my mate was on this just thought I would show you lot.
"LIVERPOOL 2-0 CHELSEA
With the current injury crisis at the club, an away trip to our recently evolved nemesis wasn’t the ideal game to try and salvage some ground on Manchester United. Even the most optimistic of Blues supporters will have been gazing upon this fixture with dread.
As the teams were announced that dread turned into scant resignation; Carvalho was out. So here were the champions of England, at ‘fortress’ Anfield, playing Wimbledon’s modern day equivalent, without a back line. We expected the big man-strong man combo and we expected an aerial bombardment, and that’s what we got.
We needed to shut Liverpool out for as long as possible, in the hope that our confidence would grow as their frustration did, however it was not to be. In the third minute, our shaky defence came undone as Dirk Kuyt took down Finnan's long ball and cut past the lethargic Ferreira, to slot a clean finish past a ring rusty Petr Cech.
Anfield sang, Chelsea knew it was over there and then.
Moments later Cech was called into action again and responded with a good save from Riise's shot after yet another long ball was lobbed forward from the Liverpool ranks.
The second came, almost inevitably, in the seventeenth minute when Jermaine Pennant cracked a 25 yard shot that flew over Cech’s head and went in off the underside of the woodwork. The goal was a result of a poor headed clearance and a failure of the defence to close Pennant down. Liverpool were getting through us too easily and at this point, it seemed although we could be on the wrong side of quite a heavy defeat.
Things went from bad to worse in the twentieth minute when Arjen Robben had to go off injured after hurting his ankle when landing awkwardly, and was replaced by Shaun Wright-Phillips. With many looking to Robben as the main attacking threat, Chelsea’s hopes of salvaging anything from the game were fading fast.
Half time came and went without much incident, other than Alonso needing stitches in a face wound, but even while he was off the pitch and Liverpool were down to ten men, we looked lethargic and insipid and were unable to trouble Reina.
Chelsea did start to pass around a bit better but there was no thrust, no attacking intent and no cohesion. The one player who did himself justice in the effort stakes was Wright-Phillips, who looked sharper and more confident than he has in many games recently.
Ballack looked ordinary and really needs to start asserting himself on the pitch more, Drogba was quiet, although in fairness to him he had to survive on scraps for most of the match, whereas one has to wonder how Kalou is getting in this team, his Wigan show was bad, this not much better.
Cech was called upon far more often than Reina and had to deal with a Crouch header from the penalty spot, and was later lucky not to be undone when Riise unleashed a thunderous 40 yard shot beyond the keepers reach, but that cannoned off the bar and out for Essien to clear.
Paulo Ferreira was then booked for tripping Kuyt, which is his fifth booking of the season so he'll now miss the Forest cup game. If you’re a betting man, lay a tenner on Baltemar Brito getting games this season, with our defenders dropping like flies, Steve Clarke may even have to fill in at right back too.
Chelsea finally introduced Shevchenko in the 72nd minute when he came on and replaced the ever improving Mikel. Lampard and Ballack dropped deeper to sit behind the four attacking players however the change in personnel and tactics was to reap no real benefits.
Liverpool brought Bellamy on for Crouch late into the game in an attempt to stretch our weary non-defence, and in the 87th minute we had a lucky escape when the dangerous Kuyt volleyed over from 10 yards.
The ref ended the game after two minutes of added time, however for many the game was already over in the seventeenth. It’s the first time Chelsea have lost to Liverpool in the Premiership under Mourinho, and they needed us minus a defence to do it.
A full strength Chelsea would have asked questions of this Liverpool side however it was not to be. All we can do now is to pray for some Eileen Drewery style health miracles for our squad, or wish for a Micah Richards sized miracle from Roman Abramovich.
I know which one I’m hoping for.
Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech; Gérémi, Ferreira, Essien, A Cole; Ballack, Mikel (Shevchenko 72), Lampard (c); Kalou, Drogba, Robben (Wright-Phillips 20).
Liverpool(4-4-2): Reina; Finnan, Carragher, Agger, Aurelio; Pennant, Alonso, Gerrard (c), Riise; Crouch (Bellamy 84), Kuyt (Gonzalez 90).
Referee Rob Styles.
Crowd 44,245.
Contribution by Toby Brown - 22 January 2007
"http://www.cfcnet.co.uk/content/results_detail.asp?ID=6368and I thought only everton were bitter!
