The mind-games between Liverpool and Chelsea can’t hide the truth
Okay, both managers have started, mainly Mourinho with his comments saying in short Liverpool have 1 competition to play for while Chelsea have 4 (well 3 more) and this is why Liverpool should be favourites.
Benitez response to this has been Chelsea wants the champs league more than any of the others, and that this will be their priority.
What i think is Mourinho has possibly started to get the excuses in before the match has started. Don’t get me wrong they are all due points, and he is correct, Chelsea were playing 3 games while Liverpool were playing one a week. Its a fact, so if your talking fatigue, its only common sense to suggest players who havent been rested (Frank Lampard, Drogba) arent going to be playing to their full potential.
My view on this is that Chelsea will want this, A LOT. and when you want something alot you have to dig deep inside and grind it out. I dont expect there to be a clear winner in these games, i expect it to be very VERY tight.
I wouldnt expect a great game for the neutral as per Man U vs Milan last night.
As for Liverpool I think they know whats needed to beat Chelsea and they do have the extra edge coming into cup games for some reason. The main player as everyone knows is Gerrard and if he is on song, Liverpool will be as well.
Alonso has spoken about a repeat of 2005, Crouch has insisted Chelsea are favourites. Gerrard has told Mourinho to shut up about THAT goal 2 years ago.
Im not going to speak about it, but it was proven to not have crossed the line, and also many people say Cech would have gone but I’m not so sure because of Baros’s high foot going into the challenge. Here’s a video proving this.
Anyways enough of that it is history.
Im expecting the teams to be pumped. Liverpool could afford to rest Gerrard and some others while Chelseas trip to Newcastle meant they couldnt. Chelsea will very much miss Essien and Ballack, and if Carvalho is out they have a real issue.
When the two teams last met in the league it was a pretty drab affair with Liverpool having the better of play and deserving the win. Chelsea were missing JT back then, and looked very poor at the back. I think it will be the same if Carvalho is missing. He has trained with the team yesterday, so it is a possibility. But if hes ruled out i can only think of one way this tie is going.
Jose has also suggested Liverpool will try and get his players booked (Drogba in particular) so he will miss the second leg. I actually agree with Rafa’s response in saying its exactly what Chelsea did to Alonso 2 years ago. I think Gudjohnson took a dive and the card came out for Alonso. Hey all i can say is, if Drogba did get booked Liverpool will be smiling to the final I think.
This isnt really a preview, im just updating the pre-match hype.
I do think this game will be decided by either a moment of controversy or a moment of brillance. Stevie G and Drogba its your time to shine…..
Bring on the match!!
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Both Liverpool and Chelsea have played the same amount of games in the last month, 7 since March 31st, after the week long international break, and no, Chelsea did not have more players playing for their respective countries. In fact, I recall Lampard not being able to play for England against Andorra, though that injury did not keep him out of any Chelsea matches.
Not to keep going on about the goal that (allegedly) never was, but the referee said himself he would have sent the goalkeeper off, and awarded a penalty had he not given the goal, so I don’t think there is much of an argument there. I’d agree that this should have been done - as you should follow the rules, and a goal is not a goal if it hasn’t crossed the line. Now, it has not been “proved” as you state that it never crossed the line, but there is some evidence to suggest it didn’t.
Had Cech been sent off, and a penalty awarded the game would’ve been totally different, so it’s impossible to speculate on what the outcome would have been…
I dont like to respond to fans views because they precisely that - views which all are entitled to but Richie here is just talking sh*te when he says that Baros was high and that no penalty and red card for Cech would have followed if the Garcia goal was not given. The referee on the night is on record saying that he would have had to send Cech off and award a penalty. So your proof has no basis in the facts - where does this revision of history and all known facts come from? Stupidity or dishonesty? I suspect good ole fashion liar liar pants on fire - the goal stood; it wasnt luck, Chavski could have taken the tie if they stuck the ball in the back of the net (and they had chances to do so, even at the death). And by the way not even Moaner in Chief, The Special Needs One, has invented this bit of fiction - are ghost writing for him because you have a future in it Richie.
I dont opinions but plain old liars dont really go down well regardless of which team one supports!
Cech would have been sent off and a penalty awarded. Check your facts - thats what the ref said after the game. Had his assistant not signalled a goal he would have sent off Cech and awarded Liverpool a penalty.
G Farred
Chillout bro, yeah this is a fans opinion and it will be bias, so what??
I never said or quoted anything the referee said, but baros foot is high, and in european football, referees tend to give that decision. The video shows (to me) that there is proof that the ball did not cross the line, where is the proof it did??
This goal will always be Hotly debated. Liverpool fans will say it didn’t go over, chelsea fans will say it did.
Its amazing i mentioned two lines in the whole article and someone would think i was ranting on about it.
Skysports even mention towards the end of the video (even if it is Andy Gray) about Baros’s high foot going in.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and you saying what you said doesn’t bother me one bit. That incident no longer bothers me, but seems as if some do get a little touchy.:)
All in good Banter though, i love it!
Brian:
Il just point out some facts which might have some relevance to the fatigue im stating chelsea players MAY have:
December:
Liverpool Played 7……..Chelsea Played 8
January:
Liverpool Played 6……..Chelsea Played 8
February:
Liverpool Played 4……..Chelsea Played 5
March:
Liverpool Played 4…….. Chelsea Played 7
It may not look like much but an extra game every few days plus internationals wedged in between will take its toll on players.
You are correct in saying Frank Lampard didnt play, just aswel for England he is pony!
[...] The mind-games between Liverpool and Chelsea can’t hide the truth [...]
You forgot to include the fact that Rafa will use first team players in Reserves matches and also we had four players (Gerrard) in the Europe vs Man U match which is about equivalent as most of Chelsea’s opponents in the Carling and FA Cups, which were a joke. Macclesfield town? Wycombe twice? Nottingham Forrest? Norwich City? Yeah, two matches against Arsenal are easily as tough as all those combined. Jose is full of hot air. That’s five matches where there reserves could have probably had just a good result. Mourinho needs to learn to micromanage instead of looking for excuses.
In fact, if you add the Europe vs. Man U match, the extra International game, and the two Arsenal matches being tougher than the aforementioned five, Gerrard has easily played more than Lampard.
Sorry but disappointed that ANOTHER journalist has failed to adequately report facts concerning ‘that goal’ in 2005.
The article states “…Cech would have gone but I’m not so sure.”
For the record, this is what referee Lubos Michel said: “If my assistant referee had not signalled a goal, I would have given a penalty and sent off goalkeeper Petr Cech.”
FACT
Just backing up what others have said. The ref came out after the match and said Cech would have gone and it would have been a penalty.
You really should research these things fully before writing an article. What makes it worse is that I guess a large percentage of footie fans would already know this.
“Here’s a video proving this”
That is one sorry excuse for a point of view, especially after the so called hugely accurate technology was PROVEN to be holy inaccurate and as far as the opinions of that strange Scott that they try to pass for an analyser, well I think my opinion of what started as an interesting point of view has changed dramatically. You need to check you facts before being so definite especially as the professional referee had a different way of seeing that definite penalty and red card and he said so.
You wrote: “Im not going to speak about it (the goal)”, and then off you go straight into a Jose Moaner checklist of dubious claims. Let it go, FFS!
Having fun Richie?
I don’t see why this should be brought up at all. But I’d be interested in seeing your preview for the second leg.
But if Garcia’s goal was not given woudn’t it been a penalty and Cech being sent off.Liverpool would have probably scored and being a man down against Liverpool at Anfield woundn’t have been a good situation.Who knows Liverpool could have gone on to win 4-0
And Ahmed Bilal it is good to know there are good United fans like you because you give Liverpool unlike the others who would comment badly on Anything Liverpool.You may not like them but at least you are not that Biased against them