc Fabregas and put Diego Costa through on goal but the Blues striker was superbly denied by the advancing Simon Mignolet.

Mignolet's clearance proved costly for Chelsea as they were pegged back by Liverpool just before the hour mark, Jordan Henderson's pass from the fringes of his own half picked out Raheem Sterling who raced towards goal, blitzing through the Chelsea defence before slotting past Courtois into the bottom corner for 1-1.

Chelsea came close to regaining the lead just four minutes later when a well-worked attacking move saw Fabregas and Hazard exchange passes with the latter looking to shoot only to be denied by a clever block from Skrtel.

Liverpool responded and went even closer to taking the lead when a pacy run from Coutinho saw him find Gerrard in space and the Reds captain let fly with a shot which looked to be creeping in but instead cannoned off the post and went out of play.

Philippe Coutinho continued to be a threat for the home side and forced a parrying save from Courtois after a pacy run allowed him to power at shot at goal. Gerrard went off in the 70th minute for Adam Lallana as Liverpool pushed for the lead and they came close to taking it when Henderson shot from the edge of the area and drew a parry from Courtois who had to be quick to deny Sterling from the resulting rebound.

Chelsea had Courtois to thank again for denying Liverpool after a rifling shot from Adam Lallana forced the Belgian into a superb stop before Sterling and Coutinho both hit efforts wide of the target. Chelsea seemed content with a draw but were nearly caught out in the final seconds when a clever chip from Raheem Sterling forced a crucial save from Thibaut Courtois.

So a frantic first leg dominated by Liverpool who with 20 attempts should have sealed the win and given themselves a boost into the trip to Stamford Bridge next week but a level tie spices up what should be an exciting game on Tuesday night and hopefully finish with a trip to the final for the Reds.




Tuesday 20 January 2015

Reds Extend Villa's Woes

After a narrow win away to Sunderland last weekend, Liverpool were on their travels again as they journeyed south to face Aston Villa who have failed to score in eight hours of play which gave the Reds confidence of continuing their good form.

Both sides made a bright start with Alberto Moreno looking for an early threat after a set up from Philippe Coutinho before drifting a shot wide via a defection while a dangerous cross from Alan Hutton at the other end drew a vital block from Martin Skrtel.

Christian Benteke looked to bring an end to Villa's barren run in front of goal in the 17th minute but could only power a header straight at Mignolet, Liverpool had the ball in the net just seconds later through Alberto Moreno but his effort was chalked off due to offside in the build-up.

After the disallowed effort sent a warning to the Villa defence, they failed to learn from it as they shipped the opening goal just seven minutes later. A quick throw in allowed Jordan Henderson to find space on the edge of the box before sweeping in a dangerous cross which Fabio Borini connected to superbly to fire past Brad Guzan for 1-0.

Aston Villa came close to levelling just before the interval as a clever attacking move resulted in a shot from Tom Cleverley but to his dismay, the ball travelled over the cross bar ensuring Liverpool would remain in front into half-time.

Liverpool looked to double their advantage early in the second half and came achingly close when an in-swinging corner found the head of Martin Skrtel and gave Fabio Borini a shooting chance which led to a superb stop from Brad Guzan which cannoned back off the post.

The home side came just as close to levelling just after the hour mark with a close range chance from Christian Benteke drawing a superb stop from Simon Mignolet with the Reds 'keeper forced to deny a rebounded effort from Andreas Weimann. Christian Benteke continued his pursuit to end his sides scoring drought when he advanced on goal in the 68th minute but a vital challenge from Martin Skrtel quelled the danger.

Liverpool looked to wrap up the points with just over ten minutes to go as Lucas swept a curling shot towards goal which saw Brad Guzan tip the ball past the post. The Reds attacking threat paid off a minute later as a pass from Raheem Sterling found Rickie Lambert who slotted past Guzan for 2-0 to surely end any hopes of a point for the home side. The only further effort from Villa came seven minutes from the end as Fabian Delph swept an effort over the bar as Liverpool extended their unbeaten run which in turn sees Villa still without a league goal in 2015.