Hope for the New Year

On December 21, Charlie Adam missed a penalty against Wigan Athletic on the fifty-first minute.  Wigan had nineteen shots with six of them on target versus Liverpool’s twenty-one shots with nine of them being on goal.  Liverpool had 55% possession with twice as many corners as Wigan Athletic at 14, showing their attacking prowess.  This was Suarez’s last game before the nine – potentially ten – match ban that FA handed down within 24 hours before the game.

On Boxing Day, Charlie Adam scored an own goal against Blackburn Rovers on the forty-fifth minute.  Liverpool commanded possession at 65% with nine corner kicks against Blackburn’s two, from one of which the own goal was scored.  When Blackburn had six shots with only one of them being on target, Liverpool had twenty-seven shots with seven being on target.

Liverpool’s perseverance paid off as Maxi Rodriguez headed the equalizer within ten minutes of the own goal.  This was Maxi’s 11^th goal in his last 12 starts this year.  He scored two hat-tricks in April and May to keep Liverpool’s hope of Europe alive last season before it was snatched away by the Hotspurs, and that, too, was at Anfield.  His biggest goal this season came against Chelsea FC in London after being brilliantly picked out by Craig Bellamy.  Maxi Rodriguez may have delivered whenever he was asked to but he does not seem to be in Kenny’s short-term or long-term on-field plans.  He has been acknowledged publicly by the King to be an intelligent footballer, but the Argentinean’s role seems to be bit-part at Anfield.  And that too is when no one has been scoring for the Reds – at least regularly.

Liverpool went into tonight’s game having scored less number of goals than the two teams at the bottom of the league.

The best goal keeping this season has been witnessed against the £35 million English target man.  A great save that sticks out is from Joe Hart in the dying minutes from a header by Andy Carroll, and not to mention the ones by the “stand in goalkeeper” Mark Bunn.  Tonight, Carroll may have been unlucky again to hit the crossbar but his touch and eventual miss from Gerrard’s first “Hollywood pass” of the game just simply cannot be tolerated by any means!  Steven Gerrard marked the last game of the year with a comeback only fit for a KOP giant like him.  Kenny Dalglish seemed to have tried his best not to hype up Gerrard’s return, especially because he suffered from a freak infection on his previous return.  This is a man whose passes had been criticized in the past to be too flamboyant and ambitious and labeled as Hollywood Passes, despite just winning the European Cup almost singlehandedly.  To prove the critics wrong Chelsea hit man, Fernando Torres, had publicly stated and established with his time at Anfield that with Steven Gerrard behind any quality striker goals has to come in abundance.  Quite unlike the big man from Newcastle (against Newcastle) we have witnessed tonight.

Heads dropped when Liverpool conceded from another own goal by Agger who has been excellent this season.  Craig Bellamy equalized shooting home through a crowded Newcastle defense.  Liverpool looked less interested in the second half until Steven Gerrard came in at the 60^th minute to replace a Charlie Adam whose service had been less than ordinary on the night.  The KOP burst out upon the Captain’s arrival and Liverpool looked a completely different side.  After the brilliant ball to misfiring Andy Carroll, it was as if his presence provided Bellamy a freak goal… his second of the night, five in the last four matches he has played against Newcastle and 151^st in the English league.  He was substituted after an injury from an elbow inside the box by the highly rated Coloccini.  Steven Gerrard simply stole the show with sublime passes with perfect weight and sheer elegance along with deft touches before slotting in the third for Liverpool with his left from close range.  This was Gerrard’s fifth against Newcastle in his last five outings marking a great comeback filled with hope for the rest of the season and the new year for any Liverpool supporter.  Not to take anything away from the colossal captain, but Craig Bellamy’s contribution to the team may have been overshadowed by the return just like his transfer was by Suarez’s.

Football is not a game of statistics but the Reds are 11 points behind the league leaders.  The Merseysiders have drawn 6 games at Anfield: losing 12 points at home.

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