After the bitter disappointment of leaving the Europa League at the hands of FC Braga, Liverpool reminded us that we still have hope (albeit slim) of qualifying for European competition next year. It was a performance which was at the other extreme of the dour, listless performance on Thursday night. The performance was aided in no small part by the endeavour of our new number 7 who seems to excite more with every passing week.
A Midfielder comes of age:
Jay Spearing has been on the periphery of the side now for almost 3 years. He has been given time in less important games of low intensity and has never let anyone down when called upon. The thing is though, he has rarely shone that brightly either. There have been moments of promise but nothing to suggest that he was close to forcing his way into the starting 11 on a regular basis. This performance had plenty of that however as he began to grow into the game as the first half wore on. He showed intelligence and a little experience in cleverly cutting across John Mensa following the Sunderland man’s mistake which forced the foul which won the penalty, yes it was a fortuitous decision but more on that later. Spearing was surprisingly influential on the game throughout with stern tackling, crisp passing and some driving forward runs, one of which culminated in a curling shot which Sunderland Keeper Mignolet did brilliantly to keep out. One positive of the season so far has been the promise shown by a number of Liverpool’s youngsters. If Spearing can keep his performances to a similar level to the end of the season he will give us yet another reason to be excited.
I Just Can’t Get Enough: Luis Suarez:
What a Player, What a Song! To show how quickly and how fully the Liverpool faithful have taken our new Uruguayan to their hearts they had a brand new song which could be heard booming around the stadium of Light on Sunday. Its a proper Liverpool song, and is a worthy successor to the last hero’s song. Expect to hear it being copied poorly , with no shame and sang at clubs all over England in tribute to their own hero’s. At least we’ll remember who came up with it! As for the man himself he was brilliant on the day and just showed us all further reasons to be extremely happy with our winter transfer business. He also showed he likes to work hard and is happy to put in as much effort when chasing the ball and he does when chasing a goal. The finish was sublime and from a ridiculous angle. On Match of the Day I heard the couch potatos scoffing at the keepers efforts, but I think that ignores the skill shown by Luis in convincing the keeper he would cross and then dispatching a rocket into the back of the net. Altogether now:
To the tune of Just Can't Get Enough by Depeche Mode...
His name is Suarez, he wears the famous Red
I just can't get enough, I just can't get enough
When he scores a volley or when he scores a head
I just cant get enough, I just can't get enough
He scores a goal and the Kop go wild
And I just can't seem to get enough Suarez
Do-do-do-do-do-do-do
Do-do-do-do-do-do-do
Do-do-do-do-do-do-do
Luis Suarez!
The Partnership was finally given a go:
Due to Andy’s Injury when he arrived in L4 and Luis’ ineligibility for the Europa League fans have had to wait a long time to see the two new stars start a game in tandem. From this performance it was easy to see who was more match fit and I have spoken about Suarez’ performance above. The colossus had a few decent touches and caused trouble with his height on a number of occasions but it wasn’t exactly a blistering performance, although having said that he did have 2 good chances to open his account in Red (one of them a n absolute sitter). The Mackem’s, due to their fierce rivalry with their black and white neighbours were never going to give Andy an easy time, and his fitness levels at the moment made him look a little rusty which just made it all the easier for them. There were however enough contrasts on view however to assure all reds fans that this partnership is going to be something special. Andy flicked on to Luis a number of times and his aerial victories allowed us to keep possession on a number of occasions. When Luis had made a great run in the first half Andy dithered on the ball and wasted a half decent opportunity but that should not be dwelt upon. This is the type of flaw that will be corrected only through game time and match fitness.
Karma is a B*TCH!
I think even the most rose tinted red supporter can admit that the foul on Jay spearing took place (just) outside the area. The referee awarded a penalty and we were one nil up. The commentators jumped on top of it as if this were some huge controversy. Granted it was a contentious decision, which through the magic of instant replay we can see to be incorrect but really, don’t we see this kind of thing every week? Judgement calls which swing one way or the other often go in the wrong direction that’s just part and parcel of football. Its not like a goal was scored by the ball bouncing off a Beach Ball and past the goal keeper is it? No, that was last season in the same venue except this time it was scored against the home team!
Steve Bruce was up in arms after the game saying: I knew and [fourth official] Martin Atkinson knew within five seconds that it was outside the box with the technology we have got. Surely it has got to be time for those sort of things to be brought into play with all the technology we have got today."
Steve wasn’t so annoyed on the 6th of March when Sunderland benefited from a questionable decision by a linesman in their 0-0 draw at Arsenal. Steve Bruce laughs the call off, chuckling: "Well done the linesman."
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That’s it for this article, Liverpool have no game this week as there is an international break, I will put up a new Top 5 early next week just to keep things ticking over. Dont forget to use the comments section below to suggest any future articles you’d like to see.
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