Liverpool 2, Cardiff 2 (pen. 3-2): League Cup Champions

By: Ed | February 26th, 2012

Liverpool 2: Skrtel 60′, Kuyt 108′
Cardiff 2: Mason 19′, Turner 118′

Penalties:
(-) S.Gerrard
Miller (-)
(-) Adam
Cowie (+)
(+) Kuyt
Gestede (-)
(+) Downing
Whittingham (+)
(+) Johnson
A.Gerrard (-)

Liverpool win the League Cup for a record eighth time, first fighting back level and then taking a late lead in extra time only to concede at the death. It wasn’t pretty, and the problems that they came into the match with in large part remained, but it’s silverware and confirmation of European competition for next season, and it’s reason to celebrate.

There was only one change for Liverpool from last weekend, with the fit-again Daniel Agger coming back into the eleven and Jamie Carragher relegated to the bench. That this was the only change meant Craig Bellamy once again missed out, with Stewart Downing starting on the left and the Welshman on the bench. Otherwise it was business as usual, with Steven Gerrard, Charlie Adam, and Jordan Henderson through the middle (although Henderson also spent significant time on the right), Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez in attack, and a full-strength defensive unit.

The pre-match in and of itself was a spectacle to behold, with 30,000-plus Liverpool fans drowning out the canned music as they watched the sides take the Wembley pitch. And within two minutes we were all nearly in dreamland, as a Gerrard-led break ended with a Glen Johnson curling effort off the underside of the bar. It was a terrific shot and a flowing forward movement from Liverpool, who would continue their pressure for most of the opening ten minutes.

Cardiff saw their first chance of the match on ten minutes, with a Kenny Miller effort flying over Pepe Reina’s goal after a nice passage of play and a lovely backheel to give Miller the chance first-time. It was mostly Liverpool’s match, though, with most of the action headed toward the Cardiff goal and the Reds dominating in possession.

As we’ve seen so often this season, though, possession without finishing is just possession, and in the 19th minute Joe Mason gave the Welsh side the lead. Kevin McNaughton played a pass into the out-stepping Kenny Miller, and the Scot glided a lovely through ball into the path of Mason, who passed it through Pepe Reina’s legs for a 1-0 lead. It was a shock to the system of Liverpool, who’d been the better side for much of the opening twenty minutes and had played the part of favorites well.

masongoal Liverpool responded shakily, with Cardiff still threatening through Mason and few chances to be found while in the attacking third. Just as the nerves had looked to settled after the first few minutes, the Cardiff goal brought them back, with Kenny Dalglish’s side showing hints of the self-consciousness that’s been so frustrating this season.

Most of their threat came down the left as Cardiff closed up shop, with Stewart Downing and Jose Enrique providing the impetus for most anything positive that Liverpool could muster. Just before the half Liverpool mustered their best chance of the half, as Steven Gerrard floated in a lovely free kick in front of the Cardiff goal, with both Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel unmarked. The Dane was in front and headed on goal from a few yards out, but it was straight at Tom Heaton, who knocked it down and smothered quickly minutes before the end of the half.

With no changes at the half, Liverpool were tasked with making adjustments with the same personnel and shape. An early free kick gleaned only a poorly-struck Jordan Henderson volley, and at the other end Cardiff once again had a Kenny Miller first-time strike after a back-heel from Don Cowie. Luis Suarez nipped in to steal possession and test Heaton shortly after, but neither that nor the set pieces to follow would give Liverpool any joy.

The introduction of Craig Bellamy for Jordan Henderson on 58 minutes showed Liverpool’s intent, and, while the Welshman wasn’t involved, they’d have their equalizer within two minutes. Andy Carroll’s headed effort from a corner was flicked off the post by Luis Suarez, and Martin Skrtel followed up with a right-footed drive through Heaton to send Liverpool supporters into rapture. It was calmly-taken from the Slovakian defender, who got his fourth goal of the season and his second in as many games.

Rudy Gestede had a decent shout for a free kick at the other end almost immediately, but Mark Clattenburg waved it off, and Liverpool resumed their pressure in search of a winner. Skrtel very nearly had another from a corner, as Charlie Adam’s delivery was headed high and the defender hit it well on the volley. Heaton reacted well, though, and got both hands down to save. Cardiff did their part at the other end, first winning a free kick on a Kenny Miller slip near the edge of the area, and next after Don Cowie had acres of space with which to operate on the right, only for his cross to be headed wide of Reina’s goal.

Back and forth it went in the final minutes, with Suarez cutting back for Charlie Adam to strike one straight at Heaton first-time, and Kenny Miller wasting a terrific chance after Andy Carroll’s intervention forced a rushed shot. Nothing doing for either side, and extra time beckoned.

Liverpool started the extra period in much the same manner as they started the first, only this time we know for sure it would have been a goal, as a Luis Suarez effort in the second minute was cleared off the line. The remainder of the first period had a handful of efforts for Liverpool, with an Andy Carroll header floating wide just before he was subbed off for Dirk Kuyt, and near-misses for Bellamy and Johnson.

kuyt That left all the drama for the second, with Kuyt giving Liverpool the lead in the 108th minute with a wonderful off-balance effort, and Ben Turner punching home the second of two dangerous Cardiff corners (after Kuyt had a goal-line clearance on the first) with only minutes to spare. It was an awful gut punch, and one that would send the match to penalties.

Which was pretty much worst case scenario given Liverpool’s awful conversion rate on the season, with only Steven Gerrard proving successful on the year. And yet the captain stepped up first for the Reds and ~~missed~~ had his shot well saved by Tom Heaton, followed by a Kenny Miller miss off the post for Cardiff. They were both outdone by Charlie Adam, who honestly put in the absolute worst penalty I’ve witnessed. It barely stayed in Wembley and likely did serious damage to the video board in the fourth deck. Atrocious.

Don Cowie stepped up and netted, and each of Liverpool’s next three—Dirk Kuyt, Stewart Downing, and Glen Johnson—would follow suit, with Johnson’s proving to be the difference as Rudy Gestede and Anthony Gerrard both missed, with the unsuccessful Gerrard effort setting off wild celebrations for Liverpool, who won their first trophy in six years.

On another day we can look back and be more critical, even though it wouldn’t take much effort if we did it now. Many of Liverpool’s shortcomings on the year were on display today, despite the fact that we’d hoped the occasion could mask them. But we could just as easily trumpet the performances of Martin Skrtel, Glen Johnson, Stewart Downing, and Dirk Kuyt, all of whom were terrific for most of their time on the pitch. And to their credit, Cardiff could have come away winners just as easily, with a fantastic effort on the day and a performance worthy of acclaim.

Today’s not about the any sort of hard analysis one way or the other though, at least for me. It’s about Liverpool Football Club lifting a trophy, and being able to celebrate that success. Congratulations to all involved at the club, and let’s hope that it helps push everyone on to a strong finish the rest of the way.

Some Related Liverpool Posts:

Category: Team News

« Matchday: Liverpool v. Cardiff | Home | Video: Liverpool Capture the League Cup »

MAKSi_Diehard_Red

I almost bitten off my tongue into pieces and threw my Remote outo window after the equalizer by the Welsh side in the dying hours of ET (fortunately my tongue and remote both survived like Reds).At first, i decided against watching the penalties considering the shitty conversion rate, but somehow managed (and survived from a heartache closely) to watch it and it paid off in dividends indeed.Not a convincing display but manged to fetch a trophy after 6-years is not bad either.BTW I'm from Nagpur city, Maharashtra state of India and have been supporting LFC since 2005 'the EPIC' UCL triumph. YNWA.......
Luis Suarez Dentist

Other things I liked.

1. Seeing Lucas up and about.
2. The cheer when Suarez lifted the cup - great support.
3. Carra giving his medal to the team mascot - class.
4. The blonde in the seat in front of me!

Things I didn't like

1. London - an absolute dump full of morons.
2. Not meeting John Henry's wife
3. Charlie Adam's penalty
deadlydirk_killerkuyt

charlie adam: spot kicks are my specialty...

still he had a decent game
Luis Suarez Dentist

Great atmosphere at Wembley (even though London is a putrid dump). Singing YNWA at the begining and end of the match was brilliant.

Skrtel was immense and Kuyt has to start the big games. Was happy to see Kuyt get the trophy that his sterling service to us deserves.

Team selection was poor with CHAD all starting. Henderson was atrocious.

Well done Cardiff who matched us for 120 minutes.

Most of all I can now say that I have seen a good Downing performance live in a Liverpool shirt. Obviously there was no goals or assists, but he looked dangerous and fair play to him did well. Still hope we get rid in the summer though!

Great to see so many fans remembering the 96 with the don't read the s** messages.

Another trophy in the cabinet for England's most succesfull team.

YNWA.
redtrev73

I don't care what higher power you believe in, that must've tested your faith in a BIG way! Liverpool Football Club, ladies and gentlemen.....we never take the easy route to victory. I am flat-out shattered after the most traumatic final (from a football-only perspective) I've ever witnessed. Those bastards nearly killed me!!

A little distance is needed in order to judge the performance but if you can't revel unequivocally in that victory I pity you because you're missing out on the very essence of what it is to support LFC.

Fowler knows we've endured enough misery in recent times, so lets take the joy when it comes. That's another pot in the cupboard and it's some scant reward for the trojan efforts of Carra, Stevie, SkAgger, Pepe and Dirky. A good day to be a Redman.
poorscouserbobby

good to see Lucas' smiling mug.
very_Angry_Brand

It's really UGLY Win! Cardiff...OMG, really can feel they are keep finding/trying any possible way to score, never give up for attacking...really a tough team,but feel good tho have the cup back to Anfield! YNWA !
Kc

the end justifies the means sometimes. Two words we won already mean the world to me. I'd rather win ugly than lose beautifully. Plus how often are finals the most beautiful game played in the competition. If you need reminders of how well Liverpool can play with these same squad of players, there's the whole series of carling cup games that they played. I'm not saying we played great it was far from that but we worked hard to get to the final, and we leave with a major trophy. And that's enough for me :)
Suarez from the car park...

agree. how you play never counts in a final. Winning is everthing. Carpenter, exend that cabinet. More room needed for silverware!!
Redman

Downing finally looks the part. And why must we always do the "blockbuster-shoot-out-sudden death" cup final thingy. But the reality is that the bitters handed us the cup with that gerrard miss. Nice.
PDubz18

He has a little bit of confidence to still make up, but the fact that he is drifting inside is a great sign. Before, he was lacking confidence and movement, now he's just lacking a little bit of confidence. Some of his crosses were incredible though, once Suarroll get used to his new deliveries we're gonna see some sexy Stoke-style goal action.
Suarez from the car park...

I would loved to have seen our Stevie and Hendo switch positions. I think we would have looked much much better with Hendo distributing, Adam helping him and Stevie delivering in on the right.
PDubz18

It's a good idea and well worth a shot. I think Kenny has kept him in the middle and further away from goal because from there he can have full influence over the game. Hendo doesn't do well out wide and his game is simple enough to fit with Chad's. However, I think Hendo is able to run a lot more than Gerrard, and he's young enough that he won't have too many fitness problems.
Bill McGeoch

It was a great game to watch, full of tense drama. A cup was on the line today. Johnson should take penalties from now on. His shot was a cracker - the only unsaveable one among them.
Suarez from the car park...

Agreed, I wouldn't even mind Downing doing it!!
Scotty

Take out the extra-time and it was a performance that was almost identical to the ones against Norwich, Swansea and Blackburn at home and Wigan away. Maybe even a little worse frankly. I was greatly encouraged by the manner in which we made it to the final but the game itself showed us for what we are. Barely improved and nowhere close to top four material.
DJ-Chutfield

Haha, players walking by Henry and Comolli shaking their hands. Pretty standard stuff until Suarez goes past Comolli... what happens next looks like assault. Comolli shakes his hand, hugs his head, ruffles his hair, and tries to hug him again as Suarez tries to slowly walk to safety. Fantastic videos on the club's website.
fastrail

I just got to sleep for 2+ hours before going to class because of the match. But, totally worth it.
Tom Foolery

This is probably as close as you're gonna get to that fabled alcohol sponsor you've been working so hard for all these years for all these years, Ed/Noel.

http://www.101greatgoals.com/g...

Nice chug, Bobandy
ejbauer11

Watching Lucas walk by in uniform was almost more than I could bear to see on a Monday morning.
Red2death

Oh come on, just enjoy the win. And the fact that we're at least in the Europa league now (which isn't a foregone conclusion given our league form).

Sure, against a Championship side we really should have been done and dusted in 90 mins, 2 goals to the good. But whatever. It's silverware. And the winning the League Cup has always boded well for that team the following season.

Winning a cup (any cup) after six years is like a striker finally bundling in a goal off his arse after a long drought. It ain't pretty, but it can do wonders for the future. Bring on the next game.
PDubz18

I know a certain Spanish striker who would love to have an ugly goal off his arse.
Suarez from the car park...

The Europa league is huge because the whole squad is going to get much more game time unlike this season (Maxi, Flanno, Robinson, Kelly, Coates, Carra, possibly Coady, Sterling even Pacheco) especially if we still fight the domestic cups too.

It could also justify not only more transfers but keeping the Kuyts/Maxi's on the books which I would love to see as their top level experience is so valuable and you can't run them into the ground week in week out.

This trophy win is the best thing that could have happened for the squad.

Now if only Kenny would switch Hendo and Gerrard around in their positions our midfield would suddenly look a lot better.
Thomas Hoppe

i think stuart downing earned the right to be referred to as stewart downing today. Skrtel was absolutely boss today as well. I didnt think any of the other midfielders played very well with Henderson having the toughest time.
Suarez from the car park...

switch his position with gerrard and they would both look a lot better.
James Tyrrell

Brilliant compilation of the Liverpool Carling Cup adventure.Plus Noel fucking Gallagher
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...
Ed

For those who missed out on the post-match for whatever reason (thanks to Elizabeth on Twitter):

http://www.dailymotion.com/vid...
purify_the_body

Thx!
Suarez from the car park...

What is encouraging is no matter what the limitations of our over priced signings, however average our overall performance, the chances are there. We do create.

We lack the ruthlessness of the clubs near the top of the table and sometimes the guile that gets you over the line. And yes it's a concern that we rely almost completely on Rafa's signings.

We haven't found OUR way of winning yet with so many new players and they're mostly not talented enough to light up the pitch and our goalscorers aren't finishing.

Leadership is required from the big guns, so the others have something to follow. For example, take Kuyt's goal.
You can say it's lucky, but he scored that because he's been running his ass off for 6 years and has mis hit shots just about every way possible. And the effect on the team is priceless. £5m or £50m, that's where the team needs leadership.

It's been missing all season and we have to hope it is coming, either through the rest of the season or next. We can't stay at the level we're at, and we don't want to go downwards.

I think we won a trophy today because we do know how to win. Maybe not as well as the big Enemy right now, but it is in our DNA. We just have to get it to the surface and help the new guys to it too.
deadlydirk_killerkuyt

agreed.
it was again a typical liverpool preformance, dominating possession and getting hundreds of corners only to end up trying from distance and getting it off target mostly.

but despite all that i still feel very happy and the day is sunny with clear blue skies. a win is a win. some say winning ugly is the mark of champions.

and what a bizzare goal from the dutchman. sweating and bleeding for lfc since day one. keep it up dirk.
poorscouserbobby

word.
Sandro

There's a picture on the Liverpool website of Skrtel wearing some sick glasses holding the cup aloft.. best site of the season!
Waiting for Sterling

It's tough being a Liverpool fan.

IMO Kuyt should have started. Suarez was out of form and Cardiff was not going out without a fight; this game needed a player like Kuyt from the get-go. Kuyt should've started over Jordan. I feel bad for Hendo. He was tasked to play in his worst position in a big game at a young age; to be frank, he was shite.

In the end, after a few heart attacks, I can still say we deserved this trophy. Now lets go get another.
Khaine

Last paragraph is what it's about for me. For al the hiccups and bad finishing, there's no doubt we dominated the game throughout and won deservedly, after having the toughest road to the league cup final in memory.

Enjoy it!
Suarez from the car park...

Spot on. The chances were there to put the game to bed, many times over. I still have faith that there will come a time when those chances start to count.
It might be next season but it will come.

From a coaching point of view when teams park on the edge of the area we have to use the wings and stretch them, dink little passes through to people running through gaps and we're not doing that.
My only concern is we're not coaching on people parking the bus, just trying big time shots.

Carroll wasn't great today and infuriated me when dawdling around rather than running into dangerous positions. He's got a long way to go to be anything close to required standard.

Suarez might have been quiet by his standards yet easily could have had 2 goals, one of which Skyrtel converted. Again, I think he'll finish more of his chances next season, it's just a new team/maturing thing.

So every game's a big one now. Arsenal and Chelski have gone 7pts clear and Stoke are not going to have Europa cup/fatigue holding them back in our FA cup tie. We need to be at our best to get through March and still have something else to fight for.

Lets not end the season here.
Stone Cold Red

I'm happy for the win, as a trophy is a trophy no matter how it is won. To win even when you're not playing well must be considered as a positive thing, so I don't think we should be too hard on ourselves /glass half full! Surely we won't see Gerrard have that off a day again (fingers crossed).

As I live in Cardiff, I must comment that they did themselves proud today, especially Heaton in goal. They definitely upped their game as they played atrociously when I saw them play against Petersborough despite winning that game. Which brings me to a pet peeve, surely (S) Gerrard's penalty was saved not missed! Charlie's, now that was missed! Skrtel for man of the match, he was immense in defense as well as a threat in front of goal.

YNWA
Ed

Good point on the Steven Gerrard penalty being saved and not missed--I'm sure there's plenty of other stuff I messed up in the rush to get it posted while trying to balance objectivity with what felt like an oncoming psychotic break.

Which is to say, I'll edit that once I'm back at a computer.
Spence

I was embarrassed. We we so poor, we actually redefined the word 'Shite'.
This is a wake up call for Kenny and his team. If his players cannot outthink, outpace, out-skill and outplay a struggling Championship outfit then the devil take them.
brooklyn-red

ynwa! we won and the sheer exuberance shown on the players faces in contrast to the "eggs on their faces" looks of the cardiff team tell it all. what a hell of suspenseful, nail-biting, turn my anxiety levels from nil to extreme, down to the last possible pk finish type of game that was.....just happy to have had an excuse at my pub to down a few more pilsners (to of course calm my anxieties in ot). great job by cardiff and looking forward to watching another cup final (hoffenlich) this season.
epicskyline

Agree to an extent. But isn't the mark of a good team being able to grind out victories even when they're not playing their best? I hope that this is something we build on for the rest of the season.
fastrail

When a team plays in a final it is a different thing...yes they are a championship side but I'm sure the Cardiff players give more than 100% being a final...even Arsenal lose to Birmingham last season, so be grateful that we win, eventhough it is not the kind of win that we all hope for.
heitz11

Do you remember where we were just over a year ago? And now were upset we didn't look good enough wining the trophy? Come on, lad that's about the poorest attitude about today you could have. We won a fucking trophy for the first time in 6 years
Spence

No we didn't. We spawned it. And it's not about how 'Good' we looked. It's about the fact that we were held to a 2-2 draw by a team 19 places below us, that we had over 40 chances on goal and took just two of them and that we only got our hands on the trophy because the opposition fucked up their penalty kicks. Yes we won. Get the Babycham out and wave yer little red flag. But we didn't deserve it.
justin

Well, we did get past a couple of Exeter, Stoke and Brighton... oh, not forgetting Chelski and Money Citeh as well, a win is a win and i'll take that! :)
Pepe

fair call that we didn't play that well but just enjoy the win, the club's going in the right direction even if it may not be going as fast as some of us want and we have silverware!
Ed

OKAY GIVE THE CUP BACK GUYS
Spence

Oh stop it, my sides are splitting.
Ed

Sorry, you're right. Very serious stuff. No more fun or jokes, promise.
Scotty

A typical Liverpool performance. Lots of possession but laboured, uninventive and a plethora of poor corners and poor shots from the perimeter of the box.Well-played Cardiff. A cruel way to lose a match that they should have won in the last 5 minutes of regular time.As a LFC fan I am depressed on a day when I shouldn't be. There was little on offer today to suggest that despite our extravagant spending we will make top four. I have to keep telling myself we did very well to get to the final.Downing had a rare good game but others were terrible. The irony of Gerrard’s saved penalty was it was practically his only shot on target in 120 minutes. Anyone else agree that for all the good advanced positions he gets into that Jose Enrique’s final ball is often very poor?Over 50 million on Carroll and Henderson. A bad joke. And Louis Suarez today lacked sharpness and interest. I know Charlie Adam often gets slammed here but he stuck to his task well today. The less said about his penalty the better. Glen Johnson always looked good going forward and was our 2nd most dangerous offensive player.
Sam

Christ, do you think Milan fans moaned in 2007 when they were outplayed by a pretty average Liverpool side and won because of the flukiest of Inzaghi goals?

Enjoy yourself a little. We just won the first trophy in six freaking years...if you can't enjoy that, what's the point of being a fan?
Suarez from the car park...

Enrique was poor at the back aswell as his very poor final ball stuff.

Although very skillful it's like he's trying to be Messi more than he's trying to be Skyrtel which is the wrong balance when you're a full back.
mardia

Let's be honest, this is hardly going to be named as Liverpool's best performance of the season. We've played better--hell, we've played better in this tournament.

At times, we had bad finishing, sterile possession, the woodwork worked against us, shaky to downright bad defending, and some awful penalties--in short, we saw a little bit of everything about Liverpool we have lamented at one time or another this season. And yet. Liverpool won--thanks to some gutsy, brilliant performances by Skrtel, Kuyt, Johnson, and yes, even Stewart Downing. They weren't at their best, but they battled through and got the trophy. If you can't see the beauty in that, you're as cold as stone.

I started following this club during the era of Roy Hodgson, where we were battling relegation and the threat of administration. I was up at ass-o'clock in the morning to follow live-blogs of the court case involving our previous shit owners. A year and a half after that, I watched my first LFC final, and for the first time, saw my club lift a trophy. Enjoy it, everyone. Don't let anything take the shine off today.
Elizabeth

I also started watching in the Hodgson era. My sister's been a fan for eight seasons now but I only came on board at the start of 2010-11 and even though I've experienced the pain of the last year-and-a-half alongside her, she said she was happy that the team won a trophy so "quickly" because this period has definitely been the worst in her stretch as a fan and she was happy for me to experience the this isn't how it will always be. At the very least, I'll always have the fact that I can't be called a bandwagon jumper! :)
Suarez from the car park...

top post.
what on earth made you follow the club in the Hodgson era!!!!!
epicskyline

Sometimes the hard times can bring people together just as well as the good times! For me, watching this club, which two years prior had been in a CL final, battle it out to regain the respect they had lost was really something. I knew that it had to get better, and the other Liverpool supporters were amazing. Many supporters would have given up or turned ugly in the face of that kind of poor play, but if there were any fairweather fans, I didn't run across them. Total class.
Suarez from the car park...

Oh I'm with you 100%. I love the way Liverpool have punched so far above their weight in the last decade, but I was already a supporter.

Elizabeth started following during a period where we were pretty dire to watch bar a couple of games and had a manager who was a total embarrassment to hear.

Second half of last season must have been some tonic.
Red2death

That's exactly what I was thinking.

I started mid-80s, so at least I saw some glory before the long long title drought...

Full respect to you mardia.
GalahadThreepwood

I'm like mardia...started supporting at the tail end of '09-'10, and got really involved just in time for all the Hicks-Gillett trauma (cursed be their names), and the Hodgepocalypse. Never knew what it felt like to win a cup. Now I do, and what a great feeling it is!

I love this team so much, and everyone associated with it. Stevie, Dirk, Pepe, Lucas, Agger, Skrtel...those guys deserve this so much. I love that Kenny has won another trophy with the club, and I love that the longsuffering fans like Trev get to celebrate a Cup triumph again. This is a great day for Liverpool Football Club, and hopefully the start of great things to come. YNWA
Ryan

Sadly, I ended up spending my day at the Daytona 500 Americuh fest, running cables for Mr. Lenny Kravitz. Be jealous of my day job.

Haven't watched the highlights yet, but kudos to EdNoel for the great recaps, like usual. It sucks we were a bit shaky, but just how the 3 points are the only thing that matters, same goes for the trophies.
jpr

A piece of silverware can never be........overrated. Silverware is always special. Always. Who is the kid in the picture between Carra and Stevie? If he's a world class DM or CAM we should give him a look. We needed that killer instinct in those last five minutes of regulation. Too tight and no fluidity and no one cared about playing. Hoof, hope and defend. My God that was especially Ugly. But that cup, that's gorgeous.
epicskyline

I believe the kid you're talking about is Carra's son, who I think is in the Liverpool youth system right now.
purify_the_body

They said it's Carragher's son. I'm sure he's been well scouted already. :)
James Tyrrell

http://www.youtube.com/watch?f... Ecstatic Liverpool kid pokes himself in the eye in penalty aftermath. We'll take the win on penalties, a win is a win is a win!YNWA
dsm9412

My God was that ugly. The set piece defending sinking us again was alarming and that Adam penalty was, well...Ed had as good a description as any.

But that said, I'm glad we got the trophy and the Europe guarantee, which was far from a forgone conclusion given our league performance. Hopefully this can give the Reds a boost to get that fourth spot after all.
ejbauer11

YNWA
alex_snow2

Man of the Match has to be Downing. Great performance. He finally looks like a £20 million player.
justin

It was a really good performance from Downing but it really only reflects the kind of standards he is able to achieve and that really emphasizes on how poor he has been for majority of the season.

Whatever it is though, I'll be celebrating this win and if our new players get even better than they have been in the first half of the season, I'll take that!

We never make it easy for ourselves do we, YNWA peeps.

cheers
Spence

Tut tut Alex. Sarcasm doesn't become you.
RedLiverBirdFC

No, I think he mostly looked like a 12-13 million player. He was ways away from a 20 mil player. As for Henderson, the lesser said the better.

As for Adam's penalty... by Satan's gonads, WTF??
Suarez from the car park...

Skyrtel was MoM for me.