Chelsea 1-1 Liverpool: In game and Post Match Relief?

Good points: Gerrard, Suarez, Jones!, Agger and Johnson
Bad points Wisom, Allen!, Sahin(not in good position), Carra(logic though),

In brief missed Lucas as usual, but we need at least 2 very good goalscorers/wingers in January and hope Lucas returns to full fitness soon.
Enrique did many mistakes but tried his best, can't rate him. My MOTM was Jones, Reina would have conceded 3 goals yesterday

What did Carra do wrong?

He certainly wasn't at fault for the goal unlike one of your positives, Agger. Not sure what mistakes Jose did wrong either.

Good points: Gerrard, Suarez, Jones!, Agger and Johnson
Bad points Wisom, Allen!, Sahin(not in good position), Carra(logic though),

In brief missed Lucas as usual, but we need at least 2 very good goalscorers/wingers in January and hope Lucas returns to full fitness soon.
Enrique did many mistakes but tried his best, can't rate him. My MOTM was Jones, Reina would have conceded 3 goals yesterday

Bit harsh on Enrique arent you? He was one of the better players, much better than Agger at times and Agger did cost us the goal too. Not getting on the guys back but just wondering why Enrique comes under the weaker players bit.

Wheres Johnson on the poll? Looks like ill have to go for somebody else then

What did Carra do wrong?

He certainly wasn't at fault for the goal unlike one of your positives, Agger. Not sure what mistakes Jose did wrong either.

Exactly mate, seems some see him as the easy target. Must be in the squad purely because of the name and all that bollocks. Rodgers, Kenny, Hodgson, Rafa? All wrong. Done no worse than anybody else yesterday.

For me its like the people who pounce on Stevie. True that he shouldn't be exempt from criticism but when you get people saying how he isn't the player he used to be because he isn't up top scoring 25 yard stunners in the 90th minute of games because he is actually playing a defensive midfield role quite well whilst, like everybody else, adapting to a new system it can get tiresome.

Most of the time its sensationalist bollocks some of the time its posters putting across a valid argument and some of the time its people with agendas against a particular player.

What did Carra do wrong?

He certainly wasn't at fault for the goal unlike one of your positives, Agger. Not sure what mistakes Jose did wrong either.

Bit harsh on Enrique arent you? He was one of the better players, much better than Agger at times and Agger did cost us the goal too. Not getting on the guys back but just wondering why Enrique comes under the weaker players bit.

Sorry I did not make me understood well since I'm not great in English.
Enrique tried his best but his passing was not as good as usual. I can't rate him is I cannot say if he was good or not since he gave his best in a struggling side and he was under pressure very often.

As for Carra, he had a very hard game, he was slow, he did no flagrant mistake but it's clear now that he does not have the level and Wisdom too.
Wisdom did not cost us a goal but he has to improve his decision making and overall too. They did not had a bad game but were not at the level needed. Enrique tried his best but again he could not do much since the team itself was struggling to pass.

 F*cking hell lads. We went away to a team which looked like it was going to p!ss the league a few weeks back, a team which has won at Spurs, won at Arsenal, won seven out of their first eight, a team which has been hammering everyone. We were second best in the first half and they had a couple of chances (not guilt edged, HTF did he miss that chances mind, just chances). Second half we gradually got better until we equalised, after that there was only one winner if there was going to be any. We're unbeaten in six in the league, Carra was excellent, so was Stevie, Luis is the best player in the league, Jose Enrique was a monster, Glen Johnson is a great player and it's great to have him back, Sterling is the best young player in the league, Suso has a wand of a left foot and we drew a game.

 All this talk of us being embarrassing in the first half is exactly that, embarrassing. Some fans need to grow up.

Agree, we should take only positives from yesterday's match.

I think we can all be very happy with that point. I was fuming at the hopeless display in the first half, but very encouraged by the turnaround in the second after the changes were made.
There were a few average performers, but i will rather focus on the ones who really stood out... Suarez, Gerrard, Sterling, Jones, Johnson and MOTM Enrique.
Remember we played away, so the onus was on Chelsea to have a go hence the disjointed 1st half display. I think it was astute coaching to change the formation and ultimately control the tempo better during the second half. We had better possession and kept the ball on the wings more instead of centrally (where they had us beat). Its therefore i was surprised not to see the introduction later on of a Downing or Assaidi for the last 10mins to put pressure on their fullbacks

Anyway, i still believe we need to seriously work on our play in the final 3rd, coz too often Suarez or Sterling is left isolated or Enrique / Johnson is in a position to play an early cross with nobody in the area.

I looked at the high pace finish of the Arsenal and Man Utd matches... it was amazing to see 4-5 players in the area as opposed to our team with 1 or 2 at most when the game is there to be won.

We desperately need 2 strikers and thereafter Lucas to come back to settle down central midfield to allow for the natural instincts of Gerrard to get him into scoring positions (when last have u seen a Gerrard shot on target?).

Work in progress for sure, but great character to steal a point!

F*cking hell lads. We went away to a team which looked like it was going to p!ss the league a few weeks back

That's not the issue. If we'd played reasonably well and gone a goal down due to being out played then fair enough but for 70 minutes that was the worst performance for us in a very, very long time. Even BR acknowledged that by taking the blame for it citing his tactics were wrong. It's also a fact that Chelsea's goals and near misses were down to our mistakes rather than clever, creative play by them and when we did finally get our act together, Chelsea looked very vulnerable. 

It was a good point at the end we were very poor in the first half; Chelsea should have been 3 neil up before half time but second half introduction of Suso change the game we were playing fast football tempo was very high. We should have done better with John Terry's goal when Daniel Agger lost him but It was a great flick by Carra & great header by the wee man he can't stop scoring so long may it continue...

Just watching the repeat, what is noticeable is when Suarez scores first thing the rest of the team do is leg it back to the half way line for the restart no celebrating they just want to go for the win. Great mentality even if they left Suarez to celebrate on his own.

Just watching the repeat, what is noticeable is when Suarez scores first thing the rest of the team do is leg it back to the half way line for the restart no celebrating they just want to go for the win. Great mentality even if they left Suarez to celebrate on his own.

or maybe there is somekind of split in the dressing room. i really hope that isnt the case but i remember thinking that when suarez was celebrating the goal alone.

Completely agree on Enrique and was about to say the same thing myself.

Enrique, for all his mistakes, at least seems willing to run himself ragged in an effort to get into the game. Too many of our players don't insist on being involved. He does overdribble and his distribution isn't the best, but I didn't see anyone else out there forcing the issue and leading the attack. It's the same reason I rate Shelvey over Henderson. Henderson won't give the ball away, but he won't risk doing anything positive either. With Shelvey you get both good and bad, but at least he strives to make an impact.

I didn't like that Enrique seemed to be the one running our attack, we really should have someone else running the show, but I give him all the credit for the effort and drive that he showed.

I was just wondering whether Enrique's dipped in form of late gotto do with him taking on the burden of others and as a result a bit burnt out and a short rest from the 1st team saw him rejuvenated. I've gotto agree 100% with you on Henderson. Some may say Enrique's crosses into the box is poor but he's no natural winger, someone should run towards the near post to meet his crosses but none that I can see.   

or maybe there is somekind of split in the dressing room. i really hope that isnt the case but i remember thinking that when suarez was celebrating the goal alone.

Really don't believe there's a split in the dressing room , however the usual culprits in the media and opposing fans will just use this as another thing to beat us with.
There are already quite a number of comments about this.
Hopefully the players will show just how wrong they all are next time Luis scores.

or maybe there is somekind of split in the dressing room. i really hope that isnt the case but i remember thinking that when suarez was celebrating the goal alone.

Looking at the replay a few go to celebrate with Carragher and then he rushes them back to the halfway line.
Pretty much a split second thing and obviously Suarez doesn't noticed as he's already pealed off.

I'm not reading anything in to the lads not celebrating with Luis. They wanted to get the game going again, that is all.

It was great to see that goal go  in anyhow, have not had time to read the other posts, but did anyone notice the cheeky push by Suarez before the cross came over. I only noticed it as it was highlighted on Motd later on.

It was great to see that goal go  in anyhow, have not had time to read the other posts, but did anyone notice the cheeky push by Suarez before the cross came over. I only noticed it as it was highlighted on Motd later on.

Yep noticed it - it helped stop Ramires from trying to remove Suarez's shirt !

Certainly think that Brad Jones deserves an extended run in the side. Pepe should have to fight for his place back into the team.

There is only one stat that really matters in football - the final score. But here at Liverpoolfc.com we know supporters love to delve through the facts and figures after each game, so we're allowing you to do just that with the help of Opta.

And to make things a little clearer we have broken down the statistics from the Reds' 1-1 draw against Chelsea into sections which outline how both sides fared in terms of possession, how they rated defensively and going forward.

Distribution

One statistic that is sure to please Brendan Rodgers is the fact his side were significantly more accurate in their distribution than the European champions on Sunday. Overall, the Reds recorded an 87.2 per cent pass completion rate compared to the Blues' 79.8.

In the opposition's half, the stats displayed a similar gap with Liverpool players finding a red shirt with 78.5 per cent of their passes and Chelsea recording a completion rate of 70.5 per cent.

Andre Wisdom was Liverpool's most accurate passer. The 19-year-old had a pass accuracy of 97.7 per cent, meaning just one of his 44 attempted balls went astray.

On a day when he surprised everyone by popping up with his first assist since 2009, Jamie Carragher was also the Reds' second most accurate in possession, with 95.5 per cent of his 44 passes finding a red shirt.

Jose Enrique turned in an impressive performance for the visitors and he touched the ball more times than any other player on the park (94). In turn, he also played the most passes (62).

No Liverpool defender played more than seven per cent of their passes long while at the other end of the park, Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic (18.5 per cent) and Gary Cahill (14.3 per cent) opted for the more direct route down the field.

Defence

Enrique launched into more tackles than any other player on the park (seven) and the Spaniard was in exemplary form as he emerged from each challenge in possession.

Alongside him, Jamie Carragher, Glen Johnson and Daniel Agger all won 100 per cent of their tackles.

Agger made six clearances throughout the 90 minutes, a feat that was only bettered by Ivanovic, who scooped the ball to safety nine times.

Attacking

In previous games, prior to his injury, Johnson was able to offer an attacking threat for the Reds and register several shots on goal. This time, however, the full-back was kept quiet and failed to register a shot on goal. Instead, Agger led the way at the back with two goal attempts.

Nuri Sahin sent two shots at goal, the first of which flew through the legs of Ramires and drifted wide of Petr Cech's left post.

Luis Suarez had just two attempts on goal on Sunday. One of those came in the 73rd minute when Carragher flicked a Suso corner into his path and he peeled away from Ramires to nod home Liverpool's equaliser.

Fernando Torres was eager to net his first goal for Chelsea against Liverpool since departing Anfield for the capital in January 2011 and this was reflected in the stats as the Spaniard fired more shots on goal than any other player on the field (four).

till made up wih the second half turnaround and those stats suggest we were not as bad in the first half as I thought we were. Just never got enough shots on target compared to the chavs first half. MOTD Kept repeating that chelsea should have been 3 up due to the oportunities they had, but little was said about the oportunities we had. Just a mention that we could have nicked it at the end when we were in the ascendency.  Wierd how they bull up chelsea and belittle our effort. Perhaps they should have the stats in front of them in future before they comment. Wankers. Don't think chelsea will fall apart completely with the players they have, but they are dropping point on a regular basis, and we are improving at a similar rate. With the next five matches each of us has, I can see us making inroads into their lead over us. Like wise with the Spuds, Bitters and Barcodes. We are the most likely, from that lot, to take inspiration and confidence from last week end, into the next match.

Would be great to see us winning games but i think a draw against Chelsea was a result ! It's been tough for Brendan and the lads but i see us progressing after the new year .we have been good to watch, we have been creating openings ,just the scoring lets us down ,but i think Luis is coping well with all the pressure on him all season and the media campaign against him .have faith Brendan i think you'll get there

There is only one stat that really matters in football - the final score. But here at Liverpoolfc.com we know supporters love to delve through the facts and figures after each game, so we're allowing you to do just that with the help of Opta.

And to make things a little clearer we have broken down the statistics from the Reds' 1-1 draw against Chelsea into sections which outline how both sides fared in terms of possession, how they rated defensively and going forward.

Distribution

One statistic that is sure to please Brendan Rodgers is the fact his side were significantly more accurate in their distribution than the European champions on Sunday. Overall, the Reds recorded an 87.2 per cent pass completion rate compared to the Blues' 79.8.

In the opposition's half, the stats displayed a similar gap with Liverpool players finding a red shirt with 78.5 per cent of their passes and Chelsea recording a completion rate of 70.5 per cent.

Andre Wisdom was Liverpool's most accurate passer. The 19-year-old had a pass accuracy of 97.7 per cent, meaning just one of his 44 attempted balls went astray.

On a day when he surprised everyone by popping up with his first assist since 2009, Jamie Carragher was also the Reds' second most accurate in possession, with 95.5 per cent of his 44 passes finding a red shirt.

Jose Enrique turned in an impressive performance for the visitors and he touched the ball more times than any other player on the park (94). In turn, he also played the most passes (62).

No Liverpool defender played more than seven per cent of their passes long while at the other end of the park, Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic (18.5 per cent) and Gary Cahill (14.3 per cent) opted for the more direct route down the field.

Defence

Enrique launched into more tackles than any other player on the park (seven) and the Spaniard was in exemplary form as he emerged from each challenge in possession.

Alongside him, Jamie Carragher, Glen Johnson and Daniel Agger all won 100 per cent of their tackles.

Agger made six clearances throughout the 90 minutes, a feat that was only bettered by Ivanovic, who scooped the ball to safety nine times.

Attacking

In previous games, prior to his injury, Johnson was able to offer an attacking threat for the Reds and register several shots on goal. This time, however, the full-back was kept quiet and failed to register a shot on goal. Instead, Agger led the way at the back with two goal attempts.

Nuri Sahin sent two shots at goal, the first of which flew through the legs of Ramires and drifted wide of Petr Cech's left post.

Luis Suarez had just two attempts on goal on Sunday. One of those came in the 73rd minute when Carragher flicked a Suso corner into his path and he peeled away from Ramires to nod home Liverpool's equaliser.

Fernando Torres was eager to net his first goal for Chelsea against Liverpool since departing Anfield for the capital in January 2011 and this was reflected in the stats as the Spaniard fired more shots on goal than any other player on the field (four).

i remember a number of his forward passes reached chelsea players