Liverpool FC

The match kicked off at 1:30pm in Bermuda and it signaled the start of my last full day on the island after 12 days of "bad craziness", as Dr Thompson would say. I settled down in a bar by the harbour with breakfast and a beer alongside a large contingent of Liverpool fans, a Gooner and 2 Man Utd fans who decided to show their support of Preston North End by making their own T-Shirts.

Rafa showed how important he is taking the FA Cup with his team selection; Babel & Cavalieri deputising for Kuyt & Reina respectively. We started slowly with Preston having a fair share of the possession and we took 15 minutes to create a real chance with Keane shooting wide. Keane would go on to have one of those days; missing plenty of good chances and then setting up Riera when he should have gone for goal himself. Sandwiched between all that; Riera settled a few Reds fan's nerves about an upset by opening the scoring with a ferocious left foot shot. Preston had the ball in the net in the second half but Parkin decided to rugby tackle Carragher to stop him clearing the cross from which Elliot scored. I don't think Carragher would have got near the cross and the striker's foul was a bit of luck for us.

Late on Preston had a number of corners and freekicks but couldn't create anything of substance; nothing as spectacular as the mountain of shot glasses that me and my fellow revelers were able to construct throughout the match. With around 20 minutes remaining Fernando Torres made his long awaited return to choruses of "Liverpool's Number 9" and plenty of bouncing from the Red's fans at Deepdale and in Bermuda. With Preston pressing for the equaliser the ball broke to Gerrard who closed down on goal but unselfishly squared it to "El Nino" to tap in his comeback goal and first in the FA Cup. Game over. Job done. A few scares here and there but our name is in the hat/plastic tub for Round 4.

Having stayed up until 8 am to watch the match I was hugely annoyed that the TV channel had chosen to show a repeat of the Arsenal against Villa game from Boxing Day. However, when I was awoken by a text message letting me know the score; my mood was greatly lifted. Thankfully here in Bermuda they show replays of the matches all week so I was able to sit at a bar watching the match in its entirety yesterday. A perfect Christmas programme was achieved with a 5-1 away win at Newcastle following our 3-0 home win against Bolton. 8 goals scored, 1 conceded and a 3 point cushion at the top of the league, cheers Santa.

2 exquisite Gerrard goals, a first league goal for Hyypia, a third from Ryan Babel and an Alonso penalty put paid to the Geordies with Edgar Davids, sorry... David Edgar replying for the home side just before half time. That Edgar goal put them back in the game at 2-1 and should have been the catalyst for them to punish us for another bundle of first half missed chances. Thankfully Babel's goal quelled any fight back and although Newcastle weren't at the races we were much superior to them on the day. Even to the extent that I've read reports that when Gerrard was substituted he was given a standing ovation by the home fans, a bit different from last season when he booed everytime he touched the ball for his part in England's failure to reach Euro 2008.

I'd hoped for as few changes at possible and for Keane to play but Rafa's changes paid off with Babel scoring in between Gerrard's brace, Lucas providing a defence splitting pass for our fourth and Mascherano creating the platform for our midfield to completely dominate Nicky Butt and Liverpool old boy Danny Guthrie. Pepe Reina will be disappointed with Carragher's marking costing him a clean sheet but I'm sure he'll get over it.

We don't get too many 5-1 wins so this result was hugely satisfying, a perfect way to end 2008...

A much needed 3 points after drawing the last 3 matches at Anfield. The draws at home against so-called lesser sides has been a real disappointment of the season so far and yesterdays match had all the makings of another frustrating day with 2 points being dropped at home. Fortunately, unlike in the other games we were able to take a chance to take the lead in the 1st half. Albert Riera arrived at the near post to prod home Gerrard's cross which will have no doubt settled some nerves in the Anfield crowd. Prior to the opening goal Kevin Nolan had failed to put the visitors ahead and Riera and Kuyt followed suit for The Reds and at halftime it remained 1-0.

Robbie Keane followed up his goal against Aresnal with a brace to secure the win, the first he smashed into the top corner after being played in by Gerrard and his second a simple tap-in after a fast counter attack from a Bolton corner. Hopefully Keane will be able to continue this goal scoring form, he has been vocal in his dislike at all the attention that his lack of goals was attracting so obviously the best way to stop all that talk is by finding the back of the net. He took his goals confidently which was good to see as in previous games he's looked a little nervy when the chances came his way.

The win leaves us unbeaten for the calendar year at Anfield and still top of the league by that solitary point. With ourselves and the other title contenders having dropped some points recently the new year would be a great time to produce a good run of form and go on a winning streak especially with the Champions League not on the horizon for while. It's just left to see which team is actually going to go out and win this league.

A point at the Emirates is not to be sniffed at but I couldn't help but be disappointed at not getting all 3. With Benitez remaining at home after surgery it was Sammy Lee who was in charge, but was he in charge? Rafa was in constant contact and you could see our goalkeeper coach Xavi Valero on a constant phone call with Benitez throughout the match, covering his mouth in case lip-readers passed on the information to Wenger. Valero won't be at the club for much longer, the amount of radiation damage to his brain caused by those phone calls can't have been healthy!!!

My Christmas wish for Keane & Agger to start was granted and I got 3 for the price of 2 at the "Team Selection Christmas Sale" when Insua was picked ahead of Dossena. Mascherano was absent through illness which meant that Lucas was to play in midfield. Another disastrous performance from the young Brazilian, he either missed tackles or gave away a foul. What appalled me most was how lightweight he was; he was bullied and out-muscled by Arsenal. BY ARSENAL!!! The boy needs to start getting stuck in!!!

We started brightly but were soon behind to a Van Persie goal after Nasri's exquisite ball, the Dutchman showed supreme control and rifled the ball past Pepe the Red Nosed Reina-deer. Thankfully, Keane stuffed the home fan's taunts down their throats with a thunderous equaliser after a hopeful long ball from defence. With Fabregas going off injured and Adebayor's later dismissal (see next post) Liverpool should have gone for the jugular. It was proof that Benitez had total control of his team that we didn't. The formation didn't change, we were terrified of getting hit on the counter and after 2 like-for-like substitutions he finally dispersed with Lucas to bring on Ngog; there was only 2 minutes remaining.

My dad called Benitez "a coward", a bit harsh but Rafa is too afraid of losing to go out and try and win a game. Championships aren't there to be drawn; they are there to be won.

3 consecutive home draws in the league have put me in a foul mood in the run up to Christmas. I was feeling negative en route to the match, my mate Daz tried to put me in a positive mindset; "We never draw when I go the game". Right then I knew fate had been tempted and that fate would slap us both in the face before 5pm. After 22 minutes I was begging fate to prove me right as we found ourselves 2-0 down. Firstly Dossena was beaten comfortably in the air as we conceded the opener, then the left-back was comfortably beaten for pace by Mendy; whose cross was inadvertently turned in by Carragher.

I couldn't believe what was happening, was it the pressure of being top of the league? Was it purely individual errors? Complacency against a newly promoted team? Did we not want it as much as Yull (according to the visiting fan's chants their teams name is correctly pronounced "Yull"). A quick response was needed and Gerrard provided it, scoring twice in the next 10 minutes to draw us level and the momentum was with us going into half time.

Like the other draws at Anfield this year the 2nd period saw constant pressure but clear cut chances were at a premium. Hyypia hit the foot of the post with a header and Riera had a volley parried away but we had nothing up front and this is why Benitez is to blame for the 2 points dropped. Why Rafa insisted on keeping Kuyt on the pitch and as the only striker for 90 minutes when we were drawing at home was beyond me. Robbie Keane could be seen warming up, pointing at himself as if to say "My turn?" but his turn didn't come. When Mascherano was sacrificed it wasn't for another striker but Lucas. The mind boggles at what Benitez hoped to achieve with that substitution. With 2 points going down the shitter Rafa again played it cautious instead of going for the win. That defensive mindset could cost us dearly come May.

A team of fringe players in a cup competition? The last time that happened Spurs gave us a damn good thrashing. This time was different though, the players seemed up for it and that they had something to prove. Of the players on the night only Arbeloa, Carragher & Mascherano and maybe Riera would feel that they had the security of not playing for their places. The rest have all come in for criticism this season and Tuesday they were given a chance to show fans, pundits and Rafa what they can do.

We started similarly to Blackburn last Saturday, in control of the game but no real attacking "Umph". PSV went ahead; they scored from a disputed corner which Mascherano failed to clear. We drew level on half-time; a wonderful freekick by Lucas was met by an equally wonderful header by Ryan Babel. That increased Babel's confidence no end and we saw the Babel of last season; running at players, not afraid to have a shot. Speaking of having a shot, Riera gave us the lead with an absolute thunderbolt from about 30 yards out. The criticised players I mentioned put in a good second half performance; Agger and Dossena seemed more assured at the back. Lucas was looking for the ball and was stronger in the tackle. Ngog's touch improved and his finish for the third goal was a beauty. The main talking point was Robbie Keane, he took control of the game and although he wasted a couple of chances his link-up play was exquisite at times as was his assist for Ngog's goal. He was frustrated by the referee and Babel's selfishness but the signs were promising. He is confident in his own ability and hopefully that elusive goal won't be far away.

This result was against a PSV side short of form and confidence but it was pleasing to see good performances from players who have struggled so far. Even more pleasing was the introduction of 3 local lads as substitutes. Champions League now in hibernation, time to stamp our mark on the Premier League.

I predicted goals and it was goals that we got... eventually. Benitez obviously reads this blog and takes great enjoyment in making me look stupid, after imploring Rafa to show faith in Keane and play him for a full 90 minutes he decides to leave the Irishman on the bench for the full 90 minutes! The starting line-up had a few other surprises with Babel making a rare start in place of Reira and Benayoun keeping his place as Kuyt played as the lone striker. I was happy to see youngster Emiliano Insua start at left back in place of the struggling Dossena, though its unlikely to improve the Italians confidence!

Things were shaping up for a third league 0-0 stalemate until Blackburn's resistance was finally broken in the 70th minute and twice more before the end of the game. Whereas in the 0-0 draws at Anfield we may have felt that luck was against us a little, not getting the rub of the green or the ball not bouncing for us, well it certainly bounced nicely for us on Alonso's opening goal. Kuyt he took a big swing at a cross and missed completely, thankfully the ball hit the heel of his standing foot and fell to Xabi who slotted home. It was deserved after our levels of performance and intensity increased in the 2nd half after a tentative opening 45 minutes. Yossi seemed to have sealed the victory with an excellent finish after skipping past ex-Red Stephen Warnock but Roque Santa Cruz ensured a nervy finish by making 2-1 before Gerrard put paid to any hopes Paul Ince's side had of a climatic comeback in the 95th minute.

Another average performance but at least we're back to winning ways. We can't be far off hitting some good form and sitting top of the league is the perfect platform to put together a series of wins. On now to our final Champions League tie away at PSV and then back to the league against Hull. I'll be at that game, another nil nil and I'll start getting a complex.

This is getting all too predictable. Team comes to Anfield looking to defend and leave with a point; Team leaves Anfield having defended and takes a point with them. How we ended up dropping another precious 2 points at home is beyond frustrating. Stoke, Fulham & The Hammers have cost us 6 points at Anfield and in each game the opportunities were there to secure the win but a lack of clinical finishing and a lack of creativity cost us dearly.

After the demonstration to release Michael Shields for the games first 3 minutes the crowd were in good voice and like in the Marseille match we started well and really got at them. Hyypia should have done better with a headed chance and from my viewpoint (having not seen any replays yet) we had a couple cleared off the line. As the game approached half-time you could sense a tension in the crowd even at that early stage. We'd all been there before, this isn't a new phenomenon. Last season our huge number of draws put paid to our title bid rather than numerous defeats. The difference this year is that we've won the big games against Chelsea & the mancs but continued draws could cost us again.

Before half-time that old fan's favourite Bellamy hit a rocket of a shot the crashed against Reina's post and across the 6 yard box to safety but after the break Liverpool were camped down The Kop end looking for the breakthrough that never came. Kuyt should have played in Gerrard but chose to shoot and shot wide. Gerrard then tried at every opportunity to shoot from distance but his shooting boots were not at Anfield that night. Time after time the ball flew high or wide and at the death he missed the blasted thing all-together. Rob Green pulled off a couple of excellent saves, notably from Benayoun. Babel & Ngog came on to little effect with 25 minutes left and at the end we were left to leave Anfield asking that same old question.

How did we not win???

"You just don't get those 90 minutes of your life back do you?" contemplated my mate as we headed away from Anfield on Wednesday night. As a season ticket holder for as long as I can remember he must have seen some pretty atrocious performances to compare this against. To summarise; we played tosh!!!
 
We started brightly; the first 15 minutes saw us look dangerous down the right flank with Kuyt and Arbeloa combining well. We opening the scoring when Xabi Alonso found himself wide on the right and his perfect cross found Gerrard who headed home. So far, so good. Then it all turned to dross. We switched off, sat back, seemed to think that 1-0 was enough and that it was game over. Arbeloa went back to his performance against Fulham and decided not to get forward and Mascherano's passing was more erratic than usual. 
 
The second half saw more wayward passing, panicky defending, them having all the possession and us trying to hit on the counter... oh and the introduction of The Doorman!!! Andrea Dosenna really is quite awful. My brother summed up how bad our performance was when it was the ineptness of the Italian fullback that dominated our post-match discussions. Toss-ena spent a 5 minute period in the middle of the second half where he couldn't aim the ball in the right direction; twice he sliced the ball with his foot and then somehow he managed to slice it with his shiny head towards our own goal. He & Lucas cost a combined £13 million! That's ridiculous, I'm prepared to give Lucas some time as long as Benitez doesn't start him ahead of Alonso, Gerrard & Mascherano, but Dossena? I say we ship him back to Italy where someone may still give us £5 million for him.

A poor, poor performance and although it sealed qualification for the Champions League knockout stages it was very disappointing. I did get to see Neil "Razor" Ruddock at half time whilst queuing up for a pie though. What was Ruddock doing there? Well, waiting for a pie... obviously.

Its all my fault, I tempted fate and it slapped me in the face. At the Stoke match I sat with my mate Rich and we drew 0-0. Every game I've been since then we've won, but I've been sat nowhere near my aforementioned friend. Saturday comes and I'm sat alongside Rich again, we draw 0-0 at home again, to Fulham. He's been at matches we've won so I'm not laying the blame at his feet as some kind of jinx but from now on we'll give each other a wide berth at Anfield.

Another 2 points blown at home in a match against so-called "lesser" opposition. No disrespect to Fulham or to our Stoke Ed; Northy and City but those 2 games should have brought about 6 points for a team with ambitions of winning the league. This was completely different from the Stoke match, Fulham set-up with 2 up front and in Murphy & Bullard hardly had defensive minded central midfielders. They let Liverpool play but Liverpool weren't interested in playing. Gerrard was a big loss but I was confident Alonso would provide the creativity, Xabi has been our player of the year so far, Lucas Leiva certainly hasn't. Why, in the name of Ian Rush's tasche, did Benitez leave Alonso out for Lucas?

The whole team was poor as a whole, not just the long-haired Brazilian. We couldn't pass, the fullbacks didn't get forward as they have done all season and Keane missed ANOTHER sitter. Fulham could have gone 1 up in the first half just and although we had all the possession after the break I never truly believed we were going to get the breakthrough.

There are 2 ways of viewing the rest of Saturday's results; Firstly, thank Fowler that Chelsea & the Mancs drew and that Man City gave Arsenal a great big shoeing whilst they were down. On the other hand, what a wasted opportunity to open up a gap at the top. A big improvement is needed for Wednesday against Marseille; thankfully I'm going this match with my brother and not Rich.

My first away trip of the season and I almost ended up sitting amongst the home support. Thankfully an 11th hour interjection meant I took my place with the rest of the Reds... well the majority of them. The first goal saw a few Liverpool fans who were sat amongst the Bolton faithful being ejected whereas the 2nd goal lead to some rabid Bolton fans trying to climb into the corporate boxes to get at celebrating Liverpool fans!!!

How were there only 2 goals? Keane, Gerrard, Torres & Lucas should have fattened our winning margin and Ricardo Gardner missed 2 absolute sitters for Wanderers. We bossed the first half but there was too much distance between Gerrard and Keane and moves invariably ground to a halt and had to start again. We looked set to go into the interval one up, through a sublime header by Dirk, until the ref decided to give Bolton a disputed corner. A contentious corner on the stroke of halftime, with 3 Bolton players stood around Pepe Reina? I sensed a goal, thankfully Rob Styles controversially decided that Reina had been obstructed before Cahill headed home. Maybe Styles was still feeling guilty after handing Chelsea that ludicrous penalty at Anfield last season.

We were dreadful for the first 20 minutes of the second half and Bolton should have capitalised, Gardner wasting their best opportunity when after "rounding" Reina (Fantasy Football League anybody?) he sliced high and wide. The introduction of Torres breathed new life into us and Gerrard in particular, he was now dying to get forward to link up with El Nino and after failing to connect with one of Torres's crosses he made amends by nodding home the crucial second.

All games can now be classed "must win", it's not a familiar place to be in as by now we'd normally be out of the title race and the odd slip up wouldn't be too costly in our battle for 3rd/4th. Chelsea & United don't look like dropping many points and its imperative we match their resilience, ruthlessness and results.

Talk about setting yourself up for a fall!!! My preview for this game was a rabid, raving rant representing my revulsion of 'Arry Redknapp and his roller-coaster ride of redemption since replacing Ramos. I spouted off about wanting us to burst his bubble, blah, blah, blah. We'll I've been put in my place.

Spurs played well, attacked well, closed down well and their fringe players really wanted to give a good account of themselves. Our mob seemingly weren't interested in increasing their chances of regular first team football; they were abject, a disgrace, I wanted to slap many of them in the face a call them "a swine". Full Back really is Benitez's blind spot when it comes to signings, Degan was free but I can't see what Benitez saw in him to get rid of Steve Finnan.  £7 million Dosenna "the Doorman" hit a new low; his positioning was wretched, his pace was pedestrian and his work rate was student-like. Our two experienced centre halves played like incompetent misfits who had never clapped eyes on each other. Ryan Babel clearly thought that this game was beneath him so he just ran with the ball until he was surrounded by 3 Spurs players. On the right wing, El Zhar was the only player, apart from subs Alonso, Insua & Darby, who could hold his head up, he showed skill and a desire to get on the ball and a bit of drive. Torres visibly wasn't match fit and didn't fancy pushing himself too hard and alongside him David Ngog was a calamity. We lost the game in centre midfield; Lucas & Plessis were downright awful. Neither of them could pass to a red shirt, they seemed to look at a Spurs player and nonchalantly roll the ball to him. On numerous occasions they were so unaware of what was going on around them that they were robbed of the ball in their own half. I've never understood Rafa's insistence on playing Lucas so much, he must really rate him. Well if the future is Lucas, the future is worrying...

My review for this match suggested The Baggies would be coming to Anfield to look for the nil-nil, our Stoke Ed Northy commented that that this wouldn't be the case; to paraphrase "Albion will probably have more of a go attacking wise and will leave with a big minus in their goals tally". Spot on Mr Northwood, do you fancy ghostwriting my previews from now on? Perhaps they didn't do much more attacking wise but they certainly made the match more open. For the first 25 minutes we were appaling, we had no drive or passion and were stuck in neutral trying to get into 1st gear! However, on the half hour mark we increased the pace of the passing and Albion couldn't deal with it.

Robbie Keane's first goal for the club open the scoring after he lacthed onto Gerrard's through ball and lofted it over Carson. His, and Anifeld's, prayers were answered; only 11 games late God but I can see you've got a lot on your plate at the minute. Then moments before half time something inexplicable happened; no not Keane getting 2 in a game but us having a counter attack from a corner. Ordinarily Rafa ensures that all the players are back defending corners, Torres will be situated by the near post. Today Keane stayed on the halfway line and it paid off handsomely when he evading Carson's charge out of the box and finished cooly.

The second half petered out into a bit of a nothingness, although they had made the game more open by not deploying 10 men on the edge of the box they didn't cause our defence much concern and it should have been a case of us creating goalscoring opportunites whenever we liked. Unfortunately we became sloppy & complacent and it was only late on that Arbeloa curled a wonderful third goal into the top corner.

Keane's 1st league goals, Arbeloa's 1st goal at Anfield, the 1st time we've won by 3 goals this season. Back to 1st in the table... for a bit!

You need a bit of luck to win the Champions League and as this years final is in Rome it must have been Sors; the Roman God of Luck, that was looking down favorably on Anfield last night. The decision to award a penalty to the home side in front of their most vociferous support has been described as controversial, contentious, a con? When Gerrard won the header and went down in the area I didn't think we'd get a penalty but I do feel that technically it was the correct decision, there's a surprise hey? Like Gerrard and Rafa said, if that incident had happened in the centre circle then it would have been a freekick and no questions asked but in the area with only seconds remaining it took a brave, or befuddled, official to award the spot kick. We had 2 penalty claims turned down earlier on but to be fair Atletico had their own claim when a cross into area hit Carragher's arm.

It was another frustrating night where once again we couldn't turn our possession and chances into goals. It was akin to the Tottenham match where Sors had abandoned us for Redknapp's mob, not surprisingly seeing as their winning goal scorer's first name was Roman. Dirk Kuyt has been chipping in with goals in Torres's absence but last night he was poor and Keane still isn't delivering the goals; El Nino's return can't come too soon. Atletico's goal was classic counter-attack and throughout the match they seemed that yard quicker than us and in the first half produced some quality stuff but the 2nd half they were happy to sit on the edge of their box and soak up pressure. Losing for the first time last Saturday seemed to affect our players with them wanting to take that extra touch on the ball or be too deliberate not to make mistakes, which invariably lead to mistakes; the nerves were there for all to see. The nerves won't have been helped by last night's performance, certainly not the nerves of the fans.

He who lives by the sword, dies by the sword. In this instance the sword is a big, sharp, rusty last minute goal. Having claimed victories against Sunderland, Boro, City & Wigan with late goals I won't start moaning about the misfortune of losing to one of the buggers. I've spent most of the season laughing hysterically as late winner after late winner fly in, well now the jokes on the other foot isn't it? On Saturday I knew my luck was out after Dirk smashed in the opening goal. The pub I was in had a "Name the 1st Scorer/Time" pot and as regular readers will know, I'm a staunch fan of the "Trying Dutchman", okay maybe not but for some reason I lumped my money on Dirk. As I sat down from cheering as we went one up, I turned to the innkeeper "I'll have my prize please, no one in their right mind will have bet on Dirk". Turns out one such lunatic does exist, and his choice of the time of the first goal was nearer than mine. It wasn't to be my day.

"I can't believe it" cried Rafa and neither could I. Benitez bemoaned the spurned opportunities and it seems to be a bit of a broken record when he says that we need to more clinical in front of goal. Luck played an important role in this match. It seemed that we were constantly being denied by the woodwork and before Carragher nodded the ball into his own goal we were comfortably in control of the match. I do feel that Rafa shot himself in the foot by bringing off Keane with 25 minutes left, Benitez clearly had one eye on Tuesday's match against Atletico Madrid. After another shot came back off the post I turned to my mate "If we don't get one soon, we won't win this", unfortunately he was more on the right lines when he responded "If we don't get another one soon, we're gonna lose" This was a day where there were no prizes for guessing correctly.

I didn't get chance to write a preview for this encounter but my feelings were pretty much as they were for the Stoke game. After an impressive win against a title challenger it was imperative to back it up with another win. We couldn't do that against Stoke, could we do it against Pompey with ex-reds; Crouch & James, there to frustrate us? In the first half it looked like that this could be a real possibility with Tony Adams setting his stall out with a 5 man midfield with Crouchy up front on his own. But hold on a minute, if setting up a 5 man midfield is defensive then why are we playing with a 5 man midfield at home? Yes Gerrard is playing off the front man but why not have him back in midfield and have another striker up top? Anyway, I digress, the first half saw Kuyt hit the post but Boupa Diop had the best chance but he headed tamely at Reina.

The second half saw continued pressure and dominance from the reds but no goal, Hyypia, Aurelio & Benayoun all coming close. It wasn't until about the 75th minute when the breakthrough came. From my vantage point at Anfield it looked like the penalty was awarded for a push on Sami Hyypia, it was only on seeing the replay today that I realised that Papa Boupa Diop's mind had snapped!!! What in shitting crikey was he doing using both hands to palm the ball away from Hyypia's head like some deranged volleyball blocking technique? Anyway, his mentalistic(?) episode resulted in Gerrard narrowly beating James from the spot to secure 3 points.

Another win achieved through hard work rather than great play but the 3 points keep coming. With Rafa finally succumbing to his wild desire to tinker with the line-up and bringing in Pennant, Babel & Leiva I was just happy with the win. Unlike previous seasons, these games are now must wins to keep up the title crusade rather than must win games to merely save face.

Unbeaten records have a knack of being lost in big games. Arsenal's unbeaten run a few years back came to an end at Old Trafford and our own 29 league game unbeaten run back in 1987/88 season was ended in the Merseyside Derby. I'm delighted that it was us who ended Chelsea's unbeaten home run but to be honest the delight has come from beating Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, ending their record is just a bonus.

The deciding goal came from Xabi Alonso's shot from the edge of the box. The ball was clearly flying into the top corner from looking at the trajectory of the shot but that became irrelevant when Jose Boswinga decided to turn his back on the ball and it deflected off him past Cech. Remember Jose, luck favours the brave. Gerrad almost doubled the lead with a snap shot from distance but Cech tipped the ball over the bar. The last 25 minutes of the 1st half saw constant pressure on our goal, the situation not helped by playing too deep and easily giving up possession. The 2nd half was a lot more balanced and although Chelsea had more possession around our area, Reina was rarely called into action. In fact Liverpool came the closest to scoring again when Alonso's exquisite free kick left Cech flat-footed but the ball hit the foot of the post. Late in the game Ashley Cole should have done better when he snatched at a chance about 6 yards out but it was to be our day.

Watching the game on Sky I could hear that our fans were being particularly boisterous and that illustrated how important this victory is for us. In the review for this game I mentioned that there is little love lost between the 2 clubs these days as familiarity breeds contempt, 20 times we've met in 4 seasons Martin Tyler informed us in his commentary. More importantly it shows another improvement on previous seasons. We banished the Manchester United hoodoo earlier in the season and the Stamford Bridge curse has now been exorcised too. 

Sometimes I hate being right. In my preview for this match I predicted a draw and the game at Anfield being the all-important one. At half time we should have had the game sewn up; our domination and Atletico's poor performance coming as a surprise. However, come full-time I was grateful we got out of the Vicente Calderon with a point. I was almost right in my prediction for the starting line-up with "Howling Mad" Mascherano coming into centre midfield and Gerrard playing further forward but it was Dirk Kuyt who made way and not Keane. Another strange decision from Benitez given Dirk's current form.

After 14 minutes it once again seemed that Rafa was correct as Keane latched onto Gerrard's defence splitting pass to open the scoring. It should have been 2 before the interval when Benyaoun finished well but was incorrectly judged to be offside. A much-improved Atletico came out in the second half and they should have been level but that same linesman adjudged Maniche to be offside when he finished coolly, he was definitely on side. We rode our luck a little but the game soon evened out into much of a muchness. Benitez's substitutions raised a few eyebrows with Keane, Gerrard & Alonso exiting the game and with them went our creativity. Keane was injured and Gerrard looked to be struggling but Alonso was our best player on the night.

Their equaliser came when Carra misjudged an aimless long ball and Arbeloa came inside to cover; it left Simao to finish past Reina who was excellent in the second half. Arbeloa had a poor game but the biggest disappointment was Benayoun. He certainly didn't take this opportunity to impress; poor first touches, giving the ball away too much and an aversion to tracking back to support Arbeloa. With only minutes remaining we could have snatched victory when Kuyt's fierce cross found Babel's head but his powerful header went just wide. I'd have taken a draw at the start and with both sides having goals disallowed; a point each was probably fair.

Dirk Kuyt is making me look silly, and I couldn't be happier. After being less than complimentary about the Dutchman's prowess... alright I've been slating him all season, Dirk has scored 4 in his last 3 games and his brace yesterday secured us victory.

Rafa and Gerrad mentioned beforehand that we can't keep letting teams get in front and then having to, as Henry Kelly said in the gameshow "Going for Gold", play catch up. We didn't heed this warning and after 30 minutes Agger was too casual on the edge of the box and Zaki punished him accordingly. The Dagger made amends with a great run from the back and his skill and cross set-up Kuyt to level. The Latics ended the half ahead after Zaki hit a wonder volley after "Dossena the Doorman" couldn't stop Valencia getting in a cross.

The second half saw constant pressure on Wigan's goal but no equaliser. That changed on 80 minutes when El Zhar pulled the ball back from the left to Riera who drilled the ball past Kirkland to open his account for the club in front of The Kop. 6 minutes earlier Valencia had been booked for the 2nd time in 3 minutes and shown the red. Steve Bruce complained that neither were bookings; the first for breaking out of the wall to block a freekick, the second he lunged in high on Alonso and didn't get the ball. Maybe Fat Head's nose was restricting his view on the incidents.

With 4 minutes remaining Kuyt span to meet Pennant's cross. Unlike Zaki, Kuyt didn't connect perfectly and his volley bounced into the ground and past the despairing Kirkland to seal 3 points. His goals seem to go in by bouncing up off the turf or off the goal keeper but who cares? It was an average performance but another great showing of resilience to fightback from being behind. Yet, I have the sneaking suspicion that if we grant Chelsea such a head start at their place next week we won't be sitting alongside them at the top come Sunday teatime.

Dirk Kuyt. One minute his first touch is sending the ball out of the ground and the next he pops up in the 6 yard box in injury time to win the game for us. He's an enigma, he confuses me, he's a bit like a human appendix. Many think of him as being useless but, like the appendix; further studies have since shown that he does have his uses.

City had the game in the bag with Ireland's ferocious finish and Garrido's perfectly placed free-kick putting them 2 up by half time. Torres finished from close range to halve the deficit after great play down the right from Gerrard & Arbeloa. The 2 most expensive players on the park decided to trade glaring misses with Robinho somehow managing to volley over when faced with an open goal and Torres hitting the ball high and wide when he slid in at the back stick. Sandwiched in-between Torres rose to guide Gerrard's corner into the back of the net for the equalizer. At that point City were down to 10 men after Zabaleta was correctly dismissed for a high tackle on Alonso. However, Martin Skrtel also seemed destined to leave the pitch early. He got away with a karate kick into Jo's back and then late on he fell awkwardly and left the pitch on a stretcher.

All that was left was for "The Appendix" to finally get that league goal that we'd all been waiting for... for a bloody long time. The press are harping on about this comeback showing that we now have the bottle to be genuine title contenders. These journos have short memories. Anyone remember Fulham away? 2 down but won 4-2. How about the FA Cup final against West Ham? 2-0 down to then win on pens. Surely not everybody has forgotten Istanbul already? It's not being able to come back from 2 goals down against an attacking team that will win us the league, its being able to turn the 0-0 draws against Stoke into victories that may get us that precious Number 19.

They say that you can't guess Rafa's team selections. Well I must be some kind of soothsayer. I mentioned in my match preview that I hoped that there would only be one change for this match and that was Aurelio for Dossena the Doorman, and it happened. For the Man City game I reckon we'll see a Carragher hat trick and Carmen Electra will come and watch the match with me!

Back to the match and it was a memorable one for many reasons. The 1st time we've ever won our first 2 group games in the Champions League, Robbie Keane's first goal and Steven Gerrard's 100th. We started the game brightly and Dirk continued his knack of scoring in the champions league when he followed up Torres saved effort as early as the 4th minute. I thought PSV's game plan of coming to defend and then counter attack would have gone out of the window but they seemed to be on a damage limitation exercise even with 86 minutes left to play. Keane's moment came with 10 minutes of the first half remaining. Torres did brilliantly on the right and whipped in a super ball where Keane connected on the volley and sent it past Isaksson. From where I was stood on the back row of the Kop I thought it was Gerrard who'd scored until I saw Keane's trademark celebration.

The stage was set for Gerrard to steal some of the limelight from Keane when we were awarded a freekick 20 yards out. The ball was touched into his path and he screamed an unstoppable shot into the net in front of the Kop. The performance was good but a few times, in the 2nd half especially, the fluidity of the moves could have been better and were breaking down due to players being not being on the same wavelength, it was also disappointing to let them have a consolation goal immediately after our 3rd. Overall a great night for Keane & Gerrard and we're in a great position for the 2 games against table topers Atletico Madrid.

2 wins from our games against the Mancs & the Blue Noses, as you can imagine I'm rather cock-a-hoop! After a first half we controlled without really threatening their goal it was left to Fernando Torres to shove the home fans taunts down their throats. Torres cut a frustrated figure for an hour; feeling frustrated and unprotected by the ref, he was warned a few times for dissent before he was booked for gesturing to the crowd. Minutes later that paled into insignificance when Robbie Keane managed to reach Alonso's through ball and whip in a perfect cross where Torres's late run gave him plenty of space to volley home. El Nino's 1st goal since the opening day and an assist from Keane whose smile suggested it was as good as a goal for himself. Within 3 minutes the lead had doubled, Jagielka's tackle on Kuyt inadvertently set-up Torres whose instant finish into the roof of the net showed he had regained his confidence.

Everton offered very little, Yakubu the lone striker seemed more interested diving for penalties than shooting on goal. Cahill should have opened the scoring early on but after that scare it was plain sailing for the reds. The obligatory red card came when Cahill's frustration at being played out of the game by Alonso & Gerrard finally boiled over. It probably wasn't worthy of a straight red but if Mike Riley had thought of booking the Aussie then his mind may have been swayed by Timmy's schoolboy petulance.

Once again Keane didn't finish the game; instead he left the field to a chorus of "What a waste of money". Evertonians may want to look a bit closer to home as their £15 million record signing Fellaini hardly looked value for money, especially when Reina went missing from goal and the curly-haired one could only smash the ball straight at Carragher's back. The ref blew for a foul on Reina but it was good to see their star signing's finishing ability!!! We certainly don't have to worry about that with Nando back to his brilliant best.

While Arsenal's under 16's side were battering former Premiership side Sheffield United 6-0, what was effectively our 2nd string laboured to a 2-1 victory against League 1 side Crewe. When Dan Agger opened the scoring with a thunderous free-kick with only 15 minutes on the clock I felt that we should then be able to take control the game, create a few chances and build a substantial lead. Unfortunately within 10 minutes the lead was gone when Michael O'Connor finished from close range after Diego Cavalieri parried the ball into his path. The second half saw Liverpool score what was ultimately to be the winner when when Lucas Leiva arrived in the penalty area to head in Jermaine Pennants cross. Rafa was obviously a bit edgy with us only having the one goal lead and sent on Torres to try and fashion a 2 goal cushion. The chances came but the 3rd goal didn't and it was the Railwaymen who had opportunities at the death to take it into extra time.

It's difficult to find the right balance in this competition of blooding youngsters, giving the fringe players a chance to impress but still getting the victory to advance to the next round. Rafa just about got it right this time and with a number of Premiership teams having fallen by the wayside we could once again be paired up with another lower league team chomping at the bit to do a but of giant killing. As long as we keep clear of those pesky 15 year olds from the Emirates, shouldn't they really be doing there homework at 8pm on a Wednesday?

Well that was as predictable as an episode of Last of the Summer Wine and just as enjoyable to watch. Time and time again we are unable to capatalise on terrific results by failing to claim 3 points against mediocre opposition. This isn't a new trend, last season draws at Anfield against Birmingham & Wigan were similarly exasperating and going back to Roy Evans management where after the magnificent 4-3 defeat of Newcastle we went to Coventry and lost to end any title aspirations for that year. Credit to Stoke for their defensive performance, they came for a 0-0 and they succeeded. People may be annoyed at their lack of attacking intent but Stoke are, quite rightly, not interested in entertaining their host's fans. What annoyed me most was Liverpool's insistence of crossing balls into the box where Torres & Keane were up against 2 giants in the shape of Faye & Sonko (Cort after Sonko went off injured). Only once did Torres get the better of them and his header fell wide of the post. When Liverpool were able to get round the back and create shooting opportunities either Sorensen performed heroics or our finishing wasn't up to scratch. Keane twice failed to get off the mark when he shot tamely at the Stoke keeper and in the main we were restricted to long range efforts, especially in the 1st half.

Had Gerrard's 100th goal for the club not been inexplicably scratched off then I feel that we'd have gone on to win comfortably with Stoke having to abandon their game plan so early on. It wasn't to be and despite what Rafa called a "Massive Mistake" we shouldn't have been left ruing that decision as a club with serious title aspirations should have been able to score in the remaining 88 minutes of play against relegation candidates.

The same old story in terms of not finding a way through against teams who set up 10 players on the edge of their penalty area hopefully it won't mean the same old story come the end of the season.

Last December Steven Gerrard was the catalyst in our 4-0 win at the Stade Velodrome which ensured our passage into the knock-out stages of the Champions League. On Tuesday night he ensured that year's competition got off to a winning start by scoring the decisive penalty and an equaliser of exquisite genius. The 1st half in the south of France was strangely open with both teams creating chances. Ryan Babel blasted over after a delightful turn on the edge of the box and Marseille frequently sprung Liverpool's offside trap with clever balls from midfield. Such a move created the opening goal for the home team when Cheyrou (no not THAT one, his brother apparently) sent Cana racing through on goal, Reina may have come off his line quicker but Cana finished with aplomb.

Gerrard had already shown his intent with an effort from distance just before Marseille's opener which their keeper tipped round the post. The equaliser came about when Torres robbed the ball on the halfway line and fed Kuyt on the right, his ball back to Gerrard on the edge of the box was predictably a little behind him but he somehow dug his foot behind the ball and sent an unstoppable shot into the far top corner. Gerrard's 99th Liverpool goal came from the spot after Babel was up-ended by Zubar who had failed to deal with Carragher's long pass. Gerrard smacked the penalty in off the upright but had to re-take it as Kuyt had encroached; he stepped up and sent the keeper the wrong way again.

The second half was pretty much constant pressure on our backline and as Gerrard & Torres tired up front we didn't have much of an outlet. If it hadn't been for the tackles and interceptions of Carragher & the late heroics of Reina then we may have had to settle for a point. It was not to be and late breakaway chances for Babel could have meant the score line flattered us a little but it was to remain 2-1.

The wait for this win was longer than a Rory Delap throw, and equally ridiculous. Benitez's barren spell against the Mancs looked to continue when  Berbatov crossed for Tevez to open the scoring. 3 minutes in and I felt like crying. For 20 minutes I thought we were in for a drubbing, their midfield cutting through ours like they weren't there. Our aversion to passing to players in the same shirt invited more pressure but gradually we improved. Lady Luck realised there are 2 teams in this fixture when Van Der Sar decided to dive and punch a deflected Alonso effort... into the shins of the onrushing Wes Brown. Riera tried to catch the ball and score himself but it rolled over the line ahead of him. A debut goal would have been deserved for Riera who outshone their debutant; Berbatov.

Despite Gerrard & Torres starting on the bench it was the introduction of Ryan Babel that signaled the end of the drought against the Stretford End Swine. Mascherano drove to the byline and when the ball spun loose Kuyt pulled it back across goal where Babel managed to keep his shot down and into the roof of the net. Immediately from the restart Keane was scythed down by Vidic to deprive him of a perfect 1st goal for Liverpool. Howard Webb must believe Ferdinand can go 0-60mph in the blink of an eye and would have caught up with Keane so only booked Vidic. He didn't last much longer as he flew into an aerial challenge with Alonso where he had as much chance of getting the ball as his lookalike Ivan Drago had of defeating Rocky Balboa and a second booking meant red.

Despite Ferguson's post-match emphasis on our tackling and harrying, it was gratifying that a quality performance and great result were achieved without Torres and, in the main, Gerrard. No getting carried away with one win but this match is about so much more than 3 points and where it takes us in the table. And after such a long time, don't we just know it?

As soon as the Chelsea result came in I knew we wouldn't leave Villa Park with the 3 points. Whenever we play after a team that has slipped up meaning we can go top or close the gap in the league we invariably fail to take that opportunity. A draw away at Villa is not a bad result but it was disappointing that we didn't go there looking to attack from the outset. With Lucas in midfield it was left to Robbie Keane to drop in and play wide on the left. This left Torres cutting a lonely figure up front until midway through the 1st half when every Liverpool fans worst nightmare occurred: Torres pulled up mid-sprint clutching his hamstring and had to leave the fray. David Ngog replaced the injured Spaniard and towards the end of the 1st period Keane joined Ngog up top, perhaps Benitez felt that the young Ngog wasn't ready to play up front alone and needed Keane's support. The 1st half had few chances, Carew should've opened the scoring from Young's pull back and Kuyt could have done better when he shot into the side netting as the half time whistle approached.

Liverpool improved considerably in the second period but still couldn't get a shot on target. Villa then had long periods of possession without any success. My preview to this game suggested that Keane may open his account today and he had a golden opportunity as the game drew towards its (anti)climax. Gold Medal Masch lobbed the ball over the top for Keane to run onto but the ball wouldn't drop quickly enough and, under pressure from Do-Do-Do Nigel Reo-Coker, he dragged his shot wide. Martin Laursen came close with a header and as the game drew to a close Villa looked the more likely to score from the numerous free-kicks and corners they accumulated.

A dull game, a dull performance, dull tactics from Rafa and Torres added to the injury list alongside Gerrard. Not the best preparation for the next game against the swine from down the East Lancs.

This is beginning to take the piss!!! On recent form this was never going to be a comfortable night and another nail-biter was quite possible but this was ridiculous. Continuing from the 1^st leg we were lucky not to be down and out early in the game with Reina being forced into a couple of great saves. The defence was again a little disorganized; Carragher this time playing on the left of the two centre halves with Skrtal on the right, and from this Standard caused us problems in the air and down the channels. Down the other end we were restricted to long range efforts with Gerrard seemingly having a spoon on the end of his right boot as shot after shot flew into the depths of The Kop. Our lack of width was prominent again with Yossi constantly coming inside and Dirk Diggler being absolute garbage. I really do wonder how Benitez can continue to show faith in Kuyt, game after game he fails to provide any evidence of being the quality winger we need. He seems to give the ball away on purpose so that he can chase down defenders and show how hard he works. Benayoun, rather than Dithering Dirk, was replaced by Babel to try and get some width but instead he continued to run inside instead of hugging the touchline. Robbie Keane had a great opportunity to open his account in his first taste of Champions League football but wasn’t able to connect after good play down the right. El Zhar was thrown on down the right to stretch them further but again Calamitous Kuyt was spared as Keane was removed. Standard remained dangerous on the break and as the game went into extra time the tension was unbearable. Another penalty shoot out was on the cards and perhaps an embarrassing exit. With 90 seconds remaining Babel decided to beat a man down the left for a change and whipped in a deadly cross. Who was there to meet it? Who else but Dirk Kuyt. In off his knee and the blushes spared.

Another "Late Show" and we'll have to sign David Letterman to announce the teams. Jamie Carragher's 2nd goal this millennium and Steven Gerrard's Olympiacos-like injury time winner ensured Liverpool grabbed all 3 points in Anfield's opening match this season. Until the 85th minute it looked like 'Boro would head back to Teesside with an unlikely victory after Mido hit an opener akin to Torre's winner at Sunderland. Thankfully Pogatez deflected Carragher's drive past the unfortunate Turnbull and then Gerrard performed his party piece. In past seasons our ability to turn around such a deficit was lacking. We'd see teams go to Old Trafford, shut up shop at 0-0 or after taking a lead and nobody would be surprised when they left "The Theatre of Lucifer" with no points due to a last minute goal. Why couldn't we be more like the Mancs... oh god I've just thrown up all over my keyboard!!! Another disappointing performance, for the 3rd match this season, however it was encouraging to show we can break teams down late on and hopefully teams coming to Anfield later this season will take note.

Not that Middlesbrough came here to shut up shop. They consistently got players forward to support Alves & Tuncay, especially the wingers Aliadiere & Downing. Liverpool started and ended the half well with Torres & Keane linking up well as the half drew to a close, but it was Boro who went closest with Reina tipping a drive over the bar early on. The second half continued with Liverpool's promising play coming to nothing with passes being over hit or intercepted. Xabi Alonso, starting the match in the absence of "Gold Medal Masch", was a culprit and his sloppy pass in his own half lead to Mido's opener. Liverpool piled on the pressure but Southgate didn't change tactics; 4 attacking players remained on the pitch. Did this managerial naivety cost 'Boro 3 points? It was only after Carragher's equalizer that he removed Tuncay for a holding midfielder but with the bit between our teeth Gerrard volleyed home to leave Southgate sunk and Anfield delirious.

It's a trait of Superheroes to leave it a bit late. You don't see Batman capturing the arch criminal 10 minutes into the film or Superman saving the damsel in distress with a good half hour to spare. Fernando Torres waited until the 83rd minute to ditch his Clark Kent act and save Liverpool from leaving the Stadium of Light without the 3 points. Torres, like the rest of the Liverpool players had a quiet, rather ineffective afternoon until the one occasion when the excellent Nosworthy & Collins allowed him space facing goal outside the box and he drilled a superb shot into the bottom corner. Another away game to start the season and in the 1st half the home side showed more impetus and, worryingly, more quality. Murphy had a great chance to put Sunderland ahead early doors with a point blank header only for him to guide the ball to Reina. Sunderland continued to pressure us in the 1st half when it seemed all we could accomplish was poor first touches and careless passes. Dirk Kuyt must have been told in a dream that he would score a 30 yard thunderbolt as he continually tried to score from distance only for his attempts to be blocked 5 yards in front of him.

Alonso's halftime introduction gave Gerrard licence to get involved further forward but despite better passing and fluency no guild edged chances were created. Our old "favourite" Diouf could have broken the deadlock but, like his time at Liverpool, he failed to convert. Alonso tried his trademark "shot from inside his own half" which sailed just wide before Torres & Keane linked up to detrimental effect, Keane blocking Torres's close range shot after Gordon pushed out Kuyt's deflected effort. That would have surely put us ahead but we didn't have to wait much longer for Torres to don his cape and save the day. Not a great performance but this was always going to be a tough match to open the campaign, the improvement in the 2nd half was pleasing and hopefully that will continue against Middlesbrough.

Formed 1892. 1901- 1st League title of 18. The Kop. Shankly Arrives- promotion, first FA & UEFA Cups. Shankly Retires, Paisley takes charge- 1st European Cup & adds 2 more. Fagan’s Treble. Dalglish – Heysel, The Double & Hillsborough. Souness- high price transfers, low league finishes. Evans- Return to the boot room, but no return to glory & the last day of The Kop. Houllier’s 2001 Cup Treble. The Rafa-lution- Istanbul: We’ve won it 5 times!!!