I think most would have taken a draw before kick-off, and the first hour of the game will have only strengthened that view. I have to admit that at 1-0 down I was fearing the worst. The first half was shocking, I felt, and that is not me being overly critical either. Liverpool were tentative, they stood off Chelsea too much and they deserved to be behind.
They enjoyed enough of the ball, but it was all in areas where Chelsea were happy to let them have it – ie. in Liverpool’s half. There was nothing even approaching a supply line for Luis Suarez, nothing resembling an attacking threat. The goal we conceded was a shocker, from a defensive point of view. Chelsea have been doing that for years, blocking off players at corners, and Daniel Agger should have been wise to it. You can’t give players a free run at set pieces, let alone players as good in the air as John Terry.
But if the first half was bad – and it was – then the reaction in the second was very impressive. You could attribute it to Chelsea dropping off, or the fact that they lost Terry to what looked a bad injury, but I think Liverpool deserve a lot of credit for their response.
Source: liverpool_echo
