Riise stunner boosts Blues
22 Apr 2008 - 22:04:09
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- Riise stunner boosts Blues
A last-minute John Arne Riise own goal gave Chelsea a crucial away goal as they secured a 1-1 draw at Liverpool in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final.
Home manager Rafa Benitez opted to pair Jamie Carragher and Martin Skrtel in central defence, with Sami Hyypia left on the bench.
Blues boss Avram Grant decided to start with Paulo Ferreira at right-back, while Michael Ballack and Frank Lampard return in midfield, but Michael Essien was suspended.
The early play was scrappy and condensed in midfield, but 12 minutes in Xabi Alonso's pass over the top played in Dirk Kuyt, his first touch was poor and Petr Cech was able to smother the danger.
Nine minutes later Lampard played an excellent ball over the top towards Joe Cole, but his attempted ball across the area was deflected back to Jose Reina.
On the half-hour Didier Drogba thought he should have had a penalty and within a minute Fernando Torres passed up the best chance of the game. Steven Gerrard's flick played in Torres, but the usually deadly Spaniard shot straight at the advancing Cech with his right foot.
However, Liverpool did hit the front two minutes before the interval, following a free-kick in midfield
The Chelsea defence fail to deal with it and when Javier Mascherano's mishit shot dropped in the area, Kuyt was on hand to drive the ball home from close range.
Liverpool started the second half the brighter, but failed to create any clear-cut chances, before Gerrard flicked on a long punt forward on the hour and Ryan Babel fired a 30-yarder narrowly wide of the far post with Cech at full stretch.
A few minutes later the Blues almost found a way back into the game, but Mascherano got back to make a superb block as Florent Malouda closed in on the left.
Nine minutes from time sub Salomon Kalou somehow squeezed the ball into the area, but Lampard was dispossessed by Carragher as he prepared to shoot from a good position.
With time running out Liverpool came within a whisker of adding a clinching second goal, as skipper Gerrard cracked in a superb drive from the right which was hurtling towards the top corner of the net, before Cech made a world-class tip-over.
Deep into stoppage time a Gerrard corner fell to Torres at the far post, but Cech made a point-blank stop and that proved to be a crucial save as play swung to the other end of the pitch.
With the final action of the game, Kalou played in a cross from the left and Riise stooped to try and clear the ball, but succeeded only in heading it past the stranded Reina to silence the home fans.