Liverweb Match Report
Liverpool 3 Everton 1
Liverpool : Reina, Finnan, Carragher, Hyypia, Riise, Gerrard(C), Alonso,
Sissoko, Kewell, Crouch, Garcia
Subs : Warnock for Kewell (86), Morientes for Crouch (90)
Subs Unused : Dudek, Fowler, Kromkamp
Att : 44,923
Ref : Phil Dowd
The Reds won the latest derby despite being reduced to ten men after just
seventeen minutes. Reds captain, Steven Gerrard walked for two yellow cards
inside a minute of each other. He couldn't really argue with either card.
However it was the Reds' superior skill and ability on the day that sent
them home with the three points.
The two sides came out at Anfield in good recent form. Steven Gerrard and
James Beattie wore 08 shirts as part of the build up to the capital of
culture. The Reds started the game attacking the Anny road end.
Everton were the first team to settle and seemed to have the upper hand in
the midfield. Tim Cahill had two glorious chances in the opening ten
minutes to score as the Reds seemed half asleep. Firstly on seven minutes
he hit a tame effort straight to Reina. Then two minutes later he blasted
into the side netting.
James Beattie had the ball in the net for Everton on eleven minutes but had
long since been flagged offside. On twelve minutes Cahill was booked for a
poor challenge from behind on Gerrard. That set the tone for Phil Dowd and
his yellow card that spent more time out of his pocket than in.
On seventeen minutes Steven Gerrard was sent off. His first booking came as
he kicked the ball away for no reason. Then as Everton tried to make
something in the very next move he hacked down Kilbane and the ref had no
choice but to send him off. Gerrard was annoyed but more with himself after
the first booking was so avoidable. As he trudged off the pitch the away
fans celebrated as if they had scored.
For a couple of minutes the Reds seemed to be wound up a little too much
and the game could easily have fallen away from them. Alonso was booked not
longer later but gradually the Reds settled down and from that point o were
the better side. Alonso and Sissoko grabbed the game by the scruff of the
neck with Garcia floating between midfield and up front.
Garcia bent a shot just over the bar on twenty four minutes and by now the
momentum that Everton had started the game with had gone.. It's not that
the Reds were peppering the goal with shots mind but they had control of
the game. Just past the half hour mark Stubbs brought down his man and
received a stern word from the referee. As the Reds lined up the free kick
Kewell tried to block the view of the keeper. Stubbs waded in to push
Kewell out of the way but Kewell stood his ground. The ref decided to book
both players for this.
As the clock ticked on towards half time the two sides were still equal and
the thoughts were drifting to half time and how things would change in the
second half. The Reds got a corner and this seemed to be the Reds' best
chance of scoring. And so it proved as well as Alonso whipped in a corner
from the centenary side and Phil Neville came in with a great header past
his own keeper. What a way to end the half.
Neither side made changes at half time and the Reds were looking to build
on their lead. It only took two minutes for that to happen. Reina hit a
long ball forward and Crouch nodded it on. Garcia gambled on the flick and
nicked the ball inside Naysmith before lobbing the advancing Wright in the
Everton goal. What a way to start the second half and the away fans sat
there stunned.
Everton were rattled now and started picking up fouls and bookings like
confetti. They grabbed a lifeline in the match though just past the hour
mark when Tim Cahill jumped superbly in the box to head in to the net at
the far post. The one question mark was where was the man on the post?
On sixty six minutes Weir flew in on Sissoko and picked up a booking. This
time he stayed down wishing he hadn't made the foul and protested against a
card. Funny how he wasn't running at the ref for a card this time given the
foul was just as poor as Gerrard's and he raced fully fifty yards for that
one to ensure a card was shown. Xabi Alonso hit the top of the crossbar
with the free kick.
Everton made a double switch on sixty seven as Ferguson and van der Meyde
replaced McFadden and Kilbane. The one question everyone asked was will
Ferguson last till 90 without a red card. Nobody thought it would be the
other sub being sent off. That is what happened though just six minutes
later as the Dutch midfielder led wit the elbow on Alonso. It looked worse
I think at the time but the ref pulled him to one side and sent him off.
Ferguson did manage to get a yellow card at least on seventy five minutes
when he went through very late on Alonso.
The Reds had the ball in the net again on seventy six minutes from Sami
Hyypia but the linesman had long since flagged for offside against crouch
as the ball came in. It didn't matter though as Kewell hit a superb
clincher on eighty three minutes. Picking the ball up twenty five yards out
he shaped to pass to Sissoko who dragged his man away with his movement.
Kewell then hit a great shot that flew past Wright in the Everton goal and
the game was sealed.
There were late cameo appearances for Warnock, who replaced Kewell and
Morientes who replaced Crouch. The final whistle though went at the end of
the 203rd Merseyside derby and it signalled a deserved win for the Reds.
They may have only had ten men for much of the game but they played
superbly through out. As the players shook hands in the centre circle it
was amusing to see Alan Stubbs brush past Carra without acknowledgment.
Stubbs of course usually being the one with most to say about us being
petty and moaning.
MotM : Xabi Alonso - turned the game around for us after the sending off.
Playing alongside Sissoko who also played superbly well this partnership is
ultimately what won the Reds the game.
Match Stats
Liverpool - Everton
56% Possession 44%
8 Shots On Target 4
7 Shots Off Target 3
2 Blocked Shots 2
5 Corners 3
12 Fouls 28
4 Offsides 4
2 Yellow Cards 7
1 Red Cards 1
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