Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool

[Karl]

Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool

By Mandeep Sanghera





Lampard's shot takes a deflection on its way into the Liverpool net

Chelsea booked a place in the Carling Cup semi-finals by beating a Liverpool side who had Peter Crouch red-carded.

Both sides had missed gilt-edged chances in a tight first half with Chelsea's Frank Lampard and Liverpool's Lucas Leiva having shots saved.

But Lampard atoned for his error when his strike was deflected in off Jamie Carragher before Crouch saw red for a reckless tackle on Mikel John-Obi.

Andriy Shevchenko lashed in an angled shot to secure Chelsea's win.

Interview: Chelsea manager Avram Grant
Interview: Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez


The match had started off like most between these two in recent times as both sides quickly closed each other down with space and time at a premium.

Liverpool's strategy saw them sit back and challenge Chelsea to find a way through, while hoping to catch their rivals on the counter-attack.



They survived a scare when keeper Charles Itandje pushed a Salomon Kalou shot wide before almost succeeding with a goal on the break.
Ryan Babel surged towards Chelsea's goal but took too much time to pick out a team-mate and his pull-back was blocked.

But there were signs of the match having more of an attacking edge as the first half progressed and Lampard should have put the home side ahead after 25 minutes.
Lampard was inadvertently put clean through on the Reds goal by Alvaro Arbeloa and seemed set to score only for Itandje to stand tall and block his shot as he tried to dink it in.

Almost immediately, a one-touch passing move on the edge of the Chelsea box gave Lucas a clean sight of goal and his angled shot was well saved by keeper Petr Cech.

Crouch was shown red for his challenge on Mikel


The game quickly reverted to type and the rest of the opening half was a cagey affair with just a Michael Essien strike, which flashed wide, a rare threat on goal.

Essien again went close after the break when a similarly sweetly-struck effort was palmed round the post by Itandje.

Cech came to his side's rescue at the other end after Ricardo Carvalho's tame back header let in Crouch.

The Reds striker tried to chip Cech but the keeper managed to get enough of a touch to stop the ball going in and allow his backtracking defenders to clear.

It proved a vital miss as Shevchenko slipped Lampard in on goal and his shot was deflected in off Carragher.

The Reds suffered another setback before they could regroup as Crouch was sent-off for a reckless challenge on Mikel.
The lanky striker lunged two-footed at the Chelsea midfielder and referee Martin Atkinson had little hesitation in brandishing his red card.

Liverpool carried little threat with 10 men as Chelsea comfortably closed out the game.

Shevchenko sealed the win with his late goal as he powered in a shot from an acute angle after a pass by substitute Michael Ballack.
Chelsea: Cech, Bridge, Carvalho, Belletti, Ben-Haim, Essien, Obi (Ballack 68), Lampard, Kalou, Shevchenko (Sidwell 90), Sinclair (Joe Cole 57).

Subs Not Used: Cudicini, Ferreira.


Goals: Lampard 59, Shevchenko 90.
Liverpool: Itandje, Arbeloa, Carragher, Hobbs, Aurelio, Sissoko, Lucas, Alonso (El Zhar 60), Voronin, Crouch, Babel (Benayoun 73).

Subs Not Used: Martin, Hyypia, Riise.


Sent Off: Crouch (60).

Booked: Alonso, Lucas, Sissoko.

Att: 41,366 Ref: Martin Atkinson (W Yorkshire).

[Karl]

The DRAW -

Tuesday, 08 January 2008
Arsenal vs Tottenham - Semi-Final, L1, 19:45

Chelsea vs Everton - Semi-Final, L1, 19:45

[Karl]

Carling Cup - Chelsea cruise against Liverpool

19/12/2007 22:41
Chelsea Cruise Into Carling Cup Semi-Finals Chelsea 2-0 Liverpool

Chelsea coasted to victory over ten-man Liverpool to book their spot in the Carling Cup semi-finals.



Chelsea earned an easy 2-0 win over Liverpool in their Carling Cup quarter-final at Stamford Bridge.


A relatively equal first half saw both sides create decent chances, but it became one-way traffic after the interval as Frank Lampard’s deflected attempt gave Chelsea the lead.

A red card for Peter Crouch hampered Liverpool’s efforts, and Chelsea's pursuit of a second goal eventually told as Andriy Shevchenko’s late strike settled things once and for all.

Chelsea will face Everton in the semi-finals, with the first leg at Stamford Bridge

First Half

Chelsea made seven changes from the Arsenal game, but Michael Ballack was only handed a place on the bench.

Not to be outdone, Liverpool swapped nine players, with Alonso starting, Torres left out and Crouch fronting a 4-2-1-3.

Chelsea made the brighter start. Lampard fired a free-kick into the wall before an impressive chain of passes resulted in Kalou’s on-the-turn shot.

Liverpool chiefly played on the break: Lucas’ smart ball put Crouch through on the right, but the England forward’s shot slid across the face of goal and comfortably wide.

Breaking down the left, Babel had Chelsea on the run. Turning Obi and Ben Haim in the box, he passed to a blue shirt rather than the waiting Voronin.

With both sides deploying three central midfielders, the action was rather packed down the middle of the pitch. One sensed both teams were likely to reap rewards from the flanks. Kalou failed to connect with Lampard’s in-swinging corner before Lampard almost put the Blues ahead in the 24th minute following Essien's pounce on Hobbs’ mistake. Itandje in goal did well to narrow the angle.

A minute later, it was Cech’s turn to save his side. Great pass-and-move football from Crouch, Voronin and then Lucas forced Chelsea’s keeper into a fine save. Neither side looked particularly sturdy at the back but chances were increasingly rare as the half wore on.

Alonso volleyed marginally wide for Liverpool, while Obi disturbed viewers in the upper tier with his wayward effort. The Nigerian almost got a knick on Essien’s great drive, but he was flagged offside anyway. Voronin dragged a shot wide at the other end but it remained 0-0 at the break.

Second Half

The second half continued in much the vein of the first, with a frantic pace and Chelsea chiefly in possession. Lampard blazed over the bar, while Essien’s superb shot from 20 yards produced an equally impressive save from Itandje, who tipped the diagonal drive around the post.

Kalou missed the target following a well-worked, pacy move, but Chelsea were careless at the back: Carvalho’s sloppy back-header found Crouch ahead of Cech. The home side survived as the Liverpool striker couldn’t lift the bouncing ball over the advancing goalkeeper.

On 58 minutes, Chelsea went in front. Shevchenko’s lay-off found Lampard, whose shot deflected horribly off Carragher and looped into the net. The visitors’ night worsened immediately as Crouch saw red for a two-footed lunge on Obi. The referee had little choice in dismissing the Reds’ forward, who was a Chelsea season-ticket holder as a boy.

A goal and a man to the good, the home side pressed forward with greater purpose. Lampard forced another save from 16 yards before Avram Grant gave Michael Ballack a run-out. The game became a pretty pedestrian affair, with Liverpool void of ideas and Chelsea comfortable with their advantage.

The visitors did manage to get forward on rare occasions, but Voronin struggled to hold the front line on his own. Chelsea continued to pose the greater threat though, but Essien and Lampard were guilty of wasting chances before Shevchenko finally put the result beyond doubt.

A superb cross from the left found Michael Ballack ten yards out. The German nodded down to the Ukrainian who rifled home and settled the tie. It ended 2-0 as Chelsea eased into the semi-finals at the expense of Liverpool, whose horrific record at Stamford Bridge continues.


Line-ups:

Chelsea (4-3-3): Cech – Belletti, Ben Haim, Carvalho, Bridge – Essien, Obi (Ballack 68), Lampard – Kalou, Shevchenko (Sidwell 90), Sinclair (J Cole 57)

Subs not used – Cudicini, Ferreira


Liverpool (4-2-1-3): Itandje – Arbeloa, Carragher, Hobbs, Aurélio – Sissoko, Alonso (El Zhar 60) – Lucas – Babel (Benayoun 73), Crouch, Voronin

Subs not used – Martin, Hyypia, Riise


Goals:

• <LI class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt">1-0 Lampard, 58 (Shevchenko)
• 2-0 Shevchenko, 90 (Ballack)

Cards:

• <LI class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt">Yellow: Lucas, Alonso, Sissoko
• Red: Crouch

Attendance: 41,366


Chris Williams

[Gamma]

i wonder if this "really hurts" x as well....truth is he should be used to it by now.