Five Favourite Wins Against Newcastle United at Anfield

All season I have written a series where I look back at my five favourite wins for Liverpool over their next opponents.  This weekend Liverpool play their final game of the season, against Newcastle United at Anfield in a game they must win to stand any chance of winning the title.  So this is the last edition.  Here are my five favourite wins from past encounters.

28^th December 1987

LIVERPOOL   (1)   4   (McMahon 4, Aldridge pen 48, 76, Houghton 88)

NEWCASTLE UNITED   (0)   0

LIVERPOOL: Grobbelaar; Nicol, Gillespie, Hansen, Venison; Houghton, McMahon, Whelan (Spackman); Beardsley, Aldridge, Barnes (Johnston)

NEWCASTLE: Kelly; McDonald, Anderson, Roeder, Wharton; Jackson (Bogie), Gascoigne, McCreery, Cornwell; Goddard, Mirandinha

One of the finest teams to grace Anfield, Liverpool were already 10pts clear at the top of the table when Newcastle were the visitors at the end of 1987.  They had already massed twice as many points as their opponents that day who faced the daunting prospect that only one side had managed so much as a point at Anfield that season, with Grobbelaar conceding just 3 goals by this time.  Newcastle were finding like difficult down in 12^th, although they’d only lost 1 in their last 7 league games and had recently beaten Manchester United, 1-0 on Boxing Day.

Liverpool were still unbeaten during the season, having won 5 of their last 6 matches, conceding in just two of those games.

A crowd of 44,637 packed into Anfield where the gates had been shut almost an hour before kick-off, such was the buzz on Merseyside at that time.  The home supporters didn’t have long to wait for the goals to flow either, when Steve McMahon opened the scoring after just four minutes.  It was his 6^th goal of the season from a side seemingly able to conjour up goals from anyone.  The reverse fixture up at St.James’s Park had seen Steve Nicol bag a hat-trick in a 4-1 win.  Roeder and Gillespie clashed heads when battling for John Barnes’ corner and the ball fell to McMahon who cut in and fired past Kelly.

Newcastle, managed by former player, Willie McFaul, included a young Paul Gascoigne in their side.  They also had Mirandinha, who had signed for the club that season, becoming the first Brazilian to play in English football.  They were able to repel the home side for the rest of the half, but early into the second period, Liverpool earned a penalty which John Aldridge tucked away for a 2-0 lead.  Newcastle had shown some good moments during the first period with nearly all of them involving Gascoigne, clearly keen to showcase his talents on the big stage.  He even had a goal disallowed during the second half, but that was the only real occasion when the home side was threatened.

As happened often during this season, Liverpool’s two biggest threats seemed to be boredom and themselves.  Embarrassed by their domination of play they could be seen trying to score the perfect goal when a more simpler chance would do, yet the sheer weight of chances allowed them this profligacy.  Towards the end of the match, they concentrated and sliced the defence open for Aldridge and Houghton to double the score and give it a fairer reflection of the difference in the two sides, 4-0.

With Nottingham Forest also winning, Liverpool maintained their 10-pt lead at the top.  It wouldn’t be until 20^th March when Liverpool finally lost a league match, at Everton, who had also knocked them out of the League Cup.  Liverpool won the title by 9pts from Manchester United and were 17pts ahead of the 3^rd placed side, Nottingham Forest.  They lost to Wimbledon in the FA Cup when seemingly destined for their second ‘double’ in three seasons.  Newcastle finished 8^th.

3^rd April 1996

LIVERPOOL   (1)   4   (Fowler 2, 56, Collymore 68, 90)

NEWCASTLE   (2)   3   (Ferdinand 10, Ginola 14, Asprilla 57)

LIVERPOOL: James; McAteer, Wright (Harkness), Ruddock, Scales, Jones (Rush); McManaman, Redknapp, Barnes; Collymore, Fowler

NEWCASTLE: Srnicek; Watson, Albert, Howey (Peacock), Beresford; Lee, Batty, Ginola; Beardsley, Ferdinand, Asprilla

The race for the title in 1995-96 had seen Newcastle open up a 9pt gap on Manchester United at the top by mid-February.  Managed by Kevin Keegan, their 5-straight winning run came to an end at West Ham and when they turned up at Anfield they’d won just 1 of their previous 5 League matches, including a 0-1 defeat at home to United.  This game saw Newcastle lying 2^nd, 3pts behind United with two games in hand.

Liverpool were in 3^rd, having just lost 0-1 to Nottingham Forest ending a 15-game unbeaten run.  Roy Evans side had just beaten Aston Villa, 3-0, in the FA Cup Semi-Final and were looking forward to meeting Manchester United in the Final.  They were in with an outside chance of the title trailing United by 8pts with this game in hand.

Some have called this the greatest game in Premier League history, and there is no doubt it is a classic.  Played at a frenetic pace from start to finish, it was a real heavyweight clash with two sides, bent on attacking, going at each other for 90 minutes with no quarter given.

With just 2 minutes gone Rob Jones combined with Stan Collymore down the left and the Liverpool striker got to the bye-line and fired in a cross to the far post where Robbie Fowler headed the home side in front.  1-0.  It was a great start and Fowler, who’d scored twice in the weekend cup match had his 26^th League goal of the season.  The noise was deafening, yet Newcastle fought back soon after.  Watson took a throw on the right wing and Asprilla picked up the ball just outside the area, skinned Ruddock then pulled it back where Ferdinand fired it past James.  1-1

Then four minutes later a ball out of Newcastle’s box found Ferdinand in the centre-circle.  He brought the ball down and then sent Ginola clear on the left.  The Frenchman held off McAteer and fired past James to put Newcastle in front giving the crowd barely time to catch their breath.  1-2.  Liverpool had the better of the chances for the rest of the half as Redknapp went close from long range and Fowler slid the ball agonisingly wide.  McManaman also had a shot tipped over.

Newcastle went into the break 2-1 up but you just knew there were more goals to come.  James saved well from Lee early in the second half and this seemed to galvanise the home side.  McManaman went close twice more before Liverpool finally equalised.  McAteer, in the right-back position, played a ball down the wing where McManaman had space to run at the defence.  As he reached the penalty area he squared the ball for Fowler to run onto and he fired a low shot, left-footed past Srnicek.  2-2.

Within a minute Newcastle had restored their lead.  Beardsley won the ball inside his own half and played a lovely ball to Rob Lee, which took out three Liverpool players.  Lee burst forward and waited for the run of Asprilla on the right.  Lee’s perfect pass between Ruddock and Jones found Asprilla and he hit a first time shot with the outside of his right foot curling it past James, who had charged out of his goal making the chance easier for the Colombian.  2-3.

Ten minutes later and Liverpool were level again.  Redknapp won the ball in the centre-circle, found McManaman who utilised McAteer on the right.  The wing-back fired a teasing ball ahead of the defence for Collymore to turn the ball in at the far post.  This was the season where Newcastle’s philosophy was just to score more than the opposition, but by now this was testing the patience of their supporters.  Liverpool, equally as attack-minded, just wouldn’t give up either.  3-3.

In his debut season at Anfield, Collymore now had 11 goals in the League as he went some way towards repaying the £8m Liverpool had paid Nottingham Forest for his services.  Fowler, McManaman and Collymore went close for Liverpool as the home side continued to press for a winner.  Evans then threw Rush on in an attempt to settle things and as the game moved towards injury time the whole place erupted.

Barnes and Rush exchanged passes in midfield, each time moving nearer and nearer the opposition area.  Once in the area they almost got in each other’s way, until Barnes, with the calmness of a veteran, saw Collymore was unmarked on the left and found him.  Collymore took one touch and then fired left footed beating Srnicek on his near post.  It was an astonishing finish to an incredible match.  Right at the death Liverpool had won it and few who witnessed it would ever forget it.  4-3.

Newcastle were crushed and never recovered, finishing 2^nd in the table.  Liverpool were 7pts behind them in 3^rd place and also had the heartbreak of losing the FA Cup Final to a late goal against Manchester United.

10^th March 1997

LIVERPOOL   (3)   4   (McManaman 29, Berger 30, Fowler 42, 90)

NEWCASTLE   (0)   3   (Gillespie 71, Asprilla 87, Barton 88)

LIVERPOOL: James; McAteer, Wright, Kvarme, Matteo, Bjornebye; McManaman, Redknapp, Berger, Barnes; Fowler

NEWCASTLE: Hislop; Watson, Peacock, Albert, Elliott; Gillespie, Batty, Clark (Ginola), Barton; Beardsley (Ferdinand)(Crawford), Asprilla

The year after ‘the greatest game’ people were still talking about it when the two met again at the same venue.  Liverpool were lying 3^rd in the table, 4pts behind leaders Manchester United with a game in hand.  They’d just lost 0-1 at Aston Villa, ending a run of 5 games without conceding a goal.

Newcastle were just behind Liverpool, but 5pts back and now managed by another former Liverpool favourite, Kenny Dalglish.  They were also coming off the back of a defeat, losing 0-1 at home to Southampton.  This ended a 7-match unbeaten run.

Lightening couldn’t strike twice, could it?

Liverpool were the more inventive from the start but had to wait until the 29^th minute before they made the breakthrough.  Redknapp played a lovely ball to find McAteer attacking down the right.  He cut inside and played a ball along the 18-yard line where Fowler dummied it and McManaman, who was just behind him & unmarked, took one touch and fired the ball past Hislop.  1-0.

With the crowd in full voice, Liverpool immediately built from the back and Matteo’s ball looked to have put Berger clear, only for the linesman to flag for offside.  Newcastle chose to take the free-kick quickly and as they tried to play their way out of trouble, McManaman dispossessed Batty and played Fowler in on the right.  His shot hit the post and came back invitingly for Berger to finish and two goals in the space of 60 seconds gave Liverpool a 2-0 lead.

As half-time approached, Newcastle were again guilty in possession and Redknapp played a beautiful ball from just inside his own half to put Fowler away and his first shot beat Hislop to give the home side a comfortable lead at the break.  3-0.

It was as perfect a half as you could wish for, for the home side.  The second period appeared to be a formality as Newcastle were happy to keep the arrears at their current level.  With 20 minutes to go Albert found Gillespie on the edge of the area and he jinked and twisted his way across the area, looking for space, before hitting a low shot which James should’ve saved, but strangely he let it bounce through his fingers and Newcastle had, what seemed at the time, a consolation goal.  3-1.

The game seemed to be meandering to a finish with Liverpool knocking the ball around comfortably in midfield before Redknapp gave the ball away to Ginola on the left.  Ginola, just inside his own half played a long ball beyond Mark Wright and Asprilla ran on and lobbed the ball over James to reduce the difference to one goal.  Unbelievably, Asprilla hadn’t scored in the league since the corresponding fixture last season but this one gave his side hope of grabbing a point.  3-2.

A long ball launched from the back by Albert was headed on by Barton in the area to Asprilla.  But before the Colombian could get a shot in, Kvarme attempted to wrestle it from him and as the defender fell over, Barton was free to miss-hit his shot enough to dribble over the line for a remarkable equaliser.  From a seemingly impregnable position, Liverpool had somehow conspired to give away a 3-0 lead and were now looking at dropping 2pts.  James was again at fault as he let the ball go between his legs as he came out without making much attempt to smother the ball.  3-3.

Where was this game going now?  The home fans stunned, the visiting fans also in disbelief.  As both teams struggled to come to terms with the last few minutes, Liverpool attacked down the left.  Matteo found Bjornebye and his left foot cross was headed home by Fowler, who was bravely determined to get to the ball first.  No one could believe it, a repeat of a famous scoreline and Liverpool again had won it in injury time.  4-3.

These two fixtures will live on in folklore although probably more on Merseyside than Tyneside.  Liverpool had moved to within 1pt of United at the top but were unable to capitalise ending the season in 4^th.  They were one of three sides on 68pts with Newcastle leading the trio finishing in 2^nd.

28^th December 1998

LIVERPOOL   (0)   4   (Owen 67, 80, Riedle 71, 84)

NEWCASTLE   (1)   2   (Solano 29, Andersson 56)

LIVERPOOL: James; Heggem, Babb (McAteer), Staunton, Bjornebye; McManaman (Gerrard)(Thompson), Redknapp, Carragher, Berger; Riedle, Owen

NEWCASTLE: Given; Charvet, Hughes, Howey, Pearce; Glass (Georgiadis), Solano (Dabizas), Hamann, Speed; Shearer, Ferguson (Andersson)

Christmas time and another Liverpool v Newcastle clash.  Gerard Houllier had elbowed Roy Evans out of the club and was now in sole charge.  But his side was down in 9^th having lost 7 times already, including two at home, one on my wedding day and the other a week later.  Ruud Gullit was the visting manager and his Newcastle side were doing even worse, down in 12^th with just one win away from home all season.  They’d won just 2 of their last 8 going into this match, managing to score in only half of those games.  Liverpool’s previous 6 match sequence had been 2 wins, 2 defeats and then 2 wins as Houllier tried to come to terms with a side he clearly didn’t really want.

Newcastle played with two big strong centre-forwards, Alan Shearer and Duncan Ferguson and they were soon causing problems in the home defence as David James was forced to deny Ferguson early on.  Eventually the pressure told and Ferguson rose highest to head down for Solano to race in the score the opening goal after 29 minutes.  But no sooner had the visitors quietened the crowd than their hopes were dashed when future Liverpool star, Didi Hamann was sent-off for a second bookable offence when he tripped Berger.  Hamann’s first offence had seen him inflict an injury on McManaman leading to the England winger being replaced by a young Steven Gerrard in his debut season.

Ten minutes into the second half and a mix-up in the home defence as Phil Babb and Jamie Carragher went for the same ball, got entangled and Andersson was left to slot the ball home for a 2-0 lead to the visitors.  Gradually, though, Liverpool began to rescue control of the game and within 10 minutes they had pulled one back after another good save from Given was turned in by Owen.

Four minutes later and the home side were level when Karl-Heinz Riedle scored, although the visitors looked to have a claim for handling against the German.  With ten minutes to go The Kop was in full voice and baying for blood and again it was Owen who duly supplied.  His second of the game to go with the imperious hat-trick he had scored at St.James’s Park back in August.  Riedle then matched Owen’s total with six minutes to go and for the 3^rd time in their last 4 visits to Anfield, Newcastle had conceded 4.

The game may not have had the drama of the previous two in this series but it was a crucial comeback giving them their first 3-game winning streak of the season.  Liverpool eventually finished 7^th in the League with Newcastle down in 13^th.

5^th May 2001

LIVERPOOL   (1)   3   (Owen 25, 71, 82)

NEWCASTLE   (0)   0

LIVERPOOL: Westerveld; Babbel, Hyypia. Henchoz, Carragher; Smicer (Berger), Gerrard (Murphy), Hamann, McAllister; Heskey (Fowler), Owen

NEWCASTLE: Given; Barton, Dabizas, O’Brien, Quinn; Solano, Acuna (Bassedas), Hughes, Speed; Gallacher (Lua Lua), Cort (Ameobi)

It was difficult to choose between this game and a similar win a few years later, but in the end I plumped for this one based on the importance of the victory.  Liverpool, under Gerard Houllier were chasing a Champions League spot, with only the top three clubs qualifying.  Having won the League Cup against Birmingham in February, they had made it through to a further two finals with the FA Cup and UEFA Cup Finals to come.  They had just won 4 successive League matches and were in good form, but every point was vital with Leeds United breathing down their necks.  Leeds was the last team to beat them, when they won 2-1 at Anfield.

Newcastle were in somewhat of a rebuilding phase under Bobby Robson and were sitting in 10^th place, 15pts behind Liverpool who were 3^rd.

Michael Owen, often the scourge of Newcastle, was in superb form and almost opened the scoring early on.  Eventually, though, he would find the visiting centre-backs sleeping and after 25 minutes Babbel split the defence for Owen to run on and chip Shay Given.  It was a moment which annoyed the Toon boss who had drilled his defence in not allowing Owen space.

A goal up at the break, Liverpool deserved their lead and McAllister probably should’ve made it 2-0 just before the turnaround.  Newcastle pressed in the second half but with little substance.  Patrik Berger was introduced and in a move he would repeat in the FA Cup Final, he sent Owen away and the Liverpool striker made it 2-0.  Then as the game moved into the final ten minutes, another substitute, Robbie Fowler, provided the perfect pass for Owen to complete his hat-trick off the far post.  Owen had scored 12 goals in 6 games against Newcastle at that stage of his career.  With Leeds losing at Arsenal, Liverpool had opened up a crucial 3pt gap over them with just two games to go.  They held that position to qualify for Champions League football in a season where they lifted the League Cup, the FA Cup and UEFA Cup.  Newcastle finished in 11^th.

HEAD TO HEAD at Anfield

Matches: 77

Liverpool win: 51

Newcastle win: 11

Draws: 15

Liverpool goals: 176

Newcastle goals: 78

Five Favourite Wins Against - Chelsea at Anfield

Continuing the series where I look back at my five favourite wins the Liverpool’s next opponents.  This weekend Liverpool play against Chelsea at Anfield, in a match which could decide the destination of the League title.  Here are my five favourite wins from past encounters, with some of them packed full of goals.

21^st April 1990

LIVERPOOL   (2)   4   (Rosenthal 25, Nicol 36, 80, Rush 82)

CHELSEA   (0)   1   (Dixon 90)

LIVERPOOL: Grobbelaar; Hysen, Gillespie (Ablett), Hansen, Burrows; Nicol, Molby, McMahon, Barnes; Rosenthal, Rush

CHELSEA: Beasant; Hall, Nicholas, Johnsen, Dorigo; Monkou, Bumstead (Lee), McAllister, K.Wilson (C.Wilson); Durie, Dixon

Liverpool were closing in on their 18^th League title when Chelsea arrived at Anfield towards the end of the 1989-90 season.  They were 2pts clear of Aston Villa with a game in hand.  Chelsea were well positioned in 6^th, only 4pts off 3^rd place.  Liverpool had lost just once in their last 19 matches in the League going into this game.  Chelsea had recently suffered a defeat at Villa, ending their own 8-game unbeaten run.

This game was another start for Israeli international, Ronnie Rosenthal, who’d scored a hat-trick on his first start a couple of weeks before at Charlton.  He then scored against Nottingham Forest and was bang in form.  Midway through the first half Gary Gillespie took a throw on the right wing and Rosenthal, with his back to goal, controlled the ball on his chest, turned Johnsen and then fired a left foot shot past Dave Beasant.  Rosenthal could’ve scored four in this game but his profligacy wasn’t particularly a problem at this stage of his career, but was something which would come back to haunt him later on.

With ten minutes before the break, John Barnes cross from the left was headed home by Steve Nicol and Liverpool had a comfortable lead at half-time.  When the teams met at Stamford Bridge in December, Liverpool won 5-2.  Liverpool were far from clinical on this occasion but Chelsea seemed just as disorganised at the back.  With ten minutes to go Ian Rush, who’d scored a brace against this opponent in December, put Nicol through on goal and the Scotsman didn’t pass up the chance to increase his goal tally for the season.  Barnes was then involved in the 4^th goal as he put Rosenthal through and his cross was headed in by Rush to score his 24^th goal of the season.

Kerry Dixon then scored a late consolation goal but the visitors were well beaten.  It wasn’t vintage Liverpool as gaps were starting to appear in their once impenetrable armour, but they won the League by 9pts from Aston Villa.  Chelsea ended the season in 5^th place.

21^st September 1996

LIVERPOOL   (3)   5   (Fowler 15, Berger 42, 49, Myers og, 45, Barnes 57)

CHELSEA (0)   1   (Leboeuf 85)

LIVERPOOL: James; McAteer, Wright, Babb, Matteo, Bjornebye; McManaman, Thomas, Barnes; Rush, Berger (Redknapp)

CHELSEA: Hitchcock; Petrescu, Clarke, Leboeuf, Myers (Duberry); Burley, Di Matteo, Wise, Morris (Spencer); Vialli, Hughes

Both teams came into this fixture unbeaten after 6 matches of the 1996-97 season.  Roy Evans’ Liverpool had just beaten Leicester 3-0, their 4^th clean-sheet so far.  In that match new signing Patrick Berger came off the bench to score twice.  He was rewarded with a starting place in this match.  Ruud Gullit’s Chelsea had only conceded in two matches, a thrilling 3-3 draw at Highbury.  This was 1^st v 3^rd and promised to be a classic.  For one team, it was.

Fifteen minutes into the game and Stig-Inge Bjornebye whipped in a cross from the left wing and found Robbie Fowler at the far post to head past Hitchcock.  Fowler had gone close a few minutes earlier, yet Chelsea did not heed the warning.  Three minutes before half-time, Dominic Matteo pounced on a loose ball in the centre-circle, burst forward and split the Chelsea defence open as he slipped it to his left where Berger had a free run on goal.  Berger went into the area, rounded the keeper and put Liverpool into a 2-goal lead.  Chelsea had won once in their last 36 visits to Anfield and were now staring at another defeat.  Chelsea were all at sea when Berger fed Bjornebye on the left and another trademark sweeping cross from the Norwegian was headed in perfectly by Andy Myers.  Unfortunately for the visitors, Myers was on their side.

Chelsea had made their best start to a season since 1970 but the wheels were definitely coming off at Anfield after just 45 minutes.  Four minutes after the re-start and Dennis Wise was caught in possession in midfield by McManaman and Patrick Berger was on hand again to power towards the visitors goal.  As Hitchcock came out Berger slipped it left-footed past him and the home side were now 4-0 up.  Just before the hour McAteer’s cross from the right was poorly dealt with by Duberry (who’d come on for Myers) and then ball fell to Barnes on the edge of the area.  John Barnes then rolled back the years as he met it full on the volley and Frank (I don’t care I won a World Cup) Leboeuf stuck his leg out just to make sure it went in.  With over 30 minutes to go Liverpool were 5-0 up.

Liverpool controlled the remainder of the game as Thomas and Barnes ran the midfield and Chelsea were scared of Berger’s pace.  Then with five minutes to go Mark Hughes went down under the challenge of Matteo and made sure he fell into the box enough to convince the referee to give Chelsea a penalty.

Frank Leboeuf managed to stop shaking enough to just get the ball past David James, who was almost on the 6-yard box by the time the Frenchman struck the ball.  The game ended with some unsavoury scenes as Wise tried to get Thomas sent off and Dan Petrescu bravely threw the ball at the Liverpool man, as his side remained well beaten.  5-1 to Liverpool and they strengthened their lead at the top.

Liverpool finished 4^th in the table behind Arsenal in 3^rd on goal difference.  Chelsea were down in 6^th.

5^th October 1997

LIVERPOOL   (2)   4   (Berger 20, 35, 57, Fowler 63)

CHELSEA   (1)   2   (Zola 22, Poyet pen 85)

LIVERPOOL: James; Jones (McAteer), Kvarme, Babb, Bjornebye; McManaman, Ince, Carragher, Berger; Riedle, Fowler

CHELSEA: de Goey; Petrescu (Flo), Clarke, Sinclair, Le Saux; Lambourde, Wise, Poyet, Di Matteo; Zola (Gullit), Hughes

Liverpool had made an indifferent start to the 1997-98 season and were lying 11^th after 8 games.  They had just lost at West Ham having already suffered defeat at home to Leicester in their first home match.  Chelsea were in 6^th and had faced a tough few matches against Arsenal, Manchester United and Newcastle.  They’d only picked up 4pts and now they travelled to a place where they’d only won once since 1935.

Twenty minutes in and Ince played a ball from the back and found Berger, who’d made a good run forward.  Graeme Le Saux miss-judged the bounce and Berger lobbed the ball over de Goey and gave Liverpool the lead.  Gianfranco Zola then grabbed an equaliser within minutes and the game had come alive.  Chelsea then made things harder for themselves as Lambourde was sent-off after just 26 minutes.  It prompted Ruud Gullit to bring himself on for his first appearance for seven months.  Then with ten minutes of the first half remaining, Bjornebye exchanged passes with McManaman down the left and his low cross into the area found Berger unmarked and the Czech international fired it into the net to put Liverpool back in front.

When Chelsea lost here the previous season they were scared rigid by Berger’s pace when breaking from midfield.  He scored two that day and then twelve minutes after the break, Ince clipped the ball over the defence and Berger was away again.  He rounded de Goey and slipped the ball into the empty net to complete his hat-trick, his first in English football.

Barely six minutes later, Berger turned provider as he laid on a goal for Robbie Fowler.  Liverpool were rampant once again and the home crowd took great delight in asking the visiting manager to let them know the score.  Fair play to Gullit who merely pointed to the number 4 on his back.  Gus Poyet then converted a penalty after McAteer had brought down Chelsea’s walking beanpole, Flo.  It was more than they deserved but they were a well beaten team, again.

Liverpool finished 3^rd in the League finishing 2pts ahead of Chelsea, who won the FA Cup that year.

7^th November 2010

LIVERPOOL   (2)   2   (Torres 11, 44)

CHELSEA   (0)   0

LIVERPOOL: Reina; Kelly, Skrtel, Carragher, Konchesky; Gerrard, Lucas, Meireles (Spearing), Maxi; Kuyt (Shelvey), Torres (N’Gog)

CHELSEA: Cech; Ivanovic (Bosingwa), Alex, Terry, Cole; Ramires, Mikel, Zhirkov (Sturridge); Malouda, Anelka, Kalou (Drogba)

For the 4^th match in this series I was torn between this one and the one from March 2002 when a last minute Smicer goal won the game for Liverpool.  Then, they were chasing the title and the win took them top.  But in the end I plumped for this match in 2010.  Mainly because it was a rare highlight in the short era of Roy Hodgson at Anfield, and it was such a breath of fresh air from a side who were a shadow of their former selves.

At the start of play Liverpool were lying down in 16^th, having already lost 4 league games and suffered the ignominy of being dumped out of the League Cup by League Two side Northampton.  Roy Hodgson had been appointed to replace Rafa Benitez by two owners who by now weren’t even talking to each other, let alone anyone else in the club.  The club was a mess as new owners were hovering to take control and Hodgson’s style of play was far removed from the fare usually served up at Anfield.  When Chelsea arrived in November they were defending Champions and also top of the table, having dropped just 5pts from their opening 10 matches.  Managed by Carlo Ancelotti they’d only conceded 3 goals so far and won their opening two matches 6-0.

Liverpool had gained some confidence from a midweek win at home to Napoli in the Europa League but needed Steven Gerrard to come off the bench and score a hat-trick to overturn a 0-1 deficit going into the last 15 minutes.  To make matters worse for Liverpool, their star striker, Fernando Torres, was off form and had been all season.  Looking increasingly as if he’d rather be somewhere else, the Spaniard, who had burst onto English football scene with 33 goals in his first season.  He’d only been on the scoresheet twice so far this season, but tonight he changed all that.

Liverpool flew out of the blocks and in an atmosphere more reminiscent of Benitez days, the crowd seemed to be noisy out of relief than anything else.  Lucas and Gerrard dominated the midfield and Torres was a menace in attack.  Eleven minutes in and ever industrious, Dirk Kuyt, picked up a ball from Skrtel as he found some space midway into the Chelsea half.  He dinked it over John Terry for Torres to run onto and the Liverpool No.9 had the measure of him.  Torres was in on goal and finished with real confidence.  Something which had been sorely lacking in recent months.

It was all Liverpool as they harried and pressed their opponents who seemed genuinely stunned by how well the home side was playing.  Just before half-time, Meireles stole the ball in midfield and surged towards the Chelsea defence.  He chose Torres to his left who then turned in on his right foot and curled a beautiful shot into the far corner.

Liverpool were in seventh heaven and it was such a relief to finally see them play like that again.  Cech had been well beaten on both goals and Liverpool looked as if they had their striker back.  Many will never forgive Torres for the way he engineered a move from Anfield, but for me that first season of his was one of the best from a foreign player in English football.  I had come into the game fearing we’d get stuffed and in the end we played as well as we ever had done against Chelsea.

Chelsea were better in the second half but the game was gone.  They’d been outdone tactically although it’s uncertain whether Hodgson just let the players do their thing or whether he had finally understood how to get this team playing.  In the end, Liverpool would win just twice more before the end of the year and Hodgson was replaced by the new owners with Kenny Dalglish given the task of resurrecting the club.  From 12^th at New Year to a final place of 6^th showed there was something to build on.  Chelsea finished 2^nd to Manchester United.

8^th May 2012

LIVERPOOL   (3)   4   (Essien og 19, Henderson 25, Agger 28, Shelvey 61)

CHELSEA   (0)   1   (Ramires 50)

LIVERPOOL: Reina; Johnson, Skrtel, Carragher, Agger; Downing (Sterling), Henderson, Shelvey, Maxi (Kuyt); Carroll, Suarez

CHELSEA: Turnbull; Ferreira, Ivanovic, Terry, Bertrand; Ramires, Essien, Romeu; Malouda, Sturridge (Lukaku), Torres

The second half of the 2011-12 season had been a frustrating one.  Lying 6^th at Christmas, they’d fallen to 9^th by the beginning of May.  However, they’d also reached two Cup Finals, beating Cardiff in the League Cup and losing to Chelsea in the FA Cup.  This fixture came just three days after that defeat at Wembley.  Chelsea too were having a disappointing season in the League as they were 6^th and needing to win their final two matches to stand an outside chance of getting into the Champions League.  If they couldn’t reach 4^th then their only hope was to beat Bayern Munich in the Final to come.

Both teams came into this game on the back of defeats in their previous League matches and Liverpool were looking for a repeat of their 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge back in November.  After his performance against Chelsea at this venue the season before, Torres, now a Chelsea player, was back at Anfield for the first time.  The difference in the two performances could not have been more stark.

Ivanovic nearly opened the scoring when his header hit the post in the 17^th minute, but this seemed to galvanise the home side.  The partnership of Suarez and Carroll continued to show promise and it was the former who set the crowd alight with his run down the right touchline to hold off Romeu, and then the obligatory nutmeg on John Terry.  As he reached the bye-line by the near post, Suarez cut the ball back and Michael Essien, as if to appreciate the quality of the run, finished off the move by tucking the ball into his own net. 

Six minutes the home crowd finally had a glimpse of the talent of Jordan Henderson.  The player had been subbed in the Cup Final, and was a frustrated figure, but tonight he seemed rejuvenated.  Henderson began the move midway in his own half as Shelvey collected the ball ahead of him.  He laid it to his left where Maxi, hugging the touchline, saw Henderson’s run and played a well-timed pass to Terry’s left.  The Chelsea captain clearly expected the ball to be played to his right as he slipped trying to switch his balance.  This allowed Henderson the opportunity to get in on goal and his finish was full of confidence.  This season you wouldn’t be surprised to see this from ‘Hendo’ but back in 2012 he was less assured. 

Within minutes it got worse for the visitors as Ross Turnbull in the Chelsea goal, was left floundering at a corner and Agger had a simple header to put Liverpool 3-0 up.  Stewart Downing, without a league goal for Liverpool, hit the bar with a volley but soon had his chance to break his duck.  Carroll was elbowed by Ivanovic and the ref awarded a penalty.  Downing took it, and promptly missed, hitting the base of the post.  Chelsea were relieved to hear the halftime whistle as they could’ve been trailing by at least 5.

In the second half, Chelsea looked more determined but soon the reality of the fact they were not going to achieve a top four finish seemed to hit them.  Five minutes into the half and Ramires grabbed a goal back as he scored from a corner when he misjudged his jump and the ball hit his waist and bobbled in past Reina.  But there was no heroic comeback as Liverpool soon restored their 3-goal lead.  Turnbull played a goal-kick out to Bertrand in the left back position, and the young full-back was immediately under pressure.  He hurriedly passed it straight to his keeper who was just as flustered with his subsequent clearance.  The ball straight to Shelvey who was bang in the centre of Chelsea’s half.  He controlled the ball and then met it on the half-volley showing great technique to fire the ball like a missile into the empty net.

A 4-1 win was cold comfort for the disappointment of a Cup Final lost but the team had once again outplayed their opponents and were certainly not in the end of season mood.

HEAD TO HEAD at Anfield

Matches: 74

Liverpool win: 46

Chelsea win: 18

Draws: 10

Liverpool goals: 148

Chelsea goals: 71