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Match Report 2000-01 - Liverpool (a)
Premiership
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Date:
Sat 5th May 2001, 3.00pm.
Venue: Anfield Conditions: Beautiful blue skies and sunshine above, but storm clouds gathering below.... |
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| Liverpool | 3 - 0 | Newcastle United |
| Half time: | 1 - 0 | |
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| Score Sheet: | ||
 Owen (25)
Owen (72)
Owen (81)
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Teams |  |
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Westerveld Babbel Henchoz Hyypia Carragher Gerrard McAllister Hamann Smicer Heskey Owen |
Given Barton O'Brien Dabizas Hughes Quinn Solano Speed Acuna Gallacher Cort | |
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| Substitutes: | ||
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Gerrard for Murphy (64) Smicer for Berger (69) Fowler for Heskey (76) |
Ameobi for Cort (77) Bassedas for Acuna (76) LuaLua for Gallacher (76) | |
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| Subs not used: | ||
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Ziege Arphexad |
Harper S.Caldwell |
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| Bookings: | ||
Acuna (6)
Dabizas (34)
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| Sendings off: | ||
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| Referee: Mark Halsey (Welwyn Garden City). | ||
| Attendance: 44,363. | ||
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Goals |
25 mins. A through ball was played through the middle of our badly-positioned defence, and Michael Owen had time and space to run on to it and beat Given. .0-1
Half time: Liverpool 1 Newcastle 0
72 mins. Owen - see first goal. 0-2
81 mins. Owen - see goals 1 & 2. 0-3
Full time: Liverpool 3 Newcastle 0
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We Said |
Uncle Bobby defended his positive tactical selection, saying:
"I don't really think we took a risk. Both Solano and Quinn worked well out wide and they tucked back in when they had to. Quinn did all right and Nobby was back to have one of his best games.
"We were doing well before Michael Owen scored their first goal after 25 minutes and at 1-0 we were not too far away. Then at the start of the second half we looked to be in control and were the better side.
"We looked like getting back into it and seemed capable of a draw and at that stage I was really enjoying the game.
"But Owen had the biggest amount of space I have ever seen a striker have when he scored his second goal. And quite frankly Shay Given did not deserve that type of defending in front of him.
"We defended very badly although to be fair to Michael Owen he put three goals past a very capable goalkeeper.
"Some of our defending was very poor and until the players realise this and respond to it we will always concede goals.
"That's why I was angry on
Saturday night because I care about the result. Yes it was great for
Michael Owen, but it was not great for Newcastle United or for our
defenders."
Turning to the substitution, he commented:
"I took Carl Cort off to wake him up. Yet Kevin Gallacher ran all over the place and he is 34 years of age.
"I thought Gallacher was fantastic and he gave a marvellous display. He showed what movement is all about.
"When Cort, Shola Ameobi and Lomana Lua Lua look at Gallacher they should be embarrassed by the runs he is making and they are not. In fact all our young players have to take a lesson from him as he has shown them what they have to do."
United defender Andy O'Brien admitted:
"Shay never had a chance. Apart from my own performance that's what disappointed me most because our keeper had his usual great game.
"We desperately want to get to the point where Shay is actually getting low marks and average reports because he never has anything to do. That's not happening at the moment, but it will. As soon as we learn to play consistently well in front of him, then he will start to get the breaks he deserves."
"I'm never satisfied with my own performance but on Saturday it was nowhere near good enough. Like all of the players, I was very disappointed when I walked off the pitch and I'd be a fool to think there was anything positive which I could take away from a 3-0 defeat.
"There are always going to be fingers pointed at the defence when a team concedes three similar goals and we have to face up to that criticism.
"There are no excuses and I would not dream of trying to make any."
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They Said |
From the official Liverpool website, their transcript of Houllier's post-match remarks:
Press : How important is that victory today?
Gerard Houllier : At this stage of the season, very important. Newcastle
played very well in the second half but we managed to keep our heads up and we
resisted what they threw at us. I thought we should have been further ahead by
that stage but credit has to be given to the opposition. I was pleased with
the effort of my players and I thought they were magnificent today. My players
deserve a lot of praise for what they are doing at the moment.
Press : When you were 1-0 up was it difficult to decide what tactics to use?
Gerard Houllier : When you don't take your chances, like we didn't in the
first half, there is always the possibility that you will come under pressure.
They had something to hope for until Michael Owen's second goal killed the
game.
Press : Michael wasn't bad today, was he?
Gerard Houllier : He was very good. He has played well over the last couple
of goals and he always seems to do well against Newcastle. He usually scores a
few goals against them. He took the goals extremely well and really looked the
part. I am pleased for him because he has come back well after injury problems
and now looks very sharp.
Press : Your substitutes made a big impact again today….
Gerard Houllier : I thought they were brilliant, absolutely outstanding.
When the subs came on they won the game for us. Patrick gave a goal to Michael
and then Robbie did the same. I am delighted with the mental strength our side
is showing. Everyone involved in the squad is in the right frame of mind to
win games.
Press : How do you choose your teams at the moment? Is it a case of picking
who is the freshest?
Gerard Houllier : It doesn't really matter who plays. We want to be
successful and you can’t be successful with only eleven players. We have
played nearly 60 games and we wouldn't be in contention for a Champions League
spot or in three finals without using all of our players. We have an excellent
spirit around the camp and that is serving us well at the moment.
Press : With that victory over Newcastle, you can now make sure of a Champions
League place by beating Chelsea on Tuesday….
Gerard Houllier : It will be a good night and we know the position. With
Leeds losing at Arsenal, and with our superior goal difference, if we beat
Chelsea it means we will finish the season in third place. That is what we
have been aiming for all season and we have to take the chance now that it has
come along.
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Match Stats |
Number of shirts thrown in the face of a
Newcastle manager presiding over a team being tonked 3-0 = 0 (see a
previous Anfield extravaganza.)
Number of seasons since we scored in the final away game of the season = 6
(Peter Beardsley, Forest away, season 1995-96.)
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Waffle |
If you've somehow come to this
site under the impression it's in any way shape or form
professional, you'd probably expect something along the lines of:
"It's a story that's been told
several times before but Michael Owen never gets tired of writing
it. Another hat-trick (his second in three seasons) made it twelve
goals in six games that he's put through our leaky defence."
However, back in the restricted view stood up for 90 minutes someone peed on me boots reality of the away end, neither Owen nor the 'pool played particularly well and yet they seemingly picked us off at will without getting into third gear, let alone fourth or fifth.
Three times Owen waltzed through the heart of our defence and three times he tucked the ball past a helpless Shay Given. Strangely, Dabizas and O'Brien had reasonable games and look to be forming a decent partnership but with Hughes and Barton at their sides we looked very vulnerable. The shape was lost time and time again as slip-ups were covered for and moves down our flanks broke down.
Midfield was again very weak and another tireless performance from Gallacher caused little or no threat, with Cort looking decidedly disinterested. Acuna and Speed's contributions were conspicuously absent and subs: LuaLua, Bassedas and Ameobi quite frankly, made a bad team look worse. Shola could do with learning the words to his song, "You put your left leg in"....
A good 20 minute spell at the start of the second half almost produced an equaliser and the rejuvenated Solano caused one or two problems, notably with a header cleared off the line (or was it over?) However, the plucky spell of resistance crumbled and Owen made it two before Bobby's double substitution could break any rhythm we'd found.
Had it been 1-1 with twenty minutes remaining, an unexpected point could just have been ground out, but when the second Liverpool goal roused the Kop from it's slumbers, it was game over for the mags.
A noisy away following deserved better and although our chants became annoyingly repetitive ("Liverpool slums", "never get a job", "shall we sing a song for you") it has to be said Anfield has never been so quiet. Perhaps like us, they knew from the first whistle that victory was never in doubt.
Just like old times at Anfield really: we came, saw, flattered to deceive, sang, and went home. At least it wasn't on Sky.
Niall Mackenzie