Man United 1 Liverpool 4: Torres and Gerrard turn tide to keep dream alive

15 March 2009 14:25
When referee Alan Wiley finally called time on this extraordinaryrout, the small knot of Liverpool[LNB]fans in the far corner of OldTrafford looked like a tiny band of rebels that had just defeated animperial power. [LNB]Not since Queens Park Rangers demolished Manchester United[LNB]on NewYear's Day in 1992 had Old Trafford witnessed something like this.[LNB][LNB] Cristiano Ronaldo breaks the deadlock from the penalty spot[LNB] Manchester United v Liverpool: How the game unfolded[LNB]MANCHESTER UNITED NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]LIVERPOOL NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]Arsenal 4 Blackburn 0[LNB]Bolton 1 Fulham 3[LNB]Everton 3 Stoke 1[LNB]Hull 1 Newcastle 1[LNB]Middlesbrough 1 Portsmouth 1 [LNB]Sunderland 1 Wigan 2[LNB]And that was in the days before the Premier League and before SirAlex Ferguson had established his supremacy over English football and,in his own memorable words 'knocked Liverpool off their perch'. [LNB]The ecstatic cheers of the visitors echoed around a near-empty OldTrafford, for so early in the game had they secured the win that thestadium had a good 15 minutes to clear before the final whistle, andonly obsessively loyal United fans remained.[LNB] In the centre circle, Liverpool players were relatively restrained given the emphatic nature of their victory. [LNB]Eventually, one by one, they came across in their grey shirts and saluted their followers. [LNB]Their muted reaction was due, perhaps, to the tension of the game.It was possibly because they were still a little stunned by the mannerof their victory.[LNB][LNB] Level best: Fernando Torres makes it 1-1 at old Trafford[LNB]Referee Alan Wiley decided otherwise, with Torres continuing his protests long after the incidents.[LNB]Lucas weaved his way to United's penalty area, only for O'Shea to makea half-challenge that allowed Ferdinand to whip the ball away fromRiera.[LNB]Martin Skrtel then embarked on a 40-yard run, remaining unchallengeduntil Ferdinand stepped in. Steven Gerrard's forward burst causedmomentary panic in the United box before Nemanja Vidic and Edwin vander Sar combined to scramble a clearance.[LNB]Liverpool had got up a head of steam, with Patrice Evra lashing over as United countered.[LNB]Torres skipped past Ferdinand brilliantly and was just about to shootwhen Vidic came across to make a vital tackle, then Gerrard's delicatefree-kick bounced through to Van der Sar after floating over a packedpenalty area.[LNB]It proved a pivotal intervention as, within a minute, United were infront. Tevez was the orchestrator, threading a pass through for Park.[LNB]The South Korean just got to the ball ahead of Jose Reina, whosemomentum took Park down. Wiley pointed to the spot and up steppedRonaldo to provide the confident finish.[LNB] Foul play: Steven Gerrard is brought down for Liverpool's penalty[LNB]Or perhaps they were reflecting on defeats at Middlesbrough anddraws against Stoke, Fulham, and West Ham and the prize which mighthave been. [LNB]Yesterday could be characterised as the game which opened up thePremier League title race and, yet, with 10 games to go, United arestill four points clear and have a game in hand. [LNB]This aberration of a performance may give Liverpool confidence andother teams, not least Chelsea, hope, but in reality it is likely toremain an irrelevance at the end of the season. [LNB]Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez reflected as much when asked if a 4-0win over Real Madrid and a 4-1 victory at Manchester United representedthe most satisfying week of his football career. [LNB]'No,' he said. 'The best is when you win titles. You can win battles but you have to win the wars.'[LNB][LNB] Pen pal: Steven Gerrard's spot-kick puts Liverpool ahead[LNB]No-one had personalised this fixture more in recent times thanBenitez, with his attack on Sir Alex Ferguson and United at the end oflast year. [LNB]Yesterday must have been a personal vindication, even though Benitez denied it. [LNB]'No, it wasn't more satisfying. I simply stated facts. I had todefend my club,' he insisted, not once allowing the hint of a smirk. [LNB]United boss Sir Alex Ferguson paid tribute to Liverpool but added: 'I felt we were the better team.' [LNB]Benitez would surely have allowed himself a smile at that. [LNB]The measure of his victory was that United's fans had given up trying to abuse him by the end. [LNB]For United had imploded in extraordinary fashion, none more so than Nemanja Vidic.[LNB] The Serbian defender might have been sizing up the trophies forplayer of the season, but if this defeat precipitates an unexpectedcollapse in United's season, his interventions will be pinpointed asthe cause. [LNB]Feeling fab: Liverpool's Fabio Aurelio celebrates after scoring [LNB]A game which had belied the quality of the players on the pitchlooked to be United's for the taking when Jose Reina rushed needlesslyoff his line on 22 minutes to fell Ji-sung Park. [LNB]Until then, Liverpool had edged a nervous and unimpressive openingphase, but when Cristiano Ronaldo confidently stroked home the penalty,it seemed that minor rebellion had been quashed. Enter Vidic. [LNB]Martin Skrtel hoofed the ball out of defence six minutes later and,inexplicably, the centrehalf failed to head it back down the pitch. [LNB]Even then he had recovery time, but Fernando Torres bustled andmuscled his way in front of his opponent and then dispatched the ballpast Edwin van der Sar. [LNB]Once breached, United's supposedly impregnable defence simply collapsed. [LNB]Patrice Evra, another defender who suddenly looks unsure of hisbearings, dived in on Steven Gerrard and conceded the penalty on 43minutes which allowed the England midfielder to give Liverpool thelead. [LNB]'After all the stick I've had from Manchester United fans over thelast 10 years, it was nice to rub it in,' said Gerrard after scoringhis first goal at Old Trafford. [LNB]Indeed, nowhere is the idiocy of football's tribalism more apparent than at this game.[LNB] One Liverpudlian from Croxteth, Wayne Rooney, went to take a cornerand was idolised; another, Gerrard, from Huyton, a mile or two down theroad, did the same and was abused horrendously. [LNB]Vidic confirmed his status as principal culprit when he allowed Gerrard to get the better of him on 75 minutes.[LNB] He then exacerbated his mistake by hauling him down and earninghimself a red card as the Liverpool midfielder was racing through ongoal.[LNB][LNB] [LNB] Sealed with a kiss: Steven Gerrard poses for a cameraman after his goal[LNB]In reality, the ball was running away towards the touchline, so Vidic's misjudgment was even more pronounced. [LNB]If the game was slipping away in that moment, it was gone in thenext when Fabio Aurelio lifted the ball over the defensive wall andnestled it in the corner of the net like a latterday Ronald Koeman. [LNB]Van der Sar hardly moved and looked stunned. You don't concede a goal for 1,311 minutes and then three come along at once.[LNB] The fourth was directly from the Sunday League football handbook of how not to defend.[LNB][LNB] Off day: Nemanja Vidic (left) is shown a red card by Alan Wiley as Jamie Carragher watches on[LNB]Reina's goalkick was met by neither John O'Shea nor Rio Ferdinandand, as the ball bounced between the two, substitute Andrea Dossenahooked it hopefully over Van der Sar. [LNB]The humiliation was complete. Moments before, Gerrard had spurned abetter chance, driving high into the Stretford End when presented withtime and space to shoot from six yards. [LNB]He smiled, Dirk Kuyt playfully slapped his face and Old Traffordbarely mustered the malice to jeer. For there was no point and that, initself, was the greatest tribute they could afford this Liverpool team. Manchester United v Liverpool: How the game unfolded[LNB]MANCHESTER UNITED NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]LIVERPOOL NEWS FROM ACROSS THE WEB[LNB]Arsenal 4 Blackburn 0[LNB]Bolton 1 Fulham 3[LNB]Everton 3 Stoke 1[LNB]Hull 1 Newcastle 1[LNB]Middlesbrough 1 Portsmouth 1 [LNB]Sunderland 1 Wigan 2[LNB][LNB] [LNB] [LNB] 

Source: Daily_Mail