Liverpool 4-0 Blackburn Rovers match review
Liverpool continued their recent impressive form in the Premier League as they crushed Blackburn Rovers 4-0 at Anfield. The Reds, who were without skipper Steven Gerrard, dominated the game from start to finish, and were rarely troubled by Blackburn, who are currently fighting to stay in the Premier League next season.
Fernando Torres, who had given Liverpool an early lead against Chelsea in the midweek Champions League match, produced another goal of the highest quality as Liverpool went ahead in the fifth minute.
Torres latched on to a long ball from stand in Liverpool skipper Jamie Carragher, and produced an incredible goal that reminded us why he is one of the best strikers in the Premier League currently.
Dirk Kuyt headed straight at Paul Robinson, and Torres shot over with his left foot as Liverpool missed two chances to go ahead. However the Reds did go ahead when Torres cleverly headed in Xabi Alonso’s free kick.
Blackburn hardly produced an attacking threat of any note, and were very poor. They made a mistake by giving Daniel Agger all the time in the world to shoot, and the Danish defender fired home from 35 yards to make it 3-0 in the 83rd minute.
There was still time for a fourth however. Jamie Carragher’s ball into the box was headed by substitute Lucas into the path of David Ngog, who headed in one of the simplest goals he would ever get.
With Manchester United beating Sunderland later, status quo remains though. ( Where on earth is Macheda getting all this luck from eh?)
Five star Liverpool demolish Aston Villa
Liverpool 5-0 Aston Villa ( Steven Gerrard*3 (2xpen), Albert Riera, Dirk Kuyt)
Liverpool celebrated manager Rafa Benitez’s new five year contract with a emphatic 5-0 win over Aston Villa that cuts Manchester United’s lead at the top of the table to just one goal.
Dirk Kuyt gave Liverpool the lead in the 8th, lashing home from close range after Xabi Alonso’s header had hit the crossbar. Spanish winger Albert Riera volleyed home the second providing Pepe Reina with his second assist in as many games. Gerrard scored the third from the spot after Riera was fouled by Nigel Reo Coker.
Liverpool’s fourth came from a well taken set piece, with Gerrard cleverly exploiting a hole in the Villa defence to send the ball past a despairing Brad Friedel.
Friedel was sent off by referee Martin Atkinson for fouling Fernando Torres, and his understudy Brad Guzan was unable to stop Gerrard from converting the resulting penalty. It was Gerrard’s first Premier League hat trick at Anfield.
Villa were second best for most of the match, barring the little period between Liverpool’s first and second goals. Their best player on the night was Norwegian striker John Carew, who made Pepe Reina make a couple of good saves.
Fortunately for Villa, Everton lost to Portsmouth on Saturday, and that means their chances of qualifying for Europe are very much alive. O’Neill’s men face Manchester United next.