Tag Archives: Suarez

Suarez Owes Liverpool

11 Jun

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Suarez Owes Liverpool

Luis Suarez has been a sensation in terms of footballing quality since his arrival on Merseyside, and the Liverpool supporters have taken them to their heart. But with all his world class footballing ability, there is also heavy baggage that weighs him down.

Suarez has never been out of the headlines since his arrival from Dutch side Ajax, and unfortunately mostly for controversy. The English media have found great delight in highlighting every misdemeanour the Uruguayan has made with little mention of his wonderful play on the park for Liverpool.

The English media made Suarez public enemy number one since his infamous role in the 2010 World Cup Quarter Final, when he got sent off for saving Dominic Adiyiah’s goalbound header with his hands on the goal line, which would have been the game winner. Gyan hit the crossbar with the ensuing penalty kick before Uruguay won the penalty shootout 4-2 to advance to the semi-finals.

It was despicable treatment from the world’s media for Suarez’s action, when any footballer would have done the same thing with an instinctive save to prevent a goal. Suarez was punished by receiving a red card and also missed the semi- final through suspension, so why the outcry, it was hardly similar to Maradona’s handball against England in the 1986 World cup was it ?

But although the media had an agenda against Suarez, he hasn’t helped himself with his diving, although he has worked to clean up his act in recent months. The Evra controversy still seems mysterious to me but he was punished rightly or wrongly, one man’s word against another man’s word but he was found guilty.

But his latest misdemeanour was his worst yet and possibly his last in a Liverpool shirt. There was no excuse for biting Chelsea defender Ivanovic and he was rightly punished.

Suarez has missed many games through suspension since joining Liverpool as the FA have joined the nation’s media to hammer English football’s public enemy number one and make an example of him to others.

Suarez was banned for 8 games for racially abusing Evra whereas Chelsea’s John Terry only got 4 games for racially abusing Anton Ferdinand, with much more evidence of the offence on offer.

The Uruguayan’s latest ban is 10 matches for biting Ivanovic and I believe the punishment is for the man and not for the crime as Suarez has previous convictions.

Like I say Suarez has not helped himself, for example not shaking Evra’s hand the next time the two players’ met after his ban was not the brightest thing to do and caused more trouble. But throughout all Suarez’s troubles and strife Liverpool Football Club has consistently defended and backed their star striker even though he has dragged the good name of the club through the mud at times and tarnished their great name.

But previous manager Kenny Dalglish constantly defended Suarez, even getting his team to wear T-shirts in an act of support for Suarez, and Brendan Rodgers has been singing off the same hymn sheet in regards to protecting his star player.

So how can Suarez betray the loyalty of Liverpool Football Club and more importantly his worshippers that stand in the Kop, by saying in a recent interview in his native land that he wants to leave Liverpool.

Suarez owes Liverpool at least another year to see if they can achieve a top four place in the league and qualification into the Champions League after the loyalty they have shown throughout his troubles.

Suarez’s excuse for wanting to leave Liverpool was blaming the media, like I said they have treated him disgracefully and I feared some time ago that they would drive him out of this country, but come on Luis you didn’t help yourself and just tell us the real reason that it is because you want to play in the Champions League and Liverpool can’t offer that and although the truth may hurt, Liverpool supporters will at least understand this excuse. But to blame the media no I’m sorry Liverpool deserve better.

I think Suarez is vital to Liverpool’s challenge for a top four place next season and without him I fear they will struggle, yes they will be compensated with good money, but losing a world class player is extremely difficult to replace and Liverpool will be a poorer team without him.

But no player is bigger than the team and Liverpool will go on with or without Suarez. Suarez is a great player but nowhere near the best to grace the hallowed turf of Anfield but he is certainly one of the most controversial and anybody that endeavours to tarnish the name of Liverpool Football Club is better away from Anfield.

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Life Without Suarez

4 May

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Life Without Suarez

 

Liverpool were left resigned to the fact that they will be without their star striker Luis Suarez for the remainder of this season and the first 6 matches of next season after accepting the FA’s 10 match ban for his infamous bite on Chelsea defender Ivanovic in last weekend’s match at Anfield.

 

Although Liverpool felt aggrieved to be dealt a lengthy ban for their player, they did the correct thing by accepting the ban and by moving on and putting an end to the matter. The big question now is, who will score the goals for Liverpool ?

 

Luis Suarez has been in outstanding form for Liverpool this season and his goal scoring record of 30 goals in 44 competitive games has been invaluable to the Anfield side. Liverpool were so reliant on Suarez for the first half of this season as Liverpool were short of recognised strikers with the departure of Kuyt, Bellamy and Andy Carroll moving to West Ham United on loan for the whole season. Liverpool missed out on Clint Dempsey on the last day of the transfer window as he chose to sign for Spurs instead and Liverpool’s new signing Fabio Borini broke a foot early in the season to compound Liverpool’s striking problems.

 

Liverpool’s striking problems have eased slightly in January when they signed Daniel Sturridge from Chelsea and he has linked up well with Suarez and has now scored 8 goals in 13 matches for his new club after his double on Saturday.

 

 

Well Saturday was Liverpool’s first match without Suarez as they travelled to Newcastle and they did pretty well. They not only won, but they scored 6 without reply, in what was Newcastle’s heaviest defeat since the 1920’s.

 

 

 

Daniel Sturridge replaced Suarez in attack in what was manager Brendan Rodgers only change to the team that faced Chelsea the previous week. Liverpool were very impressive in a one sided match that they dominated against a poor Newcastle team. Sturridge scored 2 goals in an impressive striking performance where he linked up with the incisive passing of Liverpool’s midfield on numerous occasions. Sturridge produced a striking performance that would have pleased Brendan Rodgers immensely as he held the ball up before linking up with Liverpool’s advancing midfielders. The way Sturridge played off the shoulder of Newcastle’s last defender was also encouraging as he gave the likes of Coutinho and Gerrard a target to hit behind the defence. The 2 goals was just the icing on the cake from his impressive performance and it was good to see him unhappy to be replaced by Jonjo Shelvey late in the game as he wanted his hat-trick.

 

Sturridge has stated in the past that he wanted to play through the middle as a striker and supposed to be part of the reason that he left Chelsea in January because he was used mostly out wide at Stamford Bridge as his chances were limited at playing through the middle.

 

Sturridge must be Rodgers’ number one striker now and this is a great chance for the former Chelsea man to play in his more favoured position. The only concern is his fitness as there has been a few niggling injuries since his arrival in January . So if Sturridge stays healthy Liverpool might not miss Suarez’s absence too much.

 

But Liverpool got lucky with Suarez in the early part of the season when he was the only striker because he is very resilient and stays free of injury. But Liverpool might not be so lucky with Sturridge and his resilience, so they need other options.

 

Fabio Borini has been very unlucky with injuries since joining Liverpool and it was a bonus for Liverpool to see him back in action on Saturday and even better to see him score his first League goal for his new club.

 

Borini’s return gives Brendan Rodgers another option in attack and the Italian will be eager to make up for lost time in a frustrating and disrupted first season at Anfield.

 

The summer will no doubt see players come and go at Anfield and the striking department could be an area that Rodgers will want to strengthen, especially with Suarez’s ban continuing into the new season.

 

Andy Carroll is a subject of much speculation as he looks like returning from his loan spell at West Ham United in the summer, but there is also much talk of him returning to his native town of Newcastle for a second spell at his home town club.

 

Brendan Rodgers doesn’t seem to fancy Carroll and he wasn’t long farming the big striker out on loan, even with strikers in short supply in his squad. Andy Carroll has played pretty well in his time at West Ham after a few injury problems earlier in the season and he has managed to weigh in with 7 goals in 21 appearances for the Hammers.

 

Some footballing experts believe Andy Carroll would be ideal for Liverpool’s attack as many attacks from Liverpool in wide positions end up with wasted crosses into the opposition box with no target to hit. Carroll’s physique and style of play would also give Liverpool an option of a plan B that has been lacking in certain games this season when Liverpool have struggled.

 

But if anything is to be acknowledged from Saturday’s win at Newcastle then it must be that the dependency on one player was quashed as different players got into attacking positions and this was proved by the number of different goal scorers.

 

Suarez’s absence could be a blessing in disguise and make Liverpool a more difficult team to predict if they are going to produce attacks through different players getting into forward positions and when Suarez returns to the team next season he will only strengthen the attack that has learned to live without him. So there could be many positives to come out of Suarez’s ban that many thought would be a disaster for Liverpool Football Club highlighting the saying “that no player is bigger than the club”.

 

 

 

 

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Public Enemy Number One

22 Apr

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Public Enemy Number One

 

Luis Suarez grabbed all the headlines once again for all the wrong reasons after taking a bite out of Chelsea defender Ivanovic’s arm at Anfield. Suarez has hardly been out of the headlines since joining Liverpool but his latest action has brought disgust and calls for him to booted out of Liverpool for this unsavoury incident.

 

Suarez has cleaned up his diving act in recent months as he has tried to improve his image highlighted by the nation’s media. The media have constantly hounded the Uruguayan since he arrived on our shores and every wrong move by Suarez has been headline news.

 

The biggest saga until now was the ban after allegedly racially abusing Manchester United’s Evra which resulted in the striker receiving an 8 match ban and a fine of £40,000. Many believe former Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish lost his job over the defence of Suarez.

 

But Liverpool have once again been let down by Suarez and once again he has put them in a difficult position. The biting incident has shocked the country, even though Suarez has previous after being banned for by the Dutch FA for 7 matches after biting PSV midfielder Bakkal while playing for Ajax.

 

Suarez is one of the best strikers in the world but he has serious flaws and he is capable of anything good and bad.

 

Liverpool have come out and handled the situation well by making Suarez apologise for his conduct and fining him, but also by stating that he will remain a Liverpool player.

 

Credit has to go to Ivanovic for not making a meal of the whole situation where many players would and Rafa Benitez also deserves a lot of credit for not getting involved when interrogated after the match by the media.

 

It is a nonsense for people to say Suarez should be kicked out of Liverpool and it won’t happen. Footballers don’t get sacked and they are important commodities and worth a lot of money to their club and unless Liverpool get offered a massive amount of money for Suarez, then he will remain a Liverpool player.

 

Suarez will get banned by the FA and he and Liverpool will accept the ban and life will go on and Suarez will continue to score goals for Liverpool and he will get booked occasionally but Liverpool will do all they can to help their star striker with his on the field behavioural problems.

 

 

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Liverpool 2-2 Chelsea Match Report

22 Apr

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Liverpool 2-2 Chelsea Match Report

 

Luis Suarez stole the headlines on Rafael Benitez’s return to Anfield with a last gasp equaliser 6 minutes into injury-time. But unfortunately it wasn’t his late goal that grabbed the headlines, but his bite on Chelsea defender Ivanovic which the match officials missed. Oscar headed Chelsea into the lead before Liverpool substitute Sturridge levelled in the second half. But moments later a Suarez handball allowed Hazard to convert a penalty to restore the visitors’ lead before Suarez’s last gasp headed equaliser.

 

The Team

 

Brendan Rodgers made one change from the side that drew 0-0 at Reading last week, with Stewart Downing returning to the side in place of Daniel Sturridge who dropped to the bench. Reina kept goal with Johnson, Carragher, Agger and Enrique the defence in front of him. Coutinho, Lucas, Gerrard, Henderson and Downing made up the midfield with Suarez in attack.

 

The Match

 

The pre-match build up was concentrated on the return of former Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez who is still a big favourite at Anfield. Benitez also laid a floral tribute at the Hillsborough memorial prior to the match in tribute to the 96. A minute’s applause was also performed prior to kick-off in respect of Hillsborough Campaigner Anne Williams who died last Thursday and for the victims of the last week’s Boston Marathon.

 

After all the emotion prior to kick-off, the match started very flat with not a lot happening in the early stages. The first chance fell to former Chelsea player Glen Johnson, but he could only toe-poke an effort into the hoardings.

 

Former Kop favourite Torres was thwarted by a diving interception from Enrique as Chelsea started to settle into the match. The first quarter of the match was very laboured without any goal mouth action until Oscar headed past Reina at a corner kick at the near post after losing the Liverpool defence.

 

Three minutes later David Luiz fired in a dipping free-kick which Reina spilled only to recover just in time before the ball crossed the line. Torres then earned himself a booking for an elbow into the face of Carragher, before Suarez smashed a shot at goal but Cech made a good save at his near post.

 

Liverpool’s poor first half performance resulted in Rodgers making a change at half-time with Sturridge replacing Coutinho, and Sturridge made an instant impact with a great run before setting up Gerrard whose low shot was brilliantly saved by the left foot of Cech.

 

Seconds later Sturridge let fly from 25 yards only to be denied by the post with Cech beaten. The former Chelsea man had changed the match completely and energised Liverpool’s performance.

 

Then Sturridge levelled the match from close range after a delicious curling cross from Suarez sending the Kop wild with delight. But the celebrations were short lived as 4 minutes later Chelsea were awarded a penalty kick when referee Kevin Friend noticed a handball by Suarez in the Liverpool box.

 

Hazard converted the resulting spot-kick sending Reina the wrong way and giving the visitors the lead again. Liverpool seemed to have the wind taken out of their sails by the loss of the goal and struggled to create chances as the game became more nasty with a few unsavoury incidents as Carragher became involved with a running battle with Torres, and Sturridge was lucky to escape a red card after a nasty challenge on Chelsea defender Ryan Bertrand.

 

But the bite by Suarez was obviously the worst incident, although missed by match officials at the time, the incident was witnessed by replays shown to TV viewers.

 

Rodgers replaced Downing with Shelvey as time started to run out on Liverpool and he should have made himself a hero seconds after coming on when Sturridge presented him with a golden opportunity to equalise, but the youngster fired into the side-netting.

 

Chelsea looked to have taken all 3 points after surviving the additional 6 minutes shown by the fourth official but in extra added time Suarez headed past Cech from a Sturridge cross with last action of the match sending the Kop wild with delight and earning Liverpool a deserved point.

 

Summary

 

Rodgers was wrong leaving Sturridge out and he proved that with his second half performance. The first half was one of the worst performances from Liverpool this season as they showed no energy and cohesion and constantly gave the ball away as they surrendered possession to Chelsea. The second half was far better and it was really down to Sturridge who ignited the team, although hopefully a few choice half-time words from Rodgers may have helped too.

 

But the match and the score pales into significance as all the talk will be about Suarez biting Ivanovic and that is sad. But the incident was really disgusting and as unsavoury an incident as you will see in football and there is no defending that type of behaviour. Suarez has to be, and will be punished. But Liverpool can’t be expected to sack or sell him without a replacement of his calibre, which will not be easy to find.

 

Suarez should be given help by mental health professionals as he obviously has a problem which could happen again if not treated. He has committed this crime in the past and it could very easily happen again if not treated. He is a terrific player and like other great players like Cantona and Zidane they have a self-destruct button that can be triggered at any time.

 

Liverpool and Suarez did the right thing by issuing an apology and contacting Ivanovic, who showed remarkable restraint and professionalism to continue playing in a concentrated fashion after the incident and also for accepting Suarez’s apology. Liverpool have reportedly fined Suarez for his behaviour and state that they will continue to support their player and they will wait to see what punishment the FA will decide upon.

 

 

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Impressive Reds Thrash Swans

18 Feb

Impressive Reds Thrash Swans

 

Liverpool finished a tough week on a high with an emphatic win over Swansea whose manager Michael Laudrup, made 7 changes to his side with one eye on next weekend’s Capital One Cup Final at Wembley.

 

Brendan Rodgers gave new signing Philippe Coutinho his full debut and Daniel Sturridge returned to the line-up to boost the attack.

 

Liverpool missed a host of chances in the first half before finally taking the lead through a Gerrard penalty, and the impressing Brazillian Coutinho capped a fine debut with an excellent goal just seconds into the second half before further goals from Enrique, Suarez and Sturridge put Swansea to the sword.

 

The Team

 

Brendan Rodgers made four changes to the team that lost at Zenit on Thursday with Brazillian debutant Coutinho, Sturridge, Agger and Lucas all starting in an attacking line-up. Reina, Johnson, Carragher, Enrique, Downing, Gerrard and Suarez made up the rest of the team.

 

The Match

 

Liverpool started the match with Coutinho playing down the left and immediately won a corner in the first minute. A minute later the Brazillian evaded a couple of challenges before having his shot blocked for a corner, Downing volleyed wide from the resulting corner.

 

Liverpool continued to press high up the park in the early stages as the visitors struggled for possession, next Suarez had his first strike of the afternoon, but Vorm saved easily.

 

Swansea managed to win a corner against the run of play and they had appeals waved away for a penalty when Lamah’s low effort struck Johnson.

 

Next Downing cut in from the right but fired his shot wide. Then Johnson headed a Downing corner off target as Liverpool continued to attack.

 

Then Suarez was fouled just outside the penalty area but Gerrard’s effort struck the wall before Suarez fired the rebound over.

Moments later Suarez was fouled in another dangerous position, but Suarez curled the resulting free-kick over the bar.

 

Suarez was becoming much more involved and was unlucky with an audacious lobbed volley in the 20th minute which just landed on the roof of Vorm’s net.

 

Downing created the next attack with good work down the right before crossing for Sturridge but the striker couldn’t keep his header down.

 

Then in the 25th minute Sturridge wriggled into the box before seemingly being tripped before Coutinho shot wide, Howard Webb waved penalty appeals away.

 

Liverpool won a penalty in the 33rd minute when Suarez was bundled to the ground after trying to go past Agustien. Gerrard dispatched the penalty with great relief after missing from the spot against West Brom last Monday night.

 

Liverpool were buoyed by the goal and went for the jugular and Sturridge went close after cutting in from the right before dinking an effort over Vorm just wide.

 

Liverpool went in at the break at with a slender 1-0 lead to show for all their dominance.

 

Barely seconds into the second half Liverpool doubled their lead when Coutinho burst clear of the Swansea defence before firing past Vorm for his first Liverpool goal on his full debut for the club.

 

Coutinho almost scored a second goal moments later with a cheeky backheel which just went wide of the far post.

 

But Liverpool scored a third after a fine move involving Coutinho, Suarez and Sturridge all combining to release Enrique on the edge of the box. He played a pass into Sturridge, who picked out his run into the danger zone with a low cross and the Spaniard found the net with a close-range prod.

 

Liverpool were rampant and they made it 4-0 six minutes later, when Suarez bamboozled two defenders before firing a shot into the bottom corner past Vorm from 18 yards.

 

Coutinho was given a standing ovation when he was replaced on the hour mark by Jordan Henderson.

 

Moments later Sturridge was again thwarted by Vorm when his left-footed sliced shot was saved by the Swansea keeper’s legs.

 

But Sturridge was not to be denied and when Liverpool were awarded another penalty, this time for a handball by Routledge, Steven Gerrard handed over the penalty taking duties to the striker, Sturridge seized his chance to get on the score sheet with confidence by firing into the top corner and making the score 5-0.

 

Moments later Sturridge clipped the top of the bar with a long range effort as he continued to impress.

 

Luis Suarez was replaced with just over 10 minutes to go for Borini as Rodgers looked to give his star striker a rest ahead of Liverpool’s Europa League second leg clash with Zenit on Thursday night.

 

Liverpool finished the game with only 10 men after substitute Borini landed heavily on his shoulder and had to head down the tunnel in obvious pain.

 

It was a magnificent performance from the Reds, who scored five and could have got 10. Brendan Rodgers’ side climb to seventh in the Barclays Premier League.

 

Summary

 

Brendan Rodgers would have been looking for a positive reaction from his players after two defeats on the bounce, and he couldn’t have asked for more. OK so Swansea were not at full strength and had their mind on next week, but you can only beat who you are playing against, and Liverpool did that impressively.

 

Brilliant to see Coutinho make his full debut and he looked very good with a bit of pace and creativity. Capped off a tremendous day with a superb goal. Sturridge made a big difference once again to Liverpool’s attack with his pace and movement complimenting Suarez.

 

It looked like it could be one of those days again with many chances being wasted in the first half and only going in at half-time one goal to the good, but the amazing start to the second half gave Liverpool great confidence to finish Swansea off. Liverpool had 35 shots at goal in the match which is a Premiership record this season and could have scored 10 as Michael Laudrup said afterwards.

 

The whole team played well, but special praise has to go to Gerrard who dominated the midfield by spraying passes all over the field. Suarez and Sturridge were a constant threat and look to be forming a dangerous striking partnership. But star of the day must be Coutinho who showed no nerves in his full debut and gave the Kop food for thought with some clever runs and passes from the left of midfield, a memorable day for the youngster and I’m sure he won’t forget his first goal for Liverpool.

 

Overall a superb performance from Liverpool, but Rodgers must be asking why his team can’t play like that every week ? Liverpool need to find this form on a consistent basis, but for now Rodgers should be allowed to enjoy the victory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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YNWA Anne Williams

10 Nov

YNWA Anne Williams

A normal lady, a normal mother, with a typical football loving boy

Who lost her son at a football match

A life lost, a life changed forever

Every parent’s worst nightmare to lose a son or daughter

But at a football match, this should never happen

96 never returned, 96 families lives changed forever

Unthinkable tragedy, unbelievable lies

Anne lost her son 23 years ago

All she wanted was to know what happened that day

How her Kevin died

Was that too much to ask

The victims were blamed for their own deaths

Anne knew the lies

She would get the truth against the establishment

She fought for the truth

She fought for justice

Against all odds when mere mortals would give up

Most would tire of the fight

Most would struggle with a broken heart

Anne’s heart is as big as Liverpool

Anne has led the fight for justice

She has never backed down

She would not be defeated

Her strength is unparalleled

Anne fought the law and Anne won

23 years fighting for the truth and for justice

Her belief never waned, her spirit never broken

Finally rewarded in September

The truth came out

Anne has put her body and mind through hell for 23 years

Anne deserves the inquest into her son’s death brought forward now

It is the least she deserves as her health suffers

Anne Williams suffered tragedy

She suffered the lies

Never felt sorry for herself

Never gave up

Respected by many

Carried a city against injustice

Anne Williams you will never walk alone

PLEASE BRING FORWARD KEVIN WILLIAMS INQUEST – e-petitions epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/40925 please help Anne by signing this petition (for UK residents only)

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Liverpool In Crisis

4 Sep

Liverpool In Crisis

 

As a Liverpool supporter it pains me to say it but “Liverpool are in big trouble”. Last Friday’s debacle to sign a last minute striker highlighted the mess the club are in.

 

Liverpool is falling further behind the top teams in the Premiership as confirmed with a lowly 8th position in the league last season.

 

But matters are so bad now with only two recognised strikers in Liverpool’s squad. It amazes me how we could let Andy Carroll go on loan to West Ham without a replacement for him. Brendan Rodgers stated that he would not have allowed that to happen, so it seems he has been let down somewhere.

 

Would the club not pay the money for target Clint Dempsey ?

 

Or, does the club not have the money ?

 

Either way, it is quite amazing when not so long ago Liverpool’s American owners was willing to back former manager Kenny Dalglish with so much money, especially as they was not prepared to give Dalglish the time to gel his team together.

 

Dalglish brought in many new players and one season was never long enough to see how they would do. Dalglish took Liverpool to two Cup Finals, winning one of them, and he had his team playing some of the best football Anfield has seen in years.

 

But the panic button was pressed at the end of the season by the American owners and Dalglish was sacked along with Damien Comolli, who was the orchestrator of the Liverpool’s transfer dealings.

 

Liverpool did pay over the odds for many of their players like £20 million for Stewart Downing, £20 million for Jordan Henderson, but the biggest expenditure was for Andy Carroll who cost £35 million.

 

It was extremely trustworthy of the owners to put their faith in Dalglish and Comolli with their money. But to let them spend so much of it and then sack them at the end of the season was ludicrous.

 

Now the owners have brought in new manager Brendan Rodgers with the task of bringing back Liverpool to the summit of English football.

 

Rodgers has come in with a fresh approach and great ideas on how he would like Liverpool to play, and he has been given some money to bring in a few of his own players to the club.

 

But since Rodgers has arrived he has not fancied Andy Carroll and has wanted rid of the big man, eventually getting his wish last week.

 

But although Rodgers wanted rid of Carroll, he looked keen on signing Clint Dempsey from Fulham. But for whatever reason Liverpool failed to get their man as Spurs nipped in to steal him from under their nose.

 

It looks like Liverpool’s owners was not wanting to make the same mistake expenditure wise as they did with Dalglish, or they just don’t have the money now. But surely for the sake of an extra one or two million it was worth it to get Dempsey.

 

Liverpool’s problem in recent years has been in the striker department even since the days of Torres. Dalglish at least gave himself striking options, although goals was still hard to come by, but Rodgers is left in a seriously desperate position with only two strikers, Luis Suarez and new signing Fabio Borini.

 

None of those two players will score enough goals and if Liverpool get injuries to any of them it will be even more disastrous with only young Adam Morgan to call upon, unless Rodgers can bring in a free agent.

 

It is no secret that Liverpool needed strikers and for the hierarchy at the club to allow this scenario to materialise is a disgrace and John W Henry’s letter holds no substance with his excuses.

 

After spending all their money on Dalglish they should have gave him time for his team to grow, after all they have said it will take time for Liverpool to get back to the top.

 

But now they have said Brendan Rodgers will get time, with no money and no strikers, I am not holding my breath. We’ll see.

 

 

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Liverpool 0-2 Arsenal Match Report

3 Sep

Liverpool 0-2 Arsenal Match Report

 

Always one of the most important fixtures of the season, but with Liverpool still looking for Brendan Rodgers’ first league win in charge, this match took on added importance.

 

An encouraging draw against Manchester City last weekend followed by qualification to the group stages of the Europa League against Hearts on Thursday, has renewed optimism with the Anfield faithful.

 

The Team

 

The big team news for Liverpool was the selection of new signing Nuri Sahin to make his debut in a Red shirt. Agger came back into to the side at the expense of Coates after serving his suspension. Enrique slotted back into his familiar left-back role, with Johnson moving over to right-back to replace Martin Kelly. The exciting Raheem Sterling started on the left with Joe Allen and Gerrard in the middle, with Borini down the right and Suarez up front.

 

The Match

 

Liverpool made an encouraging start to the game as Borini flashed the first chance of the match wide after bursting through the middle.

 

Moments later Suarez tricked Mertesacker into hacking him down on the edge of the box, earning Liverpool a free-kick. Unfortunately for Liverpool Suarez couldn’t repeat his free-kick of the previous week as he blazed over the bar.

 

Then Joe Allen broke up an Arsenal attack which ended with Borini firing a shot into the Anfield Road end.

 

Arsenal slowly grew into the game and Cazorla almost put the visitors in front, but Reina stood firm. Arteta and Cazorla started to influence the game and Liverpool found it hard to gain possession.

 

Raheem Sterling made a dangerous move towards the Arsenal penalty box only to be halted by Arteta just outside the box. However, Gerrard fired the free-kick straight into the wall.

 

Then Arsenal broke the deadlock with a lethal counter-attack, when Gerrard lost possession just outside the Arsenal box. The move orchestrated by Cazorla ended with Podolski firing past Reina and stunning the Kop.

 

Liverpool almost levelled immediately when Sterling turned inside the box, but his fierce shot shaved the outside of the post.

 

Liverpool had a shout for a penalty but replays suggest Howard Webb was correct as Mertesacker stretched to stop the lightning Sterling as he burst into the box.

 

But Arsenal should have doubled their lead after a tremendous break by Diaby which ended with Giroud shooting into the Kop with only Reina to beat.

 

5 minutes after the re-start Liverpool thought they should have had a penalty when Suarez was bundled to the ground by Mertesacker inside the box after a low cross by Gerrard. But Howard Webb waved away Liverpool’s appeals.

 

With Liverpool chasing the game Brendan Rodgers brought on Downing for Borini  and Shelvey on for Sahin to freshen things up and Downing made an instant impact with a clever back heel to set up Suarez but the Uruguayan’s effort was palmed over the bar by Mannone.

 

Then in the 68th minute Liverpool was undone for a second time when Cazorla exchanged passes with Giroud on the edge of the box before ploughing into the Liverpool penalty area and hammering the ball under Reina for 2-0.

 

Liverpool huffed and puffed to get back into the match and Suarez  and Shelvey having chances late on but Liverpool could not break through a stubborn Arsenal defence, as the visitors held on for a deserved 3 points.

 

Summary

 

Pleased to see Sahin finally starting for Liverpool in a side that looked about as strong as Rodgers could field. Liverpool started the game brightly, as Liverpool created a few chances, but was opened up far too easily on the counter-attack as proved by the first goal. Sterling looked dangerous, but was paid a lot of attention by Arsenal’s defenders. Joe Allen was once again superb in midfield, but Gerrard’s passing was surprisingly poor. Worried about the number of goals Liverpool is conceding and with no strikers on the bench, there doesn’t seem to be a plan B. I have to blame Reina for the second goal, he should have saved it, and he is making far too many mistakes all of a sudden. Liverpool played some nice football without a cutting edge and never looked solid defensively either. Deservedly beat.

 

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