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| Raul's the man....again! |
Victory was vital against Wigan following on from the Chelsea game. Those were the words from everyone's lips, mine included. This was the case earlier in the season when we beat Chelsea, the next game was a must win, the game to kick start our season - that game was against Wigan too, and just like today it finished 1-1. It was a really frustrating afternoon to a game which promised so much and the inclusion of Luis Suarez in the starting line up raised hopes of a victory higher. The victory however would not come.
The game had barely got going when Suarez played the ball to Kuyt who in turn played the ball back in to Suarez in the box only for Suarez to be bungled over by a defender, there was only one thing that the referee could do - signal for a corner? Haven't seen it again but it certainly looked like a penalty at the time, and it was not the only puzzling decision to come from the officials today.
Credit to Wigan for actually coming to play football, they are in a dangerous position and fighting displays like today will go along way to keeping them in the league and from early on in the game they looked to play the ball and attack on the break but never really looked like getting a goal - it wasn't too long before the Reds settled into the game an started to take control.
And surely enough the breakthrough came.
Aurelio's cross from the left found its way to Meireles just inside the box and his volley was perfect, his technique brilliant, the goal superb. He just can't stop scoring at the moment and long may it continue. Minutes later, Suarez showed brilliant skill to turn in the box and get a shot away only to see it curl onto the far post and away from goal with Al-Habsi beaten. By this time the Kop was in full voice with the new Suarez song getting louder an louder as the masses picked up the words - followed closely by what i think was a debut for the new Meireles song - both quality it has to be said.
The remainder of the first half would pass without anything of note really happening, the Reds looked good for the victory but Wigan were certainly making a game of it and it was clear that the second half would be a real test for Liverpool.
Wigan came out and looked much brighter, more dangerous than they looked in the first half and they had nothing to lose really - in danger of relegation even a point would suit them and the longer it stayed at 1-0 the more belief they took. Raul Meireles was removed early on in the second half due to sickness and his presence would be missed. All Liverpool's play was in front of the Wigan defence and Wigan were now starting to attack on the break an were looking more dangerous and the goal they needed wasn't too far away.
Liverpool were slow at pushing out from Wigan set pieces, instead defending deep into the box and this would only invite pressure back. N'zogbia crossed the ball which was then put into the net at the far post from inside the 6yard box, suspicion of offside but it was impossible for me to tell from behind the goal. Dirk Kuyt who had had an ineffective game was replaced by Jovanovic but the decision would not have any impact on the game at all.
Liverpool started to push on in the last 10/15mins, but Suarez was to come closest, rifling the ball against the crossbar with the goal keeper well beaten again - just wasn't going to be his day. By this time the writing was on the wall and a draw looked inevitable - and that is exactly what we got.
It was a game that has left us with positives and negatives, although i would have to say, more positives than negatives.
Negatives - the big negative for me was the inability to cope with Wigan's approach to the game. Take nothing away from them, they came to play, they did not come to sit back and hope for a draw, and in the end it was their fighting attitude that got them the point they quite clearly deserved. Liverpool looked lost in the middle, the free flowing pass and move ethos that we have seen in recent weeks was absent, instead we saw a lack of movement in the middle, players dwelling on the ball too long and short passes backwards and sideways - it was an off day.
Defensively we never really looked uncomfortable, but that said we never really looked comfortable either. Too many times in the game did we see Skrtel and Carragher hastily heading the ball forwards or quite often they simply hoofed it up field - not a good idea when the opposition want to come an play, also not a good idea when a lot of the time there was plenty of time for the ball to be controlled an played to a team mate with some purpose.
The biggest negative of the game was by far the officials. The referee had a shocker and his linesmen weren't much better. Possible penalty and offside goal set aside there where very few big decisions to be made, in fact there were very few hard decisions to be made. Throw ins given the wrong way when the whole stadium could see that they should have gone the other way, a corner given to Wigan late on in the second half when the ball quite clearly went out off a Wigan player - he had a shot, he missed, goal kick, not a hard decision at all. Inconsistencies regarding what is a foul and what isn't, generally for most of the game if your name was Luis Suarez you weren't going to get a free kick - despite the fact that Wigan could only get the ball off him by fouling him. The whistle was all too eager to blow for nothing challenges on Wigan players though, and exactly how long does Al-Habsi need to take a goal kick - it felt like 30seconds at the quickest!
Don't like having to talk about the officials, always seems like I'm looking for an excuse, especially after a loss or a draw but anyone who was at the game, or watched online ;) will know that the officials really did have a poor game.
Quick note - should we have stuck with the formation used against Stoke and Chelsea, after the fact i would say yes, that formation would probably have been better than 4-4-2, especially considering the way Wigan played. Thoughts on this one folks???
Positives - Luis Suarez, quality from start to finish, looked to be tiring towards the end but he still kept going. He seems to drift into space effortlessly, always available, his touch is superb, and he was a real handful today, so much so that the only way Wigan could deal with him was to foul him. Unlucky with the penalty shout, unlucky to hit the post, unlucky to hit the bar, so so unlucky not to score - a goal was the only thing missing from his super display. His tracking back and help in the middle was also refreshing to see as was the Kop in full voice with a song dedicated to him - you just knew it would blast out if he found the net!
Raul Meireles, quite what Kenny has done to bring out the best in him is anyones guess, and as much as the boss plays it down there can be no doubting that his arrival has seen Meireles' form rise and rise and rise - no coincidence at all. Another quality goal from the man who just can't stop scoring and his presence in midfield was missed when he went off. If he keeps it up he will have another player of the month award coming his way in a few weeks.
Martin Kelly, he was given a chance, he took it and now he is seemingly a permanent fixture in the first team. He was superb again today, still not the finished article but well on his way. Glen Johnson says he is happy to play at left back - probably because he realises that ousting Kelly from that position is beyond him.
The main positive is that we are still unbeaten, six games unbeaten now, 2 draws, 4 wins and that can only be a good thing.
After four straight wins and four straight clean sheets a draw is always going to feel like a let down, but it is better than a defeat. The red machine marches on, this draw is just a stutter, and there is a real drive and determination at the club which was not present prior to January. To even be considered as an outside chance for a Champions League spot is incredible especially since at the start of the year, all the pundits and newspapers in the land had us down for a relegation fight, mid-table finish at best. Fourth spot is a long shot and after the disaster that was Roy Hodgson, securing 4th place was not Kenny Dalglish's main objective - it probably wasn't an objective full stop.
Performances have improved, both individually and collectively, everyone is pulling in the same direction. The owners have come out and signalled their intent, they want to lead the club forwards, they want to win, to be successful and they aren't afraid to put their money where their mouth is in doing so. The spirits of the supporters have been lifted, it is no longer a chore to watch Liverpool play, it is at times a real joy once again - there are frustrating moments but you have to take the rough with the smooth.
Since Kenny Dalglish took over the club has been reinvigorated, there is a renewed sense of purpose and belief and there isn't really one player that stands out as having had an awful time over the past 6 weeks. All have played well, all have had their dodgy moments, but that's football, players can't get it right all the time and when they don't get it right they need to have the right attitude, the ability to move on and improve. What they don't need is praise one week and criticism the next. Many players who last week received universal praise are now being universally criticised. We can't just support them when they are good. Players have off games - fact. Really i think players should only be criticised if they consistently give poor performances. It is one thing to 'constructively' criticise certain aspects of a players performance in a game, and it is another to openly criticise their whole performance.
Take Dirk Kuyt for example, praised for his efforts and work rate against Chelsea, had a decent first half against Wigan, but was below par for his time on the field in the second half - he had a mixed game yet has received most of the criticism and negativity following on from the game. Which is it? Is he the tireless Duracell Bunny with excellent work rate, the right attitude in abundance and someone who gives his all for the team, or is he the uncreative, slow, touch like a rapist striker who is deployed on the wing? He isn't the quickest, his touch lets him down at times and sometimes he could be more creative, but he also keeps going, his work rate is second to none and he does give his all, and at times his touch is perfect, his link up excellent, he is creative and he puts in a good cross. Pretty much he is every one of those things at one point or other, but he isn't lazy and he gives his all every time - he had a mixed game, simply acknowledging this is enough. When it comes to criticising players you have to take into account the bigger picture and not just one game - we all have bad days at the office.
I do not think that the international friendlies should be used as an excuse either. They are a pain but would the performance have been any different had we just returned from a mid week European game?
West Ham next in the league, no easy games in this league anymore. They are fighting for survival and seeing Wigan take a point will fill them with confidence, they would take a point now if they could. A win would be great, going into the game against ManUtd on the back of a 7game unbeaten run in the league with 5 wins in that period would be a huge boost - not that we need any help raising our game for them. Who knows, if you factor in the two Europa League games we could be looking to extend our run to 10 games unbeaten when we play Utd.
For now we must be content that we are six games unbeaten and things look good for the future, we have renewed belief and that is all that we need to be worried about. This season was always going to be a hard fought battle, especially after Purslow's manager Roy Hodgson dragged us down further. The feeling is that we will strengthen in the summer, based on the strength we acquired in January then things are definitely looking up and next season will be the real test, can we be competitive? With the King in charge...why not?
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