Source: Telegraph
Stoke City 1 Liverpool 1: match report
At this rate, expect Rafael Benítez and Liverpool to demand all their games last only 89 minutes. Yet again, Liverpool threw away two points in the dying stages, handing Stoke City a point they scarcely warranted, and extending their own run of poor form to five wins in 22 games. [LNB]Deprived by injury of Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard, Sotiris Kyrgiakos gave Benitez's weakened side a deserved lead after a tight first half, but with Liverpool forced back by their hosts pressure, Robert Huth bundled home in the 90th minute to cost their guests two valuable points in the chase for fourth place. [LNB]In a tense, cagey affair, it was the hosts who displayed much of the early menace. Martin Skrtel, drafted in to replace the injured Daniel Agger, looked shaky under Stoke's bombardment. Three Rory Delap throw-ins frayed the visitors' nerves, while referee Lee Mason's reluctance to afford Pepe Reina, himself nursing an injury, tried their patience. [LNB]Mason officiated Liverpool's defeats at Fulham and Portsmouth earlier this season, sending off three of Rafael Benitez's players in the process. [LNB]The Spaniard will, no doubt, have hardly been pleased to see his name appear on the fixture list. Mason's decision to deny Lucas a penalty the first true moment of danger in the game probably served only to bolster his opinion. [LNB]The Brazilian had burst into the penalty area, exchanging passes with Philipp Degen, before he was clumsily felled by Danny Higginbotham. Liverpool appealed, convinced. Mason only booked Lucas for simulation. [LNB]By that stage, Delap such a source of fear for Benitez's team, given their weakness at set pieces had departed, replaced by Liam Lawrence, and his absence seemed to grant Liverpool heart. They finished the half the stronger, and by the time Sotiris Kyrgiakos handed them the lead on the hour, they warranted their advantage. [LNB]The Greek bundled home his first goal for the club after Thomas Sorensen spilt a Fabio Aurelio free kick straight into his path, sending the boisterous away support into raptures. [LNB]Asked whether he was concerned by Mason's record when refereeing his team, Benítez simply said: 'You have a better memory than me'.[LNB]But, he added, 'They were both clear penalties. The referee made the wrong decision. If you see the incidents, you can watch the replays 100 times and you will have the same opinion as everyone in the stadium. [LNB]"But you cannot change things. You have to move forward and face the next challenge. Hopefully the players will play with the same mentality.'[LNB]Stoke, though, are not the sort to go down without a fight. Lawrence and Tuncay an erstwhile Liverpool target went close, Ricardo Fuller drew a fine save out of Reina. Liverpool rocked back on their heels, fearful of what precedent this season suggested was to come. [LNB]And so it did. In the 90th minute, to be precise, Robert Huth tapping home after Higginbotham headed an Etherington corner back across goal. [LNB]There was time for one more chance, even then, Dirk Kuyt crashing a header against the bar from a Fabio Aurelio cross. The woodwork denied Liverpool here last year, too, arguably costing Benitez's side the title. [LNB]After limply surrendering to Reading to end their hopes of FA Cup glory last Wednesday and given the injury-enforced absence of Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres, Benítez insisted his players' battling performance had given him reason to hope, despite Huth's late hammer-blow, which means Liverpool have now won just six of their last 22 games.[LNB]On five of those occasions, Liverpool have conceded in the last minute, and on eight they have failed to hold on to a winning position. Little wonder Benítez was 'disappointed'.[LNB]'We were doing so well against a tough, physical team so you have to be disappointed,' he said. 'If you had explained to me before the game that we would get one point, I would say that was not bad, but after the game, after 89 minutes, you want to take the three points. [LNB]"The main thing was, with players out, to react and show character. The players were fantastic, working very hard. So I was really pleased by the performance of the team against very difficult opponents. [LNB]"The most positive thing for me is that they tried from the beginning to the end. The fans appreciate this.'[LNB]
