http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/263488 ... tball.html
It used to be said that most people would struggle to name 10 famous Belgians but last night Anfield bore witness to 11. They applauded the team and the 3,000 from the city of steel and coal who crammed the Anfield Road End and sang about their team long after the old stadium had emptied.
True,
Dieumerci Mbokani comes from the Congo and Bonfim Dante from Brazil but this was a game that backed up the arguments of the Uefa president, Michel Platini, that the Champions League should be about more than a self-perpetuating oligarchy of big European clubs. If Liege were well above Standard, Liverpool were Ordinary.
Nevertheless, Liverpool are through and their chief executive, Rick Parry, will be spared an embarrassing conversation with their new signing, the Espanyol winger, Albert Riera, on the subject of “the Champions League football we offered you”.
It is typical of Liverpool under Rafael Benitez that they should have required extra time to make a competition in which they have excelled in recent seasons. Benitez may have taken Liverpool to two European Cup finals and a semi-final but there have been campaigns spent careering on the brink of elimination.
Liege would return home gnawing away at the thought that had Pepe Reina not saved a penalty in a first leg in which they were horribly outplayed, they would have made the Champions League. Benitez would reply that
Nabil El Zhar, who looks the most potent winger Liverpool possess, ought to have won a penalty moments before they finally broke through with almost the one competent cross they delivered on a night of desperate tension.
It came from Ryan Babel and, finally, Dirk Kuyt succeeded in getting beyond a defence that subdued Fernando Torres better than almost any other side who have come to Merseyside and stabbed his shot home. Benitez had said he was more interested in the Champions League as a source of silverware rather than cash but, just for the record and for Liverpool’s American owners, Kuyt’s goal was worth around £10 million.
Nevertheless, before flying to Monaco for this afternoon’s Champions League draw and the Super Cup against Zenit St Petersburg, Sir Alex Ferguson eased into his seat in the directors’ box. Although Liverpool got their act together in the second half, nothing the Manchester United manager saw would have worried him before his return to Anfield on Sept 13. He did not stay for extra time.
It was not as if Liverpool had not been warned. In the wake of Saturday’s narrow, undeserved victory over Middlesbrough, Jamie Carragher had argued that if they performed to that level against Standard Liege they would not be gracing the Champions League with their presence. “They,” he warned, “are not a Mickey Mouse club.”
This was certainly true. Physically, the Belgian champions are big, powerful footballers who resemble Popeye’s hulking opponent, Bluto, rather than the captain of Walt Disney’s first XI. Technically, they were Liverpool’s equal.
Logically, Liege’s biggest problem should have been mental. By any reasonable method of accounting, they ought to have won the first leg by around three clear goals in their own concrete cauldron of the Sclessin and their manager, Laszlo Boloni, suggested they had already blown their chance.
This was to reckon without the hulking, athletic figure of Mbokani, who bears a marked resemble to Didier Drogba and a low, fiercely-struck shot that Reina did exceptionally well to palm away suggested the resemblance lay in his boots as well as his build. Last May, Drogba had eliminated Liverpool from the European Cup at the semi-final stage, Mbokani and Liege came achingly close to inflicting a far deeper wound. Match details:
Liverpool: (4-4-2) Reina; Arbeloa, Carragher, Skrtel, Aurelio; Kuyt, Alonso, Gerrard, Benayoun (Babel 61); Keane (El Zhar 82), Torres. Subs: Cavalieri (g), Dossena, Agger, Spearing, Plessis.
Standard Liege: (4-4-2) Espinoza; Camozzato, Sarr, Onyewu, Dante; Dalmat (Jovanovic 86), Fellaini, Defour, Witsel;
Mbokani, De Camargo. Subs: De Vriendt (g), Goreux, Toama, Mikulic, Nicaise, Ingrao. Booked: Sarr, De Camrago.
Referee: M Busacca (Switzerland).
Standard Liege:
Rorys Aragon Espinoza - 8.0 - Had little chance with Kuyt’s goal but did well besides. Looked occasionally butter-fingered but offers a relatively secure last line of defence. Excellent shot-stopper.
Marco Camozzato: 6.5 - Looked tired as the game wore on and was slow to react to Babel’s cross. Had the game finished within 90 minutes, he would have registered an 8.
Dante Bonfim Costa: 6.0 - Jaded as the contest wore on and was forced into untidy errors during extra-time. The change in tack by Benitez meant he had to deal with faster and more mobile wingers in the added 30 minutes.
Oguchi Onyewu: 7.5 - A near flawless display from the big American. He and Sarr have a remarkable understanding as a partnership. He tackles well and competes honestly.
Mohamad Sarr: 7.5 - Like his partner, Sarr is a formidable prospect for attackers and he rarely gave Torres the opportunity to relax. A tight marker and decent challenger.
Steven Defour: 8.0 - A tireless midfielder with good ball usage. Epitomised the work ethic that makes this Liege side such an effective unit.
Maroune Fallaini: 6.0 - Not as prominent as he was in the first leg. Struggled at times to exert his considerable influence. Had one decent first-half opportunity.
Axel Witzel: 6.0 - He was given a tough ride by Arbeloa and Kuyt. He did not have the opportunity to force his way into the game high up the pitch. Nevertheless, he was always available.
Wilfried Dalmat: 7.5 - Expended all his energy over the two legs. A clinical crosser and accurate passer. He also proved tonight to be good all-rounder with some decent tracking-back and tackling.
Dieumerci Mbokani: 8.0 - Could be one of the biggest prospects in the African game. He is blessed with silky skill as well as pace and power.
Igor De Camargo: 6.5 - Wasteful with the half-chances that came his way. He has a tendency to be hurried in front of goal at this level. He could do with improving his awareness.