Source: Team_Talk
Carra backs Reina over late clanger
iverpool defender Jamie Carragher refused to blame Jose Reina for the late goal which handed Arsenal a point at Anfield this afternoon.[LNB] Roy Hodgson looked set to taste victory in his first Premier League game in charge of the Reds thanks to David Ngog's strike, but Reina bundled the ball into his own net in the dying moments after the ball rebounded off the post from Marouane Chamakh's effort.[LNB]"I'd have to have a look at it again, but a lot of time you get a foul for that," Carragher told Sky Sports 1. "I know they say they're protected. I'd have to see it again, but he's the best goalkeeper in the world and you saw that last year."[LNB]Liverpool had played the entire second half with 10 men after Joe Cole was sent off on his league debut for bringing down Laurent Koscielny. Although Koscielny would also collect a late red for two bookable offences, that came after the goal.[LNB]Having done so well to hold off Arsenal while a man down, Carragher was disappointed to allow the late equaliser.[LNB]It's the same for any team when you concede a late goal, even if it's 11 versus 11," he said.[LNB]"Arsenal played very well in the first half, but in the second half you know what you've got to do. Hopefully you're going to get a goal and we've done that. We've defended very well and it's unfortunate to give a goal away at the end. It's doesn't matter if you've got 10 or 11, and we're very disappointed it's not even a goal where they've used their man advantage."[LNB]Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger refused to blame under-pressure goalkeeper Manuel Almunia for Liverpool's goal, even though the Spaniard was beaten at his near post.[LNB]"It's difficult to say (it was his fault)," Wenger said. "He's been beaten at the short corner but you give credit to Ngog."[LNB]Wenger also abruptly denied there was any movement on bringing in a new goalkeeper, just saying "No."[LNB]Hodgson said he had not got a good enough view of Cole's sending off to know if the referee had made the right decision, but defended Cole's attitude.[LNB]"There was certainly no intention from Joe Cole to foul the player, that's out of the question," he said.[LNB]"He's throwing himself to try to block the ball. In real time it would have been very difficult for me to have a clear opinion of it. Obviously those challenges where players throw themselves and unfortunately there's a collision, the referee often sees it as worse than it is."
