UEFA Champions League Quarter Final 2nd Leg
(Liverpool win 5-3 on Aggregate)
Tuesday 8th April 2008 @ 7.45pm
Anfield
Liverpool suffered an early setback in this crucial game, but the mighty reds did it yet again as Benitez’s Liverpool marched in to their 3rd semi-final in 4 seasons, to face Chelsea once again, and Liverpool are only 180 minutes away from a remarkable 8th final as they attempt to gun down a 6th European crown.
The game was a pulsating and lively affair from the very beginning – just as at the Emirates last Wednesday – the sense that Arsenal would grab the first goal through Diaby as reward for their inventive passing came true.
But everything changed when Steven Gerrard’s corner met Sami Hyypia’s head. The Finn, who earlier this week we celebrated his contract extension, powered one of Anfield’s finest headers past Almunia.
The second half beckoned and the reds knew all too well that an Arsenal goal would leave the reds needing another 2 to go through.
The early stage of the second half was frantic – both sides battling down with plenty of possession. Fernando Torres, the hero of the Kop, scored another amazing goal – similar to his classic in Milan, when he swiveled and smashed the ball home in front of the Kop. Advantage Liverpool.
The clock was ticking and the final 7 minutes were approaching. Liverpool were looking for the 3rd goal that would kill the game off.
The reds paid for their gung-ho attitude when a pacy Arsenal counter attack led to their goal. Theo Walcott made the break and tore through a limited Liverpool rearguard. The reds players were fearful of putting in the required challenge and he passed at the last moment to allow Adebayor to score the equaliser.
No, it was more than an equaliser. It was, with 5 minutes left, the clincher.
But this game wasn’t over just yet.
Ryan Babel, newly on the field, made a blistering run past the tired Arsenal defence. Toure held him back and the referee awarded a penalty. The incident was similar to that at the Emirates last week – on that occasion Arsenal didn’t get the decision but Liverpool did.
Steven Gerrard stepped up and shrugged off the enormous pressure to put Liverpool back in the lead.
As injury time approached both sides were in search of one more goal and it deservedly fell to Ryan Babel. Babel tore past the last remaining Arsenal defender before firing home past Almunia.
Liverpool 4. Arsenal 2. Game over.
Arsenal had their opportunities in both games but just as Liverpool knocked out the tournament favourites in the San Siro last month, this time they would dispatch the side who failed to defeat Liverpool in 4 games this season.
For any Arsenal fans out there our sympathies. But this is Europe. And we are Liverpool. And this is what we do.
Teams:
Liverpool: Reina, Carragher, Skrtel, Hyypia, Aurelio, Gerrard, Alonso, Mascherano, Kuyt, Torres, Crouch. Subs: Itandje, Riise, Voronin, Benayoun, Arbeloa, Babel, Lucas.
Arsenal: Almunia, Toure, Gallas, Senderos, Clichy, Eboue, Flamini, Fabregas, Diaby, Hleb, Adebayor. Subs: Lehmann, Van Persie, Song Billong, Silva, Bendtner, Justin Hoyte, Walcott.
Referee: Peter Frojdfeldt (Sweden)
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Ryan Babel and Dirk Kuyt im verry proud on you, you are the guys that made me a huge fan of Liverpool, also the other players like Torres and Gerrard. And thanks for all the supporters from Liverpool. Your the best. I like to hear that you like Babel and Kuyt.
A Dutch boy 17 years old.
YOU’LL NEVER WALK ALONE
hi. liverpool…youre the best club in this world.im your support all over the world .and youre never walk alone.
Kevin, so sorry you feel that way – are you sure your not an Arsenal fan. Listen, Arsenal do play some nice football but it never has an end result – so stop moaning and just get on with it and learn to lose with some grace. All these anti-Liverpool people get on my pip – it is all down to jealousy.
to kevin. thanks for your comment you absolute d**k h**d. although it is nice to see you spending all of your free time on our web site. me thinks you dont support Q.P.R. at all. youre just looking for a reaction. well im pleased to say you got one. now the whole world and its dog know you are what i said earlier. go and laugh with your (friends) now. i know me and all mine are. TOSSER.
Kevin – the name of the website is ‘Anfield Online – The Independent Liverpool FC Website’.
I agree with Court – f*** off. Go post your comments on a QPR website somewhere where someone might actually give a toss.
Congrats to all Liverpool Fans – lets go on to Moscow and win it, yeah?
YNWA.
After a few scares in the first half, and their second goal, I thought that we were magnificent. When we first started the game we gave the ball away very easy and it had me worried, I was over the moon at Sami’s headed goal, it was brilliant. The sort of goal that gets everyone going, and Fernando’s goal was out of this world. I was so happy, I dont know when I will get my voice back, but I dont care. The penalty was more or less the same as the one at Arsenals ground, the difference was that Babel tried to stay on his feet, so how can Wenger say that one is a penalty and one is not, but I dont care because we are in it and The Arsenal are not. ha ha I love it.
Arsenal fans in my hall got a great bashing. They had plaaned the worst for me but my Reds have never dissapointed me in a champions league match. We’ll never walk alone.
After da game arsenal fans chased me all the way to the Police station. They mistook me for Rafa.
Sorry gooners! thus football. Hope you win on sunday!! against “womam Uninted”
I stayed up all nite for dis match and i am glad it was worth it!The first goal by Diaby was very irritating but when hyppia equalised i was happy.And then after torre’s goal i knew this was soon going to turn in a gr8 victory.I am happy that they had control on the ball and played for their lives!!love u guys!!Mwah mwah!
cmon liverpool. well get that champions leuge weather we get thr with barca or manu we deserve dat win lets show da world wot were made of. we really need dis win and so dat manu dont get dat double da only player were missin on our team now is some one 2 play alongside torres and some one that can score goals like he can
Greater game yet this season..well done Rafa.I think u need to focused on league next season. I’m sick seeing MU win d title. Bring us 1 more good player like torres!!!
Kevin, you obviously believe what you read in the media about us & I very much doubt I’d be able to change your mind, but I’ll give it a go. I can’t blame you for believing the press in all honesty, we’re not your club so you probably don’t see a lot of us to form your own opinion. After all my opinion of your club is that it’s shady, probably being used for money laundering & is run by gangsters, but again that’s only what I’ve heard through the media, so it could well be rubbish too.
However if I was going to go on a QPR website to make a comment about your team I would only do so having done my homework first & actually watching the team a bit, not just believing what I read. What’s been reported in the press about Liverpool this season & in many others before has been very biased against our club, so your opinions are based on fallasy.
A lot of Liverpool fans think that nearly everyone in the media has an agenda against us, but I don’t think it’s anything as sinister as that. Tabloid journalists are generally lazy people with little or no regard for the truth, they tend to take what’s written in one paper & just run with the same story worded differently. The Sun is regarded by the majority of fans as the best tabloid for football so the other tabloids tend to follow their lead & run with stories they’ve printed. I don’t believe all the other tabloids are biased against us, but The Sun (and it’s sister paper The News Of The World) is very biased against us as a club, due to the fact the paper is boycotted by our supporters. I’m not going to go into the reasons why, that’s another five or six paragraphs in itself, but if you are interested you can find out more at http://www.lfcreds.com/reds/index.php/topic,2108.0.html
You say we’re lucky Kevin, let me ask you a question. How often can something happen and still be considered lucky? Over the last few years we have seen off AC & Inter Milan, Juventus, Barcelona, Chelsea twice and now Arsenal, we have set a record for the highest score in the Champions League and have also achieved comfortable victories over other decent opposition along the way. We are a proven team in Europe, the fact that we have a habit of amazing comebacks & last minute heroics has nothing to do with luck, it’s because we don’t give up & we battle to the last. A goal doesn’t become any more or less lucky depending on what time it’s scored, a good goal is a good goal regardless. You may disagree with the penalty but even without that goal we scored three others that were well taken & would have still won us the match. I personally feel that the penalty decision was correct, the challenge was clumsy rather than intentional but he prevented Babel from continuing his run without touching the ball at all and that is a foul in my book. I can understand Arsenal’s disappointment at not getting a penalty in the first leg, I think it was a foul but the player made too much of a meal of it & ended up shooting himself in the foot as the ref didn’t believe him, the fact that a penalty wasn’t given in the first leg doesn’t set a precedent though.
I do agree that Arsenal can play some brilliant football at times but at the end of the day football is a results business & we got the result, I would have been happy with our worst performance of the season if we had somehow still got the victory. In this case though the criticism of our club is uncalled for, all the stats show that we did take the game to Arsenal and created the more chances, we had 17 shots (5 on target) to Arsenal’s 9 (3 on target). We also had 51% of the possession & had 5 corners to Arsenal’s 2. The media can dress it up any way they like but over the 90 minutes we outplayed Arsenal and the scoreline reflected that.
well done the red men ,fantastic last night everyman stood up last night and was counted, not for getting our 12th man the kop was fantastic i was so proud of us last night,after beating the gunners bring chelsea on ,they must be scared sh..less ps .god bless rafa
I am so proud of my team, they showed grit and battled on, again, they were all BRILLIANT. I think that QPR fan doesn’t watch a lot of football by his comments, he’s talking utter rubbish, Arsenal have their fair share of close calls and have had some dodgy decisions, so what goes around comes around
once again REDS I AM VERY PROUD OF YOU, bring on Chelsea, deja vu
Liverpools anti-football wins??
Are we not the leading scorers in this seasons champions league?
Did we not break the 100 goals for the season mark before arsenal? if thats anti-football then so be it.
Those grapes must be very sour this time of year.
this is not luck 4-2 people what is wrong with u liverpool is just too good 4 arsenal this time
kevin, you speak so highly of a team who plays football the beautiful way, and do not pay big money for players. Your club is the richest in the league, and have bought there way out of a relegation fight! playing the game every way but the beatiful way then eh?? naff off son and worry about your own club. maybe one day you’ll experience nights like last night.
Great Football Spirit from the Mighty Reds.
For Kevin .. btw what is QPR stands for? Sounds not familiar for me.
you make your own luck in europe kevin,when we were 3 games in to the group stages on the verge of crashing out the team come together and produced 3 great results to get us through,last night was never goin to be for the faint hearted and i just wish arsene wenger was a little more gracious in defeat,they had 180 minuites to beat us and could’nt and the reds go marching on
in rafa we trust!
Kevin why don’t you save your Championsip comments to yourself. So luck eh?
F**k off mate. The nerve of you to come in here.
The players were fantastic to watch.It was a difficult game but the players managed it.As fans we are behind the team and hope to win the European championship. I have no doubt that they will get through against Chelsea if the morale doest go down we will get even better results than yesterdays at anfield.
For those of us in Africawatch from the screen sitting with arsenal fans was difficult to cerebrate the goals in fear of reprisals from arsenal fans, but could get out of the room to cerebrate and just wished were at anfield to cerebrate with fellow reds fans.
If it is the same God that inspired the players and gave them the win I dont think it can be the same God that can turn his back at our players when we meet chelsea. After all we have beaten them before and liverpools nothing is imposible.
Greetings to all liverpool fans and players,cerebrate in style and above all a big salute to Rafael Benitez( how did you read the game to introduce Babel?) you will always be my man.
Prince K. nyirongo – Malawi
Liverpool played well but Reina could have save Diaby’s shot! All in all we deserved to win. 😀
TRAGEDY FOR FOOTBALL! – Liverpool’s Anti-Football wins.
And the Referee’s decisions decide the match – clear penalty against Hleb in 1st match not given, a free-kick outside the box at best given as a penalty to Liverpool in this.
As a QPR fan I feel very sorry for Arsenal who are the epitome of everything that should be upheld in the game, a team that refuses to be a slave to big-money signings and play the game the beautiful way. Liverpool’s outrageous luck in this tournament goes on and on!