Final Score: Liverpool 2-2 Young Boys
Liverpool Goals: Jonjo Shelvey (33), Joe Cole (72)
Young Boys Goals: Raúl Bobadilla (52), Elsad Zverotić (88)
There's frustration. You get that with football teams sometimes, especially ones going through a period of transition. This was different however. When this game ended, there was nothing that could describe the way I felt more than abject fury. That we could be so incompetent and ignorant of the situation, it's so incredibly upsetting especially because of how very possible we could be punished for it against Udinese. At the very least we've been denied the chance to rest a few players ahead of that game, so it complicates matters further. We didn't have enough about ourselves to hold on even though we had already won the game. Twice.
No Luis Suarez in the line up was a peculiar one and in retrospect something you can point to and say that was a mistake. Likewise his inclusion and any injury would have seen similar foul cries. Personally I would have started him and I think that in leaving him out it made things harder than they should have been, that being said - the problems that we had in this game were born out of this decision; all that would come later. Other than that it was as expected, the mixture of exciting youth talent and experience with some players that need the time to play themselves into form. Shelvey up front was something I was quite tentative about but he is someone who has been in goalscoring form in this competition so there was some method behind it.
It was so close to being the worst start possible. Young Boys wandered into midfield from kick off and played a ball in behind Andre Wisdom. Had Zarate and Farnerud not fluffed their respective chances from here, we could so easily have been behind within the first thirty seconds. Reina was called into action again a minute or so later, saving low down from a Bobadilla strike and Young Boys had started the game much the better side. They were right in our faces when we had the ball and tried to rush our passing, not that we needed any incentive to give it away as we were being very sloppy in possession also. It took a few minutes, but the game began to settle down somewhat as we got into it. Jonjo Shelvey was working very hard to apply the pressure from the front and Joe Cole was showing some unforeseen mobility in behind.
Young Boys would have been encouraged by the way our midfield started the game, in that it didn't really begin to function. So much has been said about all the experience we have in the side and that there were more than a handful of players who have played at the international level in that team but what it lacks so much in terms of balance is a voice in there - Carragher aside - who'll put their authority on it. In the middle that really showed as the isolated talents of Jordan Henderson, Suso and Nuri Sahin saw an almost non existent barrier in front of the defence as they played through us. Though they weren't marauding, given the problems we have had in defending the counter it will have been a worry to Rodgers that no-one got a grip on it early which was exactly what we needed under the circumstances. You could argue that the only way these players are to develop a real command of that position however is to play in these kind of games and learn it. That will mean however that we're going to see games - and patches of play like this - whereby things like this happen.
As for getting a foot into the game, we did so down the left hand side with Assaidi - and to a lesser extent Stewart Downing behind him - and after an initial burst Young Boys had backed off a little when we were in possession. We'd managed to wake up from what was a very casual, lax start and aside from one failed pass inside from Andre Wisdom which gave the ball away in midfield but fortunately lead to nothing we were starting to keep possession much better and hold off our opponents. Though they got back and defended in numbers when we knocked the ball around, their midfield was very narrow and this allowed some room in behind the fullbacks. With no real striker it was a little difficult for us to have any real presence in the attacking third of the pitch but that being said with Joe Cole being very keen to run inside the defender it allowed Shelvey to come deep and knit the play together. These two things came together beautifully as Cole's run down the channel was seen by Shelvey and he played him through only for the shot to go narrowly wide. A promising start then from the much maligned former England international.
One of the things we've had a major problem with this season is the transparency with which we are forced into basic mistakes. Opponents pounce on the smallest of errors and turn them into giant openings which we are then unable to deal with. The biggest source of this is when it comes to playing it back to the goalkeeper. When Carragher mistimes one and Reina is on his toes enough to recognize and see out the danger - something which has become a necessity rather than a good sign - at least we're aware of the play. The real problem is when the ball comes back to Pepe a moment later and his clearance goes straight back to a yellow shirt and they are able to attack us once more. We know they're going to put pressure on it and in just lumping it long we're achieving nothing that an initial punt up-field would accomplish. Neither are what is required and most of the time it's about basic movement on the part of everyone else and the execution of a a simple pass. It's not possible to play it on the floor all the time but we must get used to and be able to get around the kind of pressure that we know teams will put us under if we're trying to play this way.
From not being particularly fast to slowing down completely, the tempo of the game came to a halt as an injury to Dušan Veškovac saw him stretched off the pitch. As the ball was running out of play he attempted to back heel the ball into Assaidi who was chasing behind and in turn pulled his hamstring. Having been involved in the pain of one their players, Ousamma Assaidi was minutes later causing more problems for the Young Boys defenders, his close control being too much for them but his eventual ball through arrived at the feet of an offside Joe Cole. If that was a chance that was created by persistence with Assaidi trying to bulldoze his way through then the next one was as precise and skilled as you can get. The ball was played in from the left hand side to Jonjo Shelvey, who had the vision and talent to see Henderson running in behind him. His back heel was perfectly executed and then saw Henderson through on goal. The one thing that was missing from the whole thing was a finish as Jordan then saw his shot saved.
Fans of different football teams don't often get along. Despite the fact that we share the same interests, there will always be that dividing line. However, there are occasions - and Europe appears to be where they come up the most - where supporters of other clubs endear themselves. The Young Boys fans unveiled a banner in memory of the Hillsborough victims, which was warmly applauded around the stadium. It was a nice gesture and something that you don't forget in a hurry. The game itself was becoming a rather slow affair with either side taking turns in roaming into attacking areas but were both lacking in the cutting edge to really make anything count. Liverpool did look the brighter when they were attacking, mostly because of the fact that Young Boys were pressing so high on the occasions we were able to get it beyond the half way line there was space there to exploit. Andre Wisdom was the one who continually found himself with that room to manoeuvre and it was on the half hour mark that he had to be taken off - for what appears to be a precautionary injury - with Steven Gerrard as his replacement.
The substitution meant that there would be a reshuffling in midfield and I have to say I felt sorry for Jordan Henderson. Having watched him out there against Swansea despite my initial excitement to see him play in that position I think it's a massive waste of what he can do and could potentially damage his confidence further. That being said, it didn't take long for the team to click into gear once the changes had been made and with it came the first goal of the game. Joe Cole and Suso played a lovely one-two on the outside of the penalty area to get Cole in on goal and as the goalkeeper came out he shifted it across goal for Jonjo Shelvey to head into the net. Having taken the lead without overly exerting our power, it was now about doing the simple things right - with Sahin tackling well in the middle of the park and Skrtel easing off Bobadilla as they tried to put him through over the top.
If we're ever to cast aside this idea of teams coming back onto us late in games then what we should be aware of is that despite having taken the lead and the confidence that comes with that, we still need to be just as clinical when we're a goal up as opposed to being level. Suso ran in between a few defenders and his powerful deflected shot could have gone anywhere but instead earned a corner, from which Joe Cole had a golden opportunity to double the lead but instead saw his shot blocked as he went for placement over power. At the back we were again guilty of being a little too casual in playing it out but fortunately for us Young Boys never really had any quality to punish us with.
Settling with playing on the counter attack for what remained of the half, it was Suso who could have put the game to bed completely right before half time. Jonjo Shelvey and Joe Cole knitted the play together before sending Suso through on goal. The keeper was beaten all ends up but his shot drifted just wide. It's the kind of composure that will come with experience but on this occasion with the game situation as it was, a calmer older head could have ended the game as a contest. As it was, there was very little of substance that remained until the break but still we went in a goal to the good and forty five minutes to see out the result that would see us through to the next round.
The restart saw our Swiss opponents pressing high up the pitch right from kick off and trying to make it increasingly difficult for us to play around at the back. This eventually led to Pepe Reina coming out of his goal to sweep up the trouble and clear the ball in conjunction with Jordan Henderson. Once again the midfield three looked to be backing off a little and even with both Gerrard and Sahin in there, Young Boys were able to get into the space just ahead of our defence and let fly with a couple of powerful long range efforts. Zverotić and Farnerud both had Reina scrambling as we appeared to have switched off completely. That being said, the first chance of the half did fall to a red shirt. Suso played the ball through to Joe Cole in between the defender and left back only for Wölfli in goal to race out to prevent any clear cut shot. It would then prove to be our downfall as Farnerud picked up the ball in midfield, ran some fifteen yards unchallenged and then put one over the top for Bobadilla. Henderson was caught massively infield for the second time in a matter of minutes only this time we were made to pay. The first touch was great and the angle difficult but the Young Boys striker hit it powerfully across Pepe Reina to level the match and again throw the group wide open.
A lot of the blame - both for that goal and what happened subsequently - has been levelled at the feet of Henderson and while it's right that he was caught out for that incident, there were other - more worrying - things to consider. Right after the goal with Young Boys clearly lifted by the goal, we found ourselves yet again being pressed high up the pitch. When our defenders have the ball, there is a really concerning tendency of our midfield to turn their backs on the play, or even jog into areas of the pitch where we can't play the ball. It's all well and good trying to play someone into space but first they have to find it in the first place. Also, with a stand in right back on the field, the person ahead of him or one of the midfielders should come over to help out and yet there was a huge gap on that side of the pitch between Henderson and Cole. I know full well that Cole hasn't got the legs to get up and down but that's something we should recognise, especially if our opponents have clocked on to it and are using it as a base camp to flood the midfield.
There was a period of time after the goal where it looked like we may be overwhelmed. Eventually a few counter attacks of our own materialized and with them back in their own half we were able to force them back easier. Though the danger of them running amok in our midfield still remained, Nuri Sahin was doing his best to stop the threat before it could materialize and allowed us to retain possession. We'd managed to get the ball back into the attacking third of the pitch once more but our quality all but deserted us, with Assaidi unable to control a simple pass from Martin Skrtel and Downing tamely shooting well wide from outside the area. Reinforcements were needed and they were called for in the shape of Luis Suarez, who came on for Suso with about thirty minutes remaining. He immediately again nearly played Assaidi down the left hand side but the Moroccan once more failed to make the most of it. At the very least, the tide had begun to turn.
Slowly but surely we began to exert some pressure once more. Aided by some rather anxious defending brought upon by Suarez's arrival onto the pitch we were able to have a succession of corners and free kicks, most of which seemed to underline the fact that Wölfli wasn't very convincing when it came to dealing with crosses. With Young Boys now somewhat pinned back into their own half, Martin Skrtel was enjoying the freedom to come forward with the ball at his feet and it was from here that we eventually scored once more. He exchanged passes with Joe Cole at first and then Luis Suarez, before it was switched out wide to Stewart Downing. The ball was played back inside to Suarez - who was now inside the penalty area - and he held it up nicely before laying it back to Steven Gerrard. Joe Cole's movement had seen him go from the right hand touchline to a gap inside the box on the left hand side and when Stevie played the ball inside to him he swivelled and forced the ball beyond the Young Boys goalkeeper to give us that lead once more.
As stories in games go, this one felt complete. The idea that this game was about whether or not we could manage to go in front once more or not and now that we had I didn't think Young Boys had enough in them for this game to have any further twists. They set about playing long balls from deep right on the half way line while we looked solid in our shape behind it all and moments later Raheem Sterling was summoned to come on for Joe Cole. After everything that had gone on - or not as the case may have been - in Joe Cole's Liverpool career, it was nice to be able to give him a hearty applause for a solid committed performance for which he was rewarded with the goal that was to put us through. A solitary goal in a Europa League group stage wasn't a particular high for him to bow out but at least he was going out on one at all. Such a shame then that the few minutes that remained would spoil all that.
For the most part we passed around them with ease and they did try to create some pressure on us when we had it around our defensive third but there was no real cause for panic. They did manage to disrupt our flow with a couple of soft free kicks, firstly in their own half to send us back into our own half and then another moments later to give them a chance to mount an attack of their own. There was cause for concern from this set piece as Pepe Reina came out into no man's land and was nowhere near the ball but thankfully Jamie Carragher won the header rather than Bobadilla. Neither side was being particularly protective of the ball and that the game was being played at any tempo at all rather than us just keeping the ball and keeping it was a sign of things to come. Henderson found himself caught up-field after we'd tried unsuccessfully to mount another attack and Skrtel was caught in two minds as to whether to go out wide or hold his position. In the end he ended up doing half of both and it led to a scramble on the edge of our penalty area where fortunately there were enough red shirts back to deal with it.
Young Boys didn't want to play through us, they were happy to have that area in between defence and attack and we were happy to give it to them. At this late stage of the game it really should have been swarming with players from both sides so that they had no real space to do anything with. Despite Reina's earlier flap I think we would have been much better off dealing with crosses as they only really went for one in the time that remained and Henderson cleared it just in time. Other than that there were a queue of Young Boys attacking players waiting for the time and space to let one fly from twenty or so yards. Zverotić hit one into the arms of Reina before Bobadilla smashed one well wide. If we needed any insight as to how they would go about getting back into the game it was right before our eyes. Still we didn't heed the warnings.
The dilemma of whether to push forward and try to put the game beyond all doubt and risk being countered or sit back and invite the pressure only has one right answer, whichever one leads to victory. In saying that we were wrong to push forward is half right it's more the way in which we left ourselves exposed and our response to that which infuriated and was to cost us dearly. The first time it became apparent - though in no way threatening for we won a free kick in the process - was with five minutes to go when Assaidi, Sterling, Suarez and Gerrard are all strung along the Young Boys penalty area. With no immediate support from the full backs, this leaves acres of space for any break and only Shelvey and Sahin to cover the entire width of the pitch. Gerrard's subsequent free kick went miles over and was as bad an effort for some time. But nowhere near as bad as what was to come.
Three times in succession we gave it away with players out of the game high up the pitch. Bearing in mind here that there was little over three minutes to go in a game we've already won. The first two times we were able to get away with it because first Sahin and then Shelvey were able to win tackles that prevented them from going any further. We would not be so lucky a third time. When the ball was lost, Assaidi was as far forward as any Liverpool player and the gap between he and Downing was like a chasm. Young Boys switched it from their left to right, whereby Assaidi was now running back to put a foot in. Both he and Sahin slid in and missed challenges. It should be pointed out at this point that Gerrard who had given the ball away and Shelvey who was no more than five yards away, were both strolling back with no urgency whatsoever. With Sahin - our only midfielder trying to affect the game - now out of it, Zverotic exchanged passes with Bobadilla on the edge of the box before firing it through a crowd and beyond Pepe Reina. It was as preventable a goal as we've conceded for some time and one that could very well cost us a place in Europe.
Still we could have rescued it. There have been stranger things to happen at Anfield on European nights but it wasn't to be. A few wasted crosses and a free kick which saw shots blocked by both Suarez and Henderson were all we managed to muster. So now we have to go to Italy and better Young Boys result in order to progress. It's not so much this kind of challenge that bothers me and more so how it will affect us in the league. We held our fate in our hands and with ten minutes to go could easily have qualified with no worries but now all that's up in the air and we only have ourselves to blame. Incredibly frustrating and very avoidable. I'm hoping that we move on now and really learn from those mistakes. If we fail to correct them, our next opponents have already shown how they can punish us.
