Extravagant Blues punished by late Suarez goal
http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Liverpool-c39809 team, in a crunch Premier League game at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
The Blues, who went into the game desperate to secure all three points in order to close the gap at the top of the table on Manchester United, created myriad opportunities during the first period. Although they went ahead through a http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/John-Terry-c18895 header from
a corner kick in the 20th minute, they scuppered a couple of golden opportunities. Had they made the most of them, they could have sealed the affair right inside the first half.
Apart from the disappointment of not being able to close out the game, the West London outfit were also hit by the setback of losing out their skipper, Terry, in the preliminary stages. The English International sustained a serious leg injury as a result
of his collision with Luis Suarez, and looks set to miss out on the action for at least the next couple of months.
However, the Stamford Bridge boss, Di Matteo, will be pleased with the performance of his midfield trio of http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Oscar-c28720 and Juan Mata. Hazard was particularly impressive, troubling the Reds defenders with his sparkling runs and often created openings
just at the edge of the area.
The Italian, though, will be thoroughly disappointed with http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Fernando-c13609 Torres’ effort during the evening. The Spaniard looked lacklustre right from the start, posing little or no problems for the Liverpool defenders upfront. His poor recent form, coupled with
the limited attacking options for the manager in the squad, has increased the Blues dependency on their midfielders. That was one weakness that was exposed yet again on Sunday and which requires the immediate attention of Di Matteo.
The Blues defence, overall, looked firm and resolute, keeping the visitor’s attackers at bay for the majority of the game.
Brendan Rodgers men, on the other hand, played the game in patches. After failing to get a foothold during the first period, the Reds came out a totally different team in the second half. Luis Suarez, in particular, was remarkable as he kept the hosts’ defenders
at their toes, sneaking around the box in search of an opening. And the Reds renewed zest was finally rewarded as the Uruguayan nodded the ball in from a corner kick to restore parity.
From there on, it was all Liverpool then. The 25-year old striker was provided with another golden chance to snatch an unlikely win for his side, when he was sent one-on-one with the goalkeeper by Jose Enrique. However, the Chelsea shot-stopper made an all
important save to keep the Blues in contention.
The West London club were then forced to draw on to their defences, as Liverpool sniffed panic in their ranks in the dying moments, but nevertheless came out unscathed as the match ended in a 1-1 draw.
Brendan Rodgers will take heart from the fact that his side were able to grind out a result out of one of the most difficult visits in the Premier League. The performance of Suarez, Gerrard and http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Daniel-Agger-c9884 are other positives for the Ulsterman to dwell
upon. Besides, the Merseyside outfit have now stretched their unbeaten run in the league to six games.
Surely, Chelsea will see the result as two dropped points, while the Reds will view it as a lucky escape and will look to use this as a platform to build on their beleaguered league campaign.
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