Liverpool Goal: Stewart Downing (53)
From potentially hanging on by a thread to now looking in complete control for progression to the next round. Fortunes change fast in the world of football and by fielding a strong eleven the message from Brendan Rodgers that he wanted to give both the competition and our opponents a lot of respect - even with a Merseyside derby to contend with - was loud and clear.
European games tend to be a lot more methodical and everything - at least on face value - is at a much slower pace. With that in mind, coupled with the fact that Anzhi backed off almost immediately, it didn't take long for our assured passing game to begin, albeit with no real tempo. Shelvey was keen to get forward right from the off while Sahin and Gerrard sat a little deeper and with Agger allowed to stride forward and dictate the play. The couple of occasions they did manage to get onto the ball it was a complete reversal in approach, hitting it high and hopeful. One of the good things about all those we had in defence is that not only are they athletic but all of them are strong enough so that this wouldn't be an issue. Wisdom in particular is incredibly encouraging with his confidence and overall dominance.
Though we weren't getting the ball forward to him as often as he would have liked, Suarez - as ever - was looking lively. He's a perfect outlet on the counter attack, able to not only create something for himself but skilled enough to hold it up while the rest of the team catches up with play. Gerrard meanwhile was a little looser with his passing than you would have liked, but this was early on and it was more of a case of rustiness than trying something overly elaborate. Anzhi worked very hard off the ball - which was a large majority of the time - and made it difficult for us to get it into any real area of danger. Suarez did have one chance, linking up with Glen Johnson - who spent most of his time in the attacking part of the field - but the eventually shot was handled well by the goalkeeper.
Without going overboard, as far as first impressions go, Oussama Assaidi has made a very bright start to his Liverpool career. He's everything you would want in a player that arrived for a fairly modest fee and offers something we've been lacking in the wide areas for some time now. If we can get him isolated with the full back, his ability to go either way and create space with quick feet and an even sharper mind then that's something that could really hurt teams. Assaidi does appear to have a lot of tricks in his locker and aside from having a genuine goalscoring touch - and even that's too soon to really be able to tell - Brendan Rodgers may have unearthed a gem.
Referees get far too much attention for the job they are doing. If you're even aware of who the man in charge is, then he's not doing a good enough job of controlling the game. Despite the fact that they make life increasingly difficult for themselves - what with something that is an incredibly challenging task in the first place - one thing that helps is when everyone knows early on exactly what to expect. Bas Nijhuis, our Dutch official for the evening, was keen to let play continue at every opportunity. Stewart Downing out muscled Yuri Zhikov and nothing was given, likewise a similar challenge on Luis Suarez moments later. Both would have probably been fouls in a domestic setting and while it's not ideal to have things go unpunished, so long as both teams are playing under the same circumstances in the end what happened was it let the game flow.
It's been a while since Nuri Sahin arrived at Anfield from Madrid and having now had a chance to settle into the team, it does appear as if he looks a lot more comfortable with what's being asked of him. Against West Brom in the League Cup, he took on the attacking role and really dominated the game but there were other times when it appeared he wasn't quite to grips with the more physically demanding stuff that was required of him. There had been signs of it in previous matches but here it looked more natural as he was constantly available for a pass and quick to cover on the handful of occasions in which they tried to break on us.
The shape of the team on the ball is something of a complete turnaround to that which we line up with initially. It begins and ends with the fullbacks. Glen Johnson goes high up and becomes practically a wide forward, while Wisdom tucks in a little and there's something of a back three there - with either he or one of the midfielders on hand at any given moment should anything dangerous arise. Though we did have a lot of the ball, there was very little in the way of real quality from either side as both teams took their time to get into it. Being the home side we had the more natural bite to our play, especially when our off the ball pressure allowed us to run at their defenders. Despite having numbers back, there were plenty of occasions where we could exploit gaps in between their midfield and defence in playing the ball through to Suarez but every time we did someone was quick to come out and make sure he couldn't turn to face goal. One such incident on the twenty minute mark saw Christopher Samba booked for a challenge on Suarez, the exact type of foul you don't want to see on your only recognised forward.
One aspect that will really have pleased the manager was the sheer hunger and ferocity with which we pressed the ball and looked to win it back. Gerrard and Shelvey were taking turns in getting forward and while we had decent support for the attack it did play into their hands a little and made the area surrounding the Anzhi goal very crowded indeed. The one time we managed to steal the ball in transition and counter it did look as if there would be some reward as Suarez laid the ball through to Shelvey on the edge of the box with very little in front of him. Unfortunately the resulting shot was a little reckless and went flying over the bar. Having bedded their way into the game, Anzhi were looking more comfortable and did start to threaten but you would have to say that it was difficult for them to get anything other than half chances. Eto'o as you'd expect was at the heart of what little they did create but he was dropping so deep to receive the ball in the first place there were so many players in between he and the goal it was asking too much of even someone of his ability.
With so many men behind the ball, after the half hour mark and only infrequent pressure on the Anzhi goalkeeper, there was a degree of impatience that crept into the play. Suarez and Downing were both guilty of playing passes in an attempt to force the issue that just gave the ball back to our opponents. They did have one decent opportunity from a free kick that was resoundingly cleared by Gerrard. From here - for the first time in the match - there was a huge gap down the right hand side that could have been exploited, were the pass of any quality whatsoever. As it was we were able to keep them at arms length while being fully aware of their growing confidence. Defensively they worked extremely hard and funnelled our play into the middle where there would be too many bodies in the way for anything to arise. Both Downing and Assaidi were forced inside but what we managed to do was stay patient and moments later Glen Johnson got in behind. What happened next was unfortunate, with Johnson about to pull the trigger he was either clipped by the defender behind him or miscalculated and ended up poking a leg out at fresh air. A penalty would have been harsh but it was a reminder that if we kept our heads there was enough there to be encouraged by.
The three in the middle had gone a little quiet as we approached half time. Sahin in particular was finding things increasingly difficult as time went on with a few challenges that left him cold as the game passed him by somewhat. Finding space was at a premium and so when Daniel Agger came bursting through into the Anzhi half and kept going, the invitation to shoot was too great to pass up. I've seen up close just how good of a shot he has on him and while this wasn't his best effort, if they would continue to allow him such freedom then that would come back to haunt them. Just before the half was over there was another final step up in the pressure off the ball as we looked to profit with the interval looming. However, there wasn't the same kind of application when we did manage to get it. The final chance of the half fell to Smallov when Anzji countered with real purpose for the first time but his drilled effort went just wide. Goalless at the break and every bit as tight as it had promised to be.
As the players emerged for the start of the second half there was a new face ready to join them. A move that came completely out of the blue, Raheem Sterling came on for Glen Johnson meaning Stewart Downing was now playing at left back. Whether or not this was a tactical switch and Johnson is simply being rested for Sunday I'm not sure but I certainly hope it's nothing more than that. Things were quiet when they did get under way for the second half, both sides again taking a minute or two to feel their way back into things. It was a bounding Martin Skrtel that brought things to life, with Samuel Eto'o ball watching on the edge of his penalty area the Slovakian defender burst through with the ball and fired a really powerful shot at Gabulov who just about prevented it from then going beyond him. What that had done was wake both the crowd and team up. There was another, even better chance following that when Stewart Downing's clearance was flicked on by Sterling and Shelvey put Gerrard in only for his header to go just wide. There was a sense that the momentum was building inside Anfield. It was about to get even better.
I'm at a loss to explain exactly why I like Downing at left back so much. Perhaps it's because he's not allowed to drift through games anonymously and it forces him to play a semi-prominent role in the game. It's not something you're ever likely to try against a Man United or Barcelona - unless injuries ravaged the team - and such he's more than capable of doing a job there. So far he's done more than that, he appears to have found his goalscoring touch again, with his second European goal of the season lighting up Anfield. It was a sharp switch of play after a free kick on the right hand side that saw Downing pick the ball up on the left touchline. After facing up with his defender for a second, he drifted inside and fired a curling shot beyond the goalkeeper to give us the lead.
So many times we've seen this season that in the minutes immediately following a goal, it's imperative that the team remains focused. Not only that, Suarez very nearly doubled the lead with a powerful shot of his own from the edge of the box. Having been allowed the space to pick up the ball in the first half, he's clever and skilful enough to leave himself that extra half a yard that allowed him to turn and get the shot away. Three sides of the ground thought it was in but sadly the lead remained only by the solitary goal. Anzhi's response to going behind was a little puzzling. While they were getting a decent share of the ball, there was no real craft about their play and it didn't appear as if there was any real idea as to how to break us down. Whenever they tried to play a hopeful ball in to try and cause havok, we had the strength to deal with it and persist with trying to win or at the least get a block on the second ball. What didn't help was the fact that Eto'o was getting further and further away from goal.
As if a switch had been flicked, the game was alive and there was a bright tempo to our play both on and off the ball. The lead allowed us to sit in a little and catch them on the break, which looked like giving them problems on every occasion. Assaidi and Suarez combined to put in Shelvey, who was at a difficult angle and maybe could have found Suarez, although that's potentially being overly critical. When they did get it, the hunger and desire to win it back was there for all to see, Gerrard chasing defenders some thirty yards to put a foot in before the monolithic like figure of Andre Wisdom would step in and have the power to make sure no Anzhi player would be coming near the ball. It really is an endearing sight to see this essentially teenage boy play with such intelligence and a grasp of the game beyond his years.
With the pattern of the game now set and our main attacking threat being the counter, it meant that Anzhi had a decent amount of possession. They were camped somewhat just outside our penalty area without every really looking dangerous, quite literally on the outside looking in. Shelvey had another half chance on the counter before Guus Hiddink decided it was time for a change. The six foot eight inch Lacina Traore came onto the pitch, his first contribution that rarest of gifts; a foul throw. With an decided height advantage now at their disposal, Anzhi's play continued to be ever more one dimensional. For some reason this prompted Eto'o to drop even deeper, to the point where he was the covering midfielder when Sterling tried to counter attack them.
It wasn't as if everything was perfect however. Nuri Sahin had been something of a non factor in the second half and was growing increasingly frustrated. It wasn't a case of the midfielder doing anything particularly wrong it's just that after a couple of contentious fouls given away, you could see that he was desperate to have more of a positive impact on the game. Also, the lead wasn't exactly formidable and all it would take was a lapse in concentration for the game to potentially change completely. Which is exactly what very nearly happened when Downing played a ball along the ground across the penalty area as we tried to play it out of the corner rather than just blasting it up field The panic set in immediately and when Eto'o was played in it was with great relief that Jones claimed his shot fairly comfortably.
By now the earlier pressure had eased off a little and we were allowing them to have it in their own half. A ball over the top looking for Traore might have caused a problem had his first touch been any better but Skrtel had him fairly well marshalled anyway. Time was on our side now and with just over ten minutes to go Joe Allen came on for Jonjo Shelvey in an attempt to add some fresh legs and also someone who would protect the ball with what time did remain. Simple short passes were the order of the day and as we played it around in our own half, Skrtel and Agger had split so wide that they looked part of a back four with Gerrard and Sahin as the centre halves. Though there was pressure applied, we were good enough to play around it and create a chance for ourselves. A corner was headed straight at the goalkeeper by Agger, who then followed up the play by heading it out of his hand before he could distribute and putting it into the net. Rather than a goal bonus, this earned him a yellow card. I'm not sure what the rules are in this situation specifically but I always thought that if he only had it in one hand then it was fair. As it was, the lead remained at only one.
Having not been able to underline our superiority, Anzji were starting to knock on the door however and had really upped their game as it entered the final stages. A succession of corners raised the tension inside Anfield and the play that followed forced Martin Skrtel into action after Gonzalez had made some room for himself down the right hand side of the penalty area. Soon afterwards Daniel Agger was made to react when Anzhi managed to create some space on the left hand side and his challenge prevented it from making it's way to Traore. Brad Jones didn't have a save to make but the pressure was certainly building. We dealt with it primarily out wide with Assaidi and Sterling being the outlets.
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