Determined Reds Grind Out Win

Liverpool prepare to attack from a corner in the second
half of a scrappy game against Fulham.

Liverpool started the game in 11th place after Saturdays 3-0 win over Wolves. For tonight's rearranged game against Fulham the reds welcomed back their captain Steven Gerrard following his three match suspension as he looked to complete his first full game under Kenny Dalglish's leadership. After the formation had worked so well last game there were many calls for the same again and the majority of the team played in the same positions with Gerrard replacing the injured Lucas in the centre on midfield. As the old saying goes if it ain't broke don't fix it. Rafa and Roy were both guilty of doing this and some of these needless changes contributed for them both leaving but it is important to have fresh players and the fresh legs of Gerrard in the middle looked to have made a difference in the early stages.

Liverpool looked to pepper the Fulham goal in the first half but a very well organised Fulham team kept lots of men behind the ball at all times and forced Liverpool to shoot from range. When the reds did get past the Fulham defense they still couldn't get past Stockdale in the Fulham goal. Gerrard had a shot saved and Stockdale also got a strong hand to a Meireles header to push it round the post. Torres then beat Stockdale but had his goal ruled out for offside which was clearly onside and the result was a number of chants from the Liverpool fans relating to the recent sexism scandal at Sky Sports. They sang "if you'd rather have a woman clap your hands" at the official. Glen Johnson was next to have a go when he cut inside from his now familiar left back position and got to the edge of the box before hitting a curling shot towards the top corner only for Stockdale to push it over the bar. Fulham then had their first chance when Andy Johnson beat Skrtel too easily and found Dembele in the box but his shot was straight at Pepe Reina who gathered the ball and started a counter attack.

In the second half Liverpool continued to press for a goal and Kuyt's hard work won the ball back for Torres who's right footed shot was deflected onto the post off Hangeland and the rebound came back off Pantsil who sliced a clearance before Stockdale fumbled it over the line and gave Liverpool a lucky but deserved lead. In a game in which the defences had had the better of it, Liverpool then took their turn to do a bit of defending and by allowing Fulham to attack they let them grow in confidence and this put the reds under more and more pressure. Reina was called into action to make a great save from point blank range from Dembele and Hangeland had a late header cleared off the line by Raul Meireles and Liverpool clung on to a hard fought win and a much needed 3 points which lifts them up to 7th in the table.

While the performance may not have been the best the result was the right one from a Liverpool point of view and back to back wins have been a rarity this season. A gritty display and some determination got the result and they need to remember that and try to replicate it next time they aren't playing as well rather than, as they have done many times this season, letting their heads go down. Next up for Liverpool is Stoke at home next Wednesday night where they will be looking to make it three in a row.

Sexist Slur from Sky Sports Presenters

Sian Massey did a great job in
her first Premier League game
but is the subject of a sexist slur.

Saturday saw a good game of football between Liverpool and Wolves with the reds winning 3-0. The game will be remembered for a great volley by Raul Meireles and a brace by Fernando Torres, the second of which came after a 30 pass move. Another reason the game should have been remembered was the introduction of only the second female assistant involved in a Premier League game. Sian Massey was the subject of much speculation and it must be said that everyone was wary of what could have been a major talking point had she made a mistake. This only built the pressure on the assistant and when it's hard enough to officiate your first game in the Premier League in the first place she did a good job. Yes I was amongst the very large majority who held their breath when Meireles ran through on goal before setting up Torres' first goal, but the official did her job and got the tight decision spot on, something that many of her male counterparts could do well to replicate. The assistant had a good game and like all good officials she was hardly noticeable and no mistakes were made despite the pre-match attention.
Since the game has finished it has come to light that two big Sky Sports presenters had a bit too much to say on the issue. Richard Keys and Andy Gray had a conversation recorded before the game that went like this:

Keys: “Somebody better get down there and explain offside to her.”
Gray: “Can you believe that? A female linesman. Women don’t know the offside rule.”
Keys: “’Course they don’t. I can guarantee you there will be a big one today. Kenny [Dalglish] will go potty. This is not the first time, is it? Didn’t we have one before?”
Keys: “The game’s gone mad. Did you hear charming Karren Brady this morning complaining about sexism? Do me a favour love.”

Keys and Gray's sexist slur shows their views and will is may have been common to think like this many years ago time have changed and it is completely unacceptable, disrespectful and arrogant. I'd like to see Andy Gray or Richard Keys running the line in a premier league game and see how they get on. With over 20 years of Sky Sports experience, the fact that Richard Keys and Andy Gray are two of Sky Sports flagship presenters has to mean that they will always be watched/listened too but I'm not saying that if they weren't caught it would have been OK. The people defending them are saying that they didn't know that they where being recorded but the fact remains they still said those things and that appears to be their opinion. There is still yet to be an apology from either man apart from the now formality of a pre-fabricated Sky template apology stating how both men regret what happened. Sky have banned them from the show they made famous in Monday Night Football but I should hope that a longer ban in put in place and a proper apology is forthcoming however I'm glad that their reputations will forever remain tarnished.
Check out the recording here:

Huge Improvements as Kenny Gets First Win

Liverpool started the game with Kenny Dalglish making one change to the team that drew at home in the Merseyside derby. Christian Poulsen came in to replace Jay Spearing who was moved onto the bench. The Reds lined up with Kelly at right back Skrtel and Agger in the middle and Johnson (with his new hair cut) still at left back. Maxi was on the left of midfield, Lucas and Poulsen provided the holding roles and Kuyt was on the right leaving Meireles to play the free role in between the midfield and the lone striker of Fernando Torres. Pepe Reina retained the captaincy as Gerrard served his last game of his suspension.

The reds were determined to inflict revenge on Wolves who had beaten them at Anfield less than a month ago and Liverpool started as much the better side. The movement and passing lead to a flowing game that was periodically interrupted by the referee who seemed inclined to penalise every little thing and almost everything a Liverpool player did. The pitch wasn't the best and the ball seemed to stick on the muddy looking surface and that was just another thing that the Liverpool team had to overcome as it restricted their play however it was the same pitch for both sides. Poulsen had the first chance as Lucas set him up but his shot was blocked by Berra. Torres then had a chance as Meireles played him in and a great first touch brought it past Stearman and his low left footed shot was saved by Hennessey in the Wolves goal and the reds were unlucky that the ball bounced away from Kuyt and Maxi who chased in. While the reds looked creative with Lucas and Meireles dominating in midfield the shaky defence still seemed to be a problem. Skrtel made a number of strange clearances as he looked to be watching the players not the ball. The rest of the Liverpool defence also managed to give away a number of needless free kicks and kept themselves under pressure.

Liverpool had only won one away game so far this season and it was clear that this had to change. The main difference that could be seen today was that the passion and desire to win was there. When Liverpool have the desire and the work rate is there they can beat any team and Torres epitomised this ethic in a number of scuffles with Stearman. The reds then took the lead after 36 minutes when Poulsen played in Meireles and the Portuguese international showed his composure to roll it across to the unmarked Torres who couldn't miss from 10 yards out. Torres celebrated by picking the ball up and placing at Stearman's feet after the Wolves centre back had kicked and pulled at him all game. The Wolves defence appealed to the female assistant who was running the line but the replay showed that she had got the decision correct. The reds continued to dominate the game and went in to the break 1-0 up but had to rely on Pepe Reina as he blocked Milijas' shot from 6 yards out.

Meireles hit a superb volley for Liverpool's second goal.

Liverpool started the second half in the same form as the first and Meireles hit a superb first time volley from 25 yards out following Kuyt's knock back. The shot dropped sweetly onto his right foot and the ball flew into the top corner dipping as it went past a helpless Hennessey. This was the first time under Kenny Dalglish that the reds had got themselves a two goal lead and they then seemed to settle for the two goals as the drifted further and further back towards their own goal and looked to counter attack and catch Wolves on the break. Kuyt had a stretching attempt to poke it past the Wolves keeper, Maxi had a good attempt saved and Shelvey came on and nearly scored with his first touch but Wolves had more of the possession in the second half. Adam Hamill the former Liverpool youth team player, then also had a good chance on his first game for Wolves but miss-hit his shot.

When Liverpool did get the ball they made the most of it and in the last few minutes they kept the ball and put together a 30 pass move which culminated in Kuyt running into the box and cutting back inside and getting a bit of luck that they deserved when he got it past Stearman and rolled straight to Torres who smashed it into the roof of the net for his second.

The much improved performance lifts the reds up a few places and my man of the match was Raul Meireles who set up the first scored the second and play his best game for the reds. If Liverpool are really going to turn it round then more performances like today are certainly needed and this can start on Wednesday against Fulham.

Points Shared in Mersey Derby

 

Kuyt celebrates his goal which turned out to be the equaliser.

King Kenny returned to his throne at Anfield for the first time in 20 years in his new reign as Liverpool manager for the derby game. The atmosphere reflected this and for once there was optimism around the ground. The Liverpool team had two changes in it from the team that lost away to Blackpool, Maxi came in to replace Jovanovic and the most surprising change was that Jay Spearing came in to the middle in place of Poulsen. This meant that Kelly kept his place at right back and Johnson remained at left back. While Liverpool were still without Gerrard and Carragher (the first time they both hadn't played in a derby for nine years) but Everton also started without key players as Pienaar who was busy agreeing a move to Chelsea, Saha and Jagielka where injured and Cahill is still away with Australia.

Liverpool started the game as clearly the better side as they forced a number of saves from Howard the first of these after just 15 seconds, while looking quite creative at the same time. Everton on the other hand looked like they where going to try and defend the 0-0 for most if the first half and their only attacking play came from long balls from the back. Torres had the first real chance as Kuyt played him in and he beat Baines and Distin before curling a shot into the far post only for it to hit the post and unluckily bounce away from goal however the hard working Kuyt was chasing in and managed to get a touch but it deflected off Neville and over his own bar for a corner.
The reds where then deservedly in front after 28 minutes minutes though as Howard denied Kuyt twice when the dutch man first got a good header towards the bottom corner before he then hit a low shot from a tight angle and the rebound came back to Meireles who controlled it nicely before lashing it into the back of the net from the edge of the area for his first goal for Liverpool. A number of chances followed as Torres, Kuyt then Maxi all missed and the reds looked comfortably in control of the game all half and the blues didn't threaten apart from when Liverpool's nervous defence looked to give them too many free kicks and corners. The linesman down the main stand side had a poor game and seemed to get every decision wrong while the ref, who over ruled his assistant a few times got most of the decisions right in the first half.

Miereles celebrates scoring his
first goal for the Liverpool.

After half time the reds had to make an enforced change as Agger was replaced by Kyrgiakos and this somehow seemed to change the momentum of the game. Following the blues being wrongly awarded a corner as the ball was played off a blue shirt. Arteta took the corner and Distin, who had previously been marked by Agger, beat Skrtel to the ball and he headed it past Reina in the Liverpool goal to put them level less than a minute after the break. Things them got worse for Liverpool as following yet another long ball forward Anichebe looked to have jumped with his elbow and took out Kelly before getting to the ball. While the Liverpool right back lay motionless on the floor the ref allowed play to go on and Osman passed to Beckford who curled his shot past Reina before the Liverpool defence could get close. In that 6 minutes of football after the break they had seemingly thrown away all that they had done in the first half and lost all confidence and desire in the process. This handed Everton the upper hand for the first time in the game and Liverpool went back to their old selves again. They panicked when the opposition came forward and lacked confidence in their own ability when they had the ball themselves.

After not showing as much in the second half Liverpool managed to create another opportunity and when Howard brought Maxi down the reds where awarded a penalty. Everton may complain that Maxi was heading away from goal but it was still a clear foul inside the area and Dirk Kuyt stepped up to take it and slotted it into the bottom left hand corner for his 5th goal against Everton. Liverpool then looked to have regained some confidence but Everton were content with wasting all the time they could and settling for a draw. The reds then had other chances when Maxi was ruled offside and Torres had a shot charged down and the game ended in a draw.

While the blues celebrated the draw like they'd won the league the reds can take more positives from the game as they played much better, created many more chances and had more of the ball. This may not have been the result that they wanted but it's certainly a step in the right direction as the two teams both remained level on points. Dirk Kuyt was my man of the match for his constant hard work, his assist for the first goal and his calm and composed finish from the spot.

Next up for Everton is at home to West Ham and Liverpool are away to Wolves whom they lost to at home last month.

Magnificent Madrid Derby as Real Rule.

The game was always going to be a fiery occasion and it got off to a great start. Ronaldo's cross found Ozil on the edge of the box and the shot deflected out for a corner. Ronaldo then had a shot himself and it wasn't far away from the bottom corner. Atletico went up the other end and with what was their first attack of the game they got a vital away goal. Kun Aguero's run into the box was stopped by Casillas but the ball ricocheted into Forlan's path and the Uruguayan couldn't miss from a few yards out with no keeper to beat.
Real continued to attack and a long range shot by Ronaldo bounced awkwardly for De Gea who had to push it round for a corner. Arbeloa then made a good run into the box from the right and after getting past 3 challenges he managed to pull the ball across but the chance was missed. The next wave of attacks came and Real won a corner. Di Maria took it and the corner was met by a great header from Sergio Ramos who put the ball over De Gea in the Atletico goal which drew the hosts back level. Real had shown some great determination to get back into the game and deserved to be level but what was the most surprising thing was that all this had happened with less than 14 minutes played.
The chances kept coming and the next to have a go was Carvalho who was up from the back. His header was going right into the bottom left corner but a magnificent save from De Gea kept his team level. Kun Aguero was then denied a good shout for a penalty when he got caught just inside the box but the ref let play go on and in the same move Real Madrid claimed for a penalty themselves when Di Maria looked to have been brought down. The ref got it spot on however as the replay showed that it was a clear dive and it was very worthy of the yellow card it got. De Gea was then called into action once again as first he tipped a Di Maria shot over the bar then made another great save as he pushed a Ronaldo shot out for a throw. Another Di Maria shot was then pushed out by De Gea and the Atleti defence got there first to clear the danger as the half finished 1-1 but there could have been many more goals in what was a very exciting half.
The second half wasn't as fast paced as the start of the first half but there was still chances for both sides as Aguero had his shot saved by Casillas and the rebound nearly fell to an unmarked Forlan. Ronaldo then saw another shot tipped over before he clashed with De Gea after sliding in on the rebound from Marcelo's shot.

Mesut Ozil got a lucky goal right at the death to give Real
a huge advantage in the tie.

Atletico then caught Real on the break as a superb ball from Reyes found Aguero and after he beat Ramos down the right his shot was then pushed out by Casillas but the shot went straight to Forlan who could only manage to hit the post with what looked like an open goal. Keeping with the rest of the game Real then went down the other end and Ronaldo then slid in at the back post to meet Ozil's cross to give Real the lead but there should have been a free kick to Atletico for a foul by Marcelo in the build up to the goal which angered a few of the away teams players. It wasn't long before Atletico had another chance down the left but Forlan couldn't find his strike partner with a low ball across back across the area and the Real defence got it clear. Ronaldo then got away with a very strong challenge with just a yellow card but it could have been worse as the studs where up and it caught Ujafalusi on the ankle. Real then had another series of chances as Kaka, Ozil and Alonso all saw shots blocked by the spirited Atleti defence to keep the deficit down.
Forlan then went off after what was his first game of the year and then Ramos slid in from the back and took out Aguero but the ref didn't give a free kick so the Real players put the ball out of play to allow treatment. The Atletico players then took the throw and kept the ball, much to the dismay of the Real team and fans, but they where right in there thinking that it should have been a free kick. They did eventually give the ball back but only after a consultation with the ref and a number of missiles had been thrown from the stands.
Real where then handed a huge slice of luck when Ozil's attempted one-two with Ronaldo came back to his feet after a huge deflection off Luis Filipe and the German play maker put the game beyond doubt as he rolled in into the bottom right corner and gave Real a huge advantage in the tie.
Real Madrid hadn't lost in 17 games in all competitions at the Bernabeu and they made it 18 tonight but Atletico also have a good home record so will be looking to try and overturn the 3-1 scoreline at the Vicente Calderon next Thursday. They wont be doubting the fact that they can score the two goals in the game that they need to progress but the major doubt must be that they can keep Real from doing the same especially with the free scoring form they have been in this season. If Atletico are to progress in the Copa then a clean sheet really will be vital but one thing is for certain, if the game is any ware as good as tonight's game then we are in for a treat.

No Desire as Blackpool do the Double.

Taylor-Fletcher gets past Poulsen and Meireles who both had really poor games.

Kenny Dalglish took charge of his first league game as Liverpool manager in over 20 years and made some interesting changes to the starting team. Johnson returned to the team but was in at left back as Kelly retained his place at right back after an excellent performance in the F.A.cup on Sunday. Christian Poulsen came in to the centre of midfield and partnered Lucas, with Gerrard suspended, while Kuyt still out to the right hand side and Jovanovic came in on the left to replace Maxi. This left Meireles up front behind Torres. As for Blackpool, they also made a number of changes. Holloway changed 10 of the starting line up from the team who lost to Southampton in the F.A. Cup at the weekend with only Eardley keeping his place.
The two teams both started on the same points in 12th and 13th places in the league. With the league being so close both teams were just 4 points away from the relegation zone so both needed a win. With this in mind the game started off at a very fast pace and it was Liverpool who took the lead when Kelly played a great ball in to Torres down the right and the Spaniard finished emphatically from a tight angle to give the away team the lead after just 3 minutes. The lead didn't last long however as Meireles managed to lose the ball in his own half and Taylor-Fletcher was played in. The boyhood Liverpool fan then took the ball past Agger with a lucky deflection off his legs and fired a good low shot past Reina and into the bottom corner. The first half continued with chances at both ends but no one could capitalise on the poor defending that was on show.
The second half started as the first ended, with more chances at both ends but this time Blackpool got their shots on target as Charlie Adam continued to control the game, and Liverpool had captain Pepe Reina to thank that they were still level as he pulled off two good saves in the space of a minute. Torres then created another good chance down the other end but his effort was off target. Kuyt was next to try his luck as he saw a long range shot pushed round the post for a corner. In what continued to be an end to end game Blackpool had the next chance and they, unlike Liverpool, made the most of it. A cross into the back post was headed back across goal as Skrtel was beaten in the air and the knock down went straight to DJ Campbell who was left unmarked six yards out and he headed past Reina to give the tangerines the lead in what was another example of poor defending by Liverpool.
After the goal the Liverpool team lacked all the ambition and desire to attack and apart from a Meireles headed that went over they created nothing and Blackpool always seemed the more likely team to score. They were short of confidence and looked like a team who had only won one away game in the season but Blackpool had the worst home record over the same period of time. After Blackpool's first double over Liverpool for 60 years they now go 3 points clear of Liverpool who drop down a place. It proves that there is more that superficial problems at Liverpool and Kenny and his team will need to put in a lot of work over the rest of the season if that is to change.
Next up for Liverpool is the Merseyside derby where they surely the fans wont allow them to be able to show that same lack of desire.

Wonderful Watson can't beat World Record England.

Watson appeals for a wicket during his Man of the Match performance.

1st Twenty20 International at Adelaide
Australia won the toss and new captain Cameron White opted to bat first. This didn't bother England captain Paul Collingwood as he said in interview that he would have picked to bowl first anyway.
The England men where looking to emulate their female counterparts as the England ladies batted second and beat the Aussies by 4 wickets in the same ground before the men got underway.

The 32,000 fans at the Adelaide Oval kept themselves entertained with a few Mexican Waves but the cricket was more than entertaining enough as the T20 matches usually are. Australia got off to a great start with the bat as Watson and Warner added 83 for the opening partnership including 3 huge 6's from Watson off the Bowling of Swann. Michael Yardy then got the wickets of both the openers but the Aussies didn't take as many risks as they should have done and finished on 157-4 from their 20 overs. Apart from White, all of the Aussie batsmen had got in but then not accelerated the run rate and this left a huge amount of batting talent unused on the Aussie bench.

England then began their reply in a emphatic fashion Bell raced to 27 but he had a large slice of luck as he was dropped twice, once off the first ball. Pietersen added 25 before he was out leaving England on 63-3. Morgan and Collingwood then took control but when Collingwood was caught behind trying the reverse sweep for 16 and Wright followed without scoring it left England 104-5 and left the Aussies back in control. Morgan and Bresnan then added a quick 26 and looked comfortable but when Shane Watson got Eoin Morgan out chipping it to cover for 43, things swung back in Australia's favour once again. It then got worse for England as in the very next ball Michael Yardy tried to lean out the way of a bouncer and it just caught the bat and flew straight in to the hands of Aussie wicketkeeper Tim Paine and left Watson on a hatrick.
New man Chris Woakes then came in and in the next over he hit a huge 6 into the second tier of the stand off Shaun Tait. England had no trouble keeping up with the run rate but when they lost Bresnan, with Watson taking the wicket and Lee taking a good catch, England were in danger of running out of wickets. Brett Lee then went for 11 of the second to last over which swung it back in England's favour as they then needed just 4 runs off the last over but Watson was bowling and he took Swann's wicket in the first ball of that over to bring Shahzad to the crease. Another 2 dot balls from Waston built the pressure on the England number 11 and he managed to squeeze a single to put Woakes back on strike with 3 required off 2 balls. Woakes then hit a good shot for 2 which tied the scores and meant that it all came down to the final ball. The youngster kept his head as the field surrounded him and he chipped it over the head of midwicket to give England their 8th successive T20 win, breaking the World record for the most consecutive T20 wins and proving why they are still world champions.
It's not very often that the Man of the Match is on the losing team in a T20 match but Watson was the star man and his 69 runs and 4 wickets left him as the leading run scorer and wicket taker and you can only feel for him as he must be wondering how he could end up on the losing team with that performance.
The next T20 game is at Melbourne on Friday.

Change for the better

It's my first report since the recent change of manager for Liverpool and while I don't really have that many positives to say about Roy Hodgson's style of management I feel the need to say how he retained the dignity he had by leaving by mutual consent. It would have been easy for him to stay and keep fighting against everyone but at least he retained some of his nice man image and knew when his time was up. I'm sure he will get another job at a smaller club and do a very good job there but this was one job that was above his level. He really didn't seem to grasp the enormity of being the manager of Liverpool Football Club. With the new owners doing exactly as they said they would and listening to the fans, King Kenny Dalglish was appointed the new manager.
Kenny's second coming as Liverpool manager couldn't have got off to a tougher start with the prospect of playing the league leaders away from home in the F.A cup. The first thing he did though was to pick the right team with the right players in the right positions. Another thing he did was to inject some passion in to the team and when these things combined they made a real difference to the team's performance. For the first time in a while we looked like we wanted to win and this resulted in a lot more closing down, playing the ball along the floor and chasing lost causes all of which make up a vital part of some of the worlds best teams.
What happened in the match itself tho was quite clearly out of Liverpool's control. After just 34seconds a blatant dive was given as a penalty by referee Howard Webb thanks to influence from the crowd and the Man Utd players. The goal went in but after that the Liverpool team where clearly the better side. The movement and passing seemed to make a real difference in the performance.
The next incident in the game was another controversial decision by Webb. After Meireles went in half-heatedly into a tackle with Rafael the ball was won by the Man Utd right back. Whether this was what triggered what the Liverpool captain did next is questionable as is what happened. Gerrard slid in for a 50/50 challenge with Carrick and lifted his feet off the floor. By the rules of the game these days it is easy to see how it was given as a red card and had it been the other way round I would have had no complaints but the tackle was 100% for the ball and it wasn't a late challenge but the main problem was that there have been many worse challenges this season that have been given just a yellow card and its this inconsistency that is my main problem.
Back to footballing matters and Pepe Reina kept the away side in the game after a superb string of 5 saves in almost as many seconds proving why he's still one of the best keepers in the world. I have to say that I agreed when Dalglish pulled off Torres who had looked under par all game much the same as he has done all this season, apart from a few moments where his skill showed through. As much as Torres looked poor there was a equal sized positive in the right back position. Martin Kelly was my man of the match and proved his capability against some of the best and this leaves the possibility for something that I, and many others have been calling for for a while. Glen Johnson on the right side of midfield with Kelly behind him. Especially with Gerrard out for three games now it means that Kuyt could play up front with Torres to allow this combination down the right. One thing is certain though and that is that Liverpool are going in the right direction and the improved performance is only the start of what can hopefully turn out to be a much better year.
Next up for the reds is Blackpool away on Wednesday in the game that was rearranged from boxing day.

Embarrassing performance as Reds lose again.

Hodgson must be close to the sack after yet another loss as Liverpool manager.

Embarrassing, shameful, ridiculous, hopeless. Just some of the words that were used to describe Liverpool's performance away at Blackburn last night in what surely must be Roy Hodgson's last chance as Liverpool manager.
When it finally seemed that Hodgson had discovered a winning formula at Bolton the worst thing for him to do was to change it. Hodgson, being the supposed great and successful manager that he is (as he referred to himself), then decided to do the complete opposite of this and made 4 changes to the starting line up. The first change was a necessity as Gerrard replaced the injured Miereles but as for the other changes only Roy will know what he was thinking. Agger made a huge difference against Bolton as it was great to see someone who could not only defend well but actually play the ball around comfortably from the back, rather than the usual aimless passing from the centre backs. With this in mind Roy dropped Agger and brought in Kyrgiakos who is in my mind a worse defender, slower and a worse player of the ball than Agger, and the only part of his game that I would say is better than Agger's is his heading ability which is useless against a team who play fast counter attacking football. The next change was to bring back Paul Konchesky, one of the worst left backs the club has ever had, in place of Fabio Aurelio who looked good on Wednesday and is a much better player than his team mate both defensively and going forward. The final change to the team was to drop the most hard working individual in the team and the only one who seems to have kept trying in recent games when Joe Cole was picked in place of Dirk Kuyt. With all this in mind the players themselves seemed surprised with some of the changes and they never really got started.

Glen Johnson was signed as a right back and is supposed to be playing there for the reds but there have been major questions about his defending abilities and he was at fault when Blackburn scored their first through Olsson. Those who regularly watch Liverpool will have known that they don't perform well when they concede first and that they don't perform well away from home. When these two things happened at the same time there was no hope. This however, shouldn't be the message the manager gets across to his players but it seems that Hodgson has instilled it into his players. The reds didn't create anything in the first half other than a Torres disallowed goal for offside and another Torres header that went wide. Things didn't get any better at the back either as Kyrgiakos allowed Benjani to turn far too easily and the Blackburn striker smashed the ball past Reina who was helpless in the Liverpool goal. A third Blackburn goal came in the second half as Skrtel and Johnson managed to allow Hoilett to cross into the box and Konchesky couldn't cover so Benjani grabbed his second.

Only when losing badly did Hodgson begin to realise where he went wrong as he brought Agger on at the back however I don't think bringing a centre back was ever going to be the best thing to do considering 3 goals needed to be scored. Kuyt and Babel then came on but it was already beyond repair and little could be done to salvage the situation. Gerrard grabbed a late consolation for Liverpool with a good strike on what was his 550th league appearance. Things could have been better for Liverpool as Gerrard then won a penalty but in what was a very rare occurrence he blazed it over the bar. In a way I'm glad we didn't get the 2nd goal as it would have been undeserved and it would have looked like we actually tried in the match which may have bought Hodgson more time. It shows what we've got to when everyone is actually not that bothered that we lost because we know it means that its one step closer to Hodgson going (maybe even Stevie G thought that and missed the penalty).

The defeat left Liverpool in 12th and meant that Hodgson has won only 7 out of the 20 league games he has been in charge of the reds and he has lost 9 of the 20. The stats don't lie and a team that loses more than they win is definitely not good enough for Liverpool but Roy is stuck in his mid-table manager mode and thinks he's doing a good job. Just one thing Roy, Liverpool aren't a small mid-table team. Roy said after the game that the reason we lost was because we where "too offensive". How can a team who lost 3-1 be too offensive? Surely the problem has to be that we weren't anywhere good enough defensively and that was the reason for all of the three goal that Liverpool conceded. Why weren't we good enough defensively? The wrong players where picked. So why where those players picked? It was the manager who picked them. So whose fault is it that we lost last night.....

If all of the fans can see it clearly then it must only be a matter of time before the owners do the same and when they do I can only hope that we can finally start our season. Without Roy. The bad news is that we've got a F.A. Cup tie at Old Trafford to navigate first and who knows what team will be picked and which of them will perform but things aren't looking good and the sooner its over the better. Just like Roy's reign at Liverpool.

Finaly Reds Show Some Fight



I moved forward a few rows during the celebration so managed to
capture the players celebrating the winning goal.

 After the disappointment of the last game it was clear that something had to change for Liverpool. With the current calls from the majority of reds fans for Roy Hodgson to be sacked, and with another poor result he surly would have been, he decided to do what the fans had been saying all season and he dropped Paul Konchesky in favour of Fabio Aurelio. Agger also returned from injury in place of Kyrgiakos at the back and Maxi returned to the starting line up. The biggest shock however was that captain Steven Gerrard was left on the bench and Reina had the armband. Of all the changes to the team the most important of them was defiantly that Hodgson had picked players in the right positions for once and this resulted in a more comfortable looking and balanced team. Gerrard had to come on for Miereles after just 20 minutes but this was a like for like swap so the balance was maintained.
The game started much more lively than against Wolves and Maxi Rodriguez was at the centre of most of it seeing one shot cleared off the line by Matthew Taylor and a header hit the bar. Lucas also missed one of the easiest chances of the game when he managed to get it wide from 5 yards out. Despite these good chances there was still a large amount of poor play by Liverpool which resulted in them giving the ball away an awful lot. There was then a number of really poor decisions from the referee, all of which seemed to go against Liverpool, and it left me thinking we had returned to the Liverpool of a few years ago who managed to look good in short bursts without actually scoring and who had little or no luck with all decisions.

Liverpool prepare to attack from a corner in the 2nd half.

Things soon got worse for Liverpool and Hodgson as Kevin Davies scored Bolton's first goal at Anfield since 2003. There was not much surprise that Liverpool where going into the break behind as it has seemed such a regular occurrence this season and the 10,000 empty seats reflected that this mood had been acted on by many Liverpool fans.

Things changed for Liverpool in the second half and after 49 minutes Gerrard put a great ball in to Torres who finished emphatically steering a great volley perfectly into the goal. It was Torres' first goal since November the 10th which dramatically changed his fortunes around and injected some new life into his game. This was clearly apparent for all to see and the same effect then seemed to spread throughout the team.
In the second minute of added time Gerrard’s deep cross picked out Maxi who made a great run in at the back post, his shot then beat the keeper and was heading in before Joe Cole snatched the goal by poking it home on the line from what I think was an offside position to grab his first goal in the league for Liverpool but more importantly it gave the reds all 3 points. The win lifts Liverpool up to 9th in the table and it proves that a little bit of determination can get you a long way. It's not only the result that impressed today but the performance was also one of the best this season and I, and many others, will be hoping for lots more performances like it. Maxi was my man of the match for being at the heart of all the best things we created today as well as working tirelessly but Gerrard also came close as he played an influential part in both goals.
It's all well and good saying that Liverpool have turned the corner but the only way this can be proved is if they can string a set of results together in 2011, starting away at Blackburn on Wednesday.
But for now at least Liverpool have a 100% record this year!