Torres touch gives Liverpool victory
August 17th 2008 13:53
Torres rifles Liverpool to victory
The new Premier league season kicked off yesterday with Sunderland and Liverpool completing day one's set of eagerly anticipated fixtures.
The return to fitness of skipper Gerrard and a Torres-Keane partnership which had failed to bear fruit yet were the weapons by which Benitez hopes would dispel of Sunderland who were rejuvenated for the start of the new season with the signings of Steed Malbranque and former Liverpool hitman El-Hadji Diouf in particular.
The first half lacked any real calm and control. The Liverpool defence constantly looked to play to Gerrard but when he was marked out of play, instead of playing to the feet of youngster Plessis Carragher, Hyypia and Dossena constantly hit long direct balls towards Torres and Keane who were unsuccessful in their duels with the Sunderland defence, specifically Nosworthy who was superb in keeping Torres off the ball.
Sunderland gathered momentum from the possession they gained and pushed forward through Malbranque and Kieran Richardson feeding Diouf down the wings. The former Red tried to dribble around Carragher whilst tugging his shirt at the same time which the ref spotted and immediately blew his whistle for. The Senegalese International reacted furiously to the call but had no excuses.
Young Damien Plessis got more on the ball later in the half and Gerrard was able to force Liverpool deeper into the Sunderland half. Liverpool put pressure on Sunderland and earned free kicks around the box and a series of corners but nothing came of any. Torres and Keane were hard to find as both sides went into the break.
Alonso came out at half time to replace Plessis(back injury) and immediately began dictating the game for Liverpool. A more structured and purposeful Liverpool took to the pitch and began attacking Sunderland.
Andrea Dossena was constantly making overlapping runs down the left as Alonso dictated the play to either flank finding Benayoun and Kuyt. The reds did get hit on the brake though when Teemu Tainio hit a low pass from the left lank into the box behind the onrushing Liverpool defence which found itself to Diouf only for him to send a weak shot straight into Reina.
Liverpool went forward again but were still struggling to find Torres and Keane, either one barely getting a touch on the ball. As a result Kuyt tried his chance from the edge of the box with a left footed drive that Sunderland keeper Gordon should have picked easily but spilled to give Liverpool half a chance. Torres pounced on it unleashing a shot that was heading in only for his teammate Keane to accidentally block it out. The pair didn't let the incident divide them as they encouraged each on.
Then a moment of magic for both sets of fans as sixty yards from goal Alonso tried a trademark shot which was just inches wide from leaving Gordon red faced. The Sunderland keeper did get caught in his own net as he anxiously watched the ball fly past safely.
Keane was substituted with Moroccan international Nabil El Zhar who immediately played a ball in the box to Torres only for the Spanish superstar to run out of space and surrender a goal kick.
Liverpool were still firmly in control though and Alonso found Torres outside the box who for the first time in the game went on a run before unleashing a screamer past Gordon in the Sunderland keeper's bottom right corner. It was a goal Liverpool fan's will be more than familiar with as he'd done the same thing in deadly fashion twice last year against Middlesborough.
There really was no way back for Sunderland and though they had some possession in the final moments of the game Liverpool finished comfortably.
Liverpool dealt with the pressure of the game well to post three points on the table and it's something they must do consistently this year, especially if things are not best off the field if they are to be title contenders.
Benitez has built a side which certainly has the depth to contend as he is still waiting on star players to return to his squad from Olympics. Javier Mascherano and Lucas provide great stability to the Liverpool midfield allowing Gerrard to foray further more and Ryan Babel is very much one of Europe's most promising prospects and wing wizard for Liverpool.
The challenge for Benitez now is to fix the left sided problem his team have and help Keane and Torres get the best out of each other which would give Liverpool a potentially devastating attacking partnership that could have secured them the three points against Sunderland a little earlier.
Sunderland: Gordon, Bardsley, Collins, Nosworthy (c), Chimbonda, Richardson, Reid, Tainio, Malbranque, Diouf, Murphy. Subs - Chopra, Edwards, Higginbotham, Leadbitter, Stokes, Ward, Whitehead
Liverpool: Reina, Dossena, Carragher, Hyypia, Arbeloa, Benayoun, Gerrard (c), Plessis, Kuyt, Keane, Torres. Subs - Agger, Alonso, Aurelio, Cavalieri, El Zhar, Ngog, Skrtel
Referee: Alan Wiley
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