The pressure was back on Liverpool tonight who were looking to break their poor run of luck with a tough game against Tottenham, one of the many teams who are also competing for that fourth spot which Liverpool once claimed as their own.
Liverpool were missing star striker Torres and strikers are one thing that Spurs are not short of, with Crouch, Defoe and Keane all at their disposal. The red side of merseyside were hopeful despite their shocking recent luck and it wasn’t long before their hopes were lifted.
On six minutes a big boot up field from Reina was held up by Dirk Kuyt who played a one-two with Aquilani before side-footing the ball low into the corner of the net from just over twenty yards, giving The Reds the early start they needed and lifting the Anfield crowd.
Tottenham seemed to struggle in midfield and failed to supply the strikers, although there was very little action for either side. Liverpool did pick up towards the end of the half and late on Skrtel found himself with a decent chance to make it 2-0 following a corner, but his shot flew over the bar. The players were cheered at half-time as a pleased Anfield crowd saw their side go in with a good lead.
Liverpool started the second half just as well as they ended the first and nearly doubled their lead six minutes in when Riera hit the crossbar with a header. Gradually though Tottenham began to find a way into the game.
With Spurs trying to find a foothold Liverpool missed a great chance to double their lead again as Degen made the wrong decision, choosing to pass instead of shooting, with his pass blocked by the defender. Hutton tried a spectacular volley at the other end before N’Gog tried a shot of his own, but both efforts flew wide.
With just a few minutes left to play Kyrgiakos missed a fantastic chance to win the game for Liverpool but the left footed shot didn’t connect well and Gomes saved easily. As we moved into stoppage time N’Gog was hacked down by Bassong in the penalty area and Liverpool finally grabbed their second when Dirk Kuyt converted.
The final whistle came shortly after and Liverpool claimed some desperately needed points, easing the nerves on Merseyside tonight.
