Charlie Adam and Danny Wilson were never going to match Paul Gascoigne’s prodigal son performance at the weekend when they made their returns to Ibrox in this friendly match. But then, not many in the Liverpool ranks – only one of whom had started against Manchester United on Saturday – seemed in the mood for living up to lofty reputations. The game was entertaining enough, but clearly one for swelling the Ibrox coffers rather than stirring the Ibrox blood.
Indeed, from the start it was obvious that this would be a contest of distinctly subdued passions, the temperature rising only when Craig Bellamy figured in a move. The bustling, scuttling Bellamy did at least give the impression that he cared about the outcome, a concern reflected by the Rangers supporters who, remembering the Welshman’s brief stint at Celtic a few years ago, roundly booed everything he did.
Bellamy’s subtle manoeuvres across the forward line were almost as distracting for the Rangers defence. In time, they did seem to get the measure of him, although they seemed less able to close down the space Andy Carroll created for himself. Yet Carroll’s finishing was of a lower order and the striker began the first half by lashing a volley well past the left post and ended it with a horribly sliced shot high into the stand.
All of which pleased the Rangers fans no end, but they had more reasons to be pleased with what their own side were doing in front of goal. Rangers held a 1-0 lead at half-time, courtesy of Lee McCulloch’s sharpness when Liverpool made a hash of mopping up a corner in the 19th minute, but they could easily have had a couple more by then. The corner which brought McCulloch’s goal had been won by a lashing shot from Steven Whittaker, well saved by Doni, and Steve Davis had been unlucky with a clever lob in the 35th minute that skimmed the top of the crossbar.
It did nothing to diminish the crowd’s contentment level that Bellamy opened the second half with two wild and wayward shots. At the other end, a fierce effort by Kyle Lafferty was stopped by a combination of Doni and the post, but then seemed to spin just over the line. The despairing Doni grabbed it back – injuring his hand in the process – and the assistant referee gave Liverpool the benefit of the doubt and ruled that it had been kept out.
If anything, what little steam there had been in Liverpool’s early display seemed to evaporate after the break. Rafts of substitutions from both sides broke up the continuity, although there hadn’t been much of that either. When Adam arrived, replacing Lucas in the 65th minute, his first act on the pitch was to shake hands with a couple of old Rangers colleagues.
A few minutes after Lafferty’s goal-that-wasn’t, another sizzling effort from the striker was just inches too high. Not to be outdone by this parade of boldness, club captain David Weir then launched a volley with more grace and athleticism than any 41 year-old should be able to muster, an attempt that seemed to come even closer than Lafferty’s.
But then, it was that sort of night – a game of party tricks rather than biting competitiveness. Overshadowed, of course, by the knowledge that both teams would rather be doing other things in Europe right now.
Source: Telegraph
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For most Liverpool supporters this is the biggest game of the season, and with the supporters having a newly found belief with Dalglish instrumental in the club’s change of fortunes, this match was going to be a good measure of how far Liverpool has come in their quest to challenge United for the title. Liverpool went into the game with a decent start to the season and on the back of a confidence boosting win over their Merseyside rivals Everton. But Liverpool know they would need to be at their best to beat the Champions as they have been on fire since the start of the season. But Liverpool were trying to make this four wins in a row at home over United as their recent record has been impressive. This match was also going to be Dalglish’s 250 league game in charge of Liverpool. Another milestone was the 160 consecutive league game by Pepe Reina becoming only the sixth Liverpool player in the club’s history to achieve this.
The Football Association have asked to meet Evra to discuss his assertion, that Suárez subjected him to persistent racial abuse. 
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