Live Thoughts: Cardiff vs Liverpool (Carling Cup)

I covered this match live. Here are my unedited thoughts when Liverpool took on Cardiff in the Carling Cup final!

Hey there and welcome! Liverpool are in their first final in five years, it's been too long. I remember that final too well, when we lost 2-1 to AC Milan in the Champions League final. It was horrible. I really don't want to feel that feeling again, especially not today. We just simply have to win. If we lose, it'll be the first time in 21 years since a team outside of the top division won the League Cup. We just have to win. I'm thoroughly looking forward to this, but I just wish I was with my family in North Wales, who are all Liverpool supporters, rather than on my own in my house with my three year old daughter who doesn't understand football quite yet. But still, let's hope we can win and I'll be just as happy!

Here are the teams:

Cardiff: Heaton; McNaughton, Hudson, Turner, Taylor; Cowie, Gunnarsson, Whittingham, Gestede, Mason; Miller. Subs: Marshal, Kiss, Gerrard, Earnshaw, Conway, Naylor, Blake.

We were expecting Miller to play on his own up front but no matter, he's the main threat and he can score if given the chance. Peter Whittingham has been a great Championship player for years and can also be a threat. But this is a still a team we need to beat, no excuses.

Liverpool: Reina, Johnson, Agger, Skrtel, Enrique, Gerrard, Adam, Henderson, Downing, Suarez, Carroll. Subs: Maxi, Kuyt, Spearing, Carragher, Doni, Kelly, Bellamy.

The pundits on Match of the Day were surprised Bellamy didn't start but I'm not. We're not being overcautious, but this is a balanced side. It's 4-4-2 and there's some nice balance here. I like it. Having Bellamy and/or Kuyt would disrupt the balance in that team and I think it's important today to get on that pitch, maintain possession and go forward when we're in full control. This team allows that. Bellamy can come on later if we need an injection of pace in the squad. 

1' - JOHNSON! He hit the bar! So close! Gerrard on the rebound and it's over. What a shot by Glen Johnson! Both teams had a good attack then and we almost scored! 

3' - They just mentioned Johnson being an FA Cup winner when Portsmouth beat Cardiff here a few years ago. I live in Portsmouth and I can tell you, that was a special win for the south coast team. I'm not a Pompey fan but I was really happy for them. I want a taste of that tonight for my team! 

6' - We're piling the pressure on early, two corners didn't really get that close to their goal, but we're on top at the moment. We need to keep on this pressure early on, hopefully it'll lead to an early goal. 

9' - The pressure is off a little at the moment, but there's a long way to go. What matters is that we win, not how! 

12' - Another corner for Liverpool, Carroll is penalised for a push on a Cardiff player. 

15' - Carroll has an effort at goal and it's over the bar. 

17' - A nice bit of movement from Henderson, Johnson and Suarez and Suarez chips the ball to Carroll who has a troubling yet tame effort on target,


18' - GOAL! Joe Mason. We're behind. Martin Skrtel heads the ball back to a Cardiff player, the ball is played to Miller who passes to Mason, who clips the ball past Reina. Awful defending all-round.

21' - That was a poor bit of defending. Credit where it's due Cardiff passed the ball nice and slick for the goal, but our defence was asleep. I can't believe we're behind. 

21' - Agger doing one of his vintage runs down the the centre of the pitch and his shot is blocked by a defender.

22' - Possession is 65%/35% to Liverpool. Yet we're behind. We need to get back in this match, thankfully there's a lot of time to go. 

25' - We're all around their box at the moment, lovely work from Downing who backheels the ball to Jose Enrique into the box. We pile in their box but Cardiff deal with the pressure. 

28' - Downing loses his defender again and crosses low into the box again, it misses everyone, only Carroll was in the box that was in a Red shirt. It was a good ball from Downing, who's definitely winning the battle on the left flank at the moment.

31' - Handball claims in the Cardiff box but it was too quick in my eyes for it to be a penalty.

31' - ADAM! So close! A low drive from Adam and it's just wide. Good effort.

33' - We're still piling forward but with not much intensity. Cardiff are defending well. Hopefully we can equalise before the second half, it's important that we do in honesty. 

36' - They just showed John W. Henry and his wife Linda in the stands. Man Linda is so hot. Lucky man. 

38' - GERRARD! Over the bar! Downing plays well again on the left flank, twisting and turning his defender out and he whips the ball into the box, Suarez, Carroll and Henderson all miss it and it comes to Gerrard outside the box and he shoots high above the bar. Great chance. 

41' - Suarez has been a nuisance a few times in the box today, but he's not controlling well enough to make opportunities to score. Hopefully he can continue though, he's a pain to deal with for defenders. He takes a shot in the end but it's tame and saved by Heaton. 

43' - Free kick, Gerrard takes it and it's inch perfect for AGGER who heads it straight at Heaton. Gutted, that was a great opportunity to equalise then. 

44' - Gerrard gets the ball in the box but can't control it and shoots high. Three defenders were in Gerrard's way. 

45' - One minute of added time. 

45+1' - Half time.

Well what happened? They got a goal, we couldn't score. Not much else to say in that respect. We've had a few chances but nothing clear cut, we haven't been clinical enough in front of goal. It's been the story of the season but if there's one match, one game of football where we need to right that wrong it's TODAY. We need to score. It's as simple as that. We haven't been bad but we haven't been good enough. Cardiff are defending very well. This needs to chance. I really hope we can avoid embarrassment today. Come on Reds! Please! 

48 ' - Miller! Just wide. Cardiff make a nuisance of themselves in and around our box and Milelr takes a chance from outside the box and it's just wide. Not the start we wanted, Cardiff are in our faces at the moment. 

49 ' - Suarez makes a nuisance on himself and intercepts the ball in the box! He shoots across the face of goal and it squirms under Heaton, then Cardiff clear! Unlucky! 

51' - Henderson is the first for a yellow card for a clumsy challenge. He's had a poor game today.

54' - The game is opening up a little, but we're still not really taking the game by the scruff of the neck yet. 

57' - Liverpool Substitution: Craig Bellamy comes on for Jordan Henderson. Says it all really. Henderson has been poor. Bellamy cheered by both sets of supporters due to his strong connection there. 

59' - GOAL! Martin Skrtel! Our eight corner of the match and Suarez gets on the end of it, it hits the post and then Skrtel shoots low into the box! Great finish!

61' - Finally, an equaliser. Hopefully we can now work for a second goal. No mistakes can be afforded now. 

63' - Skrtel's fourth goal of the season. He's had a brilliant season, both defensively and attacking for a defender. He's been a rock for us. Excellent player. Thanks Rafa! 

64' - Mason has a decent effort at goal, but it's met well by Reina. 

66' - The winds are definitely changing at the moment, we're really going for blood at the moment. It's about time, but we need to make sure we're not left open at the back. 

69' - A few more corners for us but with no end product. We're still the better side though. 

71' - Gerrard knocks a forearm into the back of Gunnarsson's head. The ref didn't see it, poor from our captain. I don't think it was intentional but it was dangerous. 

73' - 89,041 is the official crowd total today. Great work from both sets of supporters!


73' - SKRTEL! Great save from Heaton. It was a snap shot at short distance for Skrtel, that Heaton saves low  to. Good effort again!

74' - 21 shots on goal for us, and only 4 on target. Story of our season in a way, lots of effort but no product. But now is not the time to be negative, we need to score again! 

77' - Mark Hudson has gone down with cramp and we kick the ball out. Boos from some of the Reds faithful. Poor reaction from our own, we should respect things like this, if the boot was on the other foot we wouldn't like it if Cardiff continued. 

77' - DOWNING! Great save from Heaton! Downing takes a low driven shot through the Cardiff defence and Heaton just sees it in time to make the save. Great effort from Downing, who's been my man of the match so far for me. Great effort from Downing today. 

79' - Free kick in a dangerous area for Cardiff, Peter Whittingham shoots and it hits our defence and out. 

82' - TURNER! Just wide! Don Cowie whips the ball and it curls round the Reds and Turner heads the ball just wide. That could have been an upset if that went in, thankfully it didn't.

86' - Liverpool Substitution: Daniel Agger leaves the pitch with an injury, and Jamie Carragher takes his place. 

87' - MILLER! Just above the bar! Cardiff free kick and once again our defence is asleep and Cardiff take advantage, Miller shoots hard and high and thankfully it was just over the bar. Come on Reds! Seriously! 

89' - Free kick for Cardiff and Jamie Carragher doesn't give them the ball! I think his message was because we weren't ready to defend the kick.

90' - Four minutes of added time.

90' - Suarez is on his own up front and is onside! Three Cardiff defenders catch up with him and he takes a shot that's well over the bar.

91' - Corner for Liverpool and it's passed to Johnson who sets Gerrard up for a belter outside the box and it's over the bar. Good idea, but its execution wasn't what it should have been. 

94' - Ten seconds remain and Gerrard delivers a long ball to Downing who puts his hands in his face because he failed to control the cross. Full time. 

Thirty minutes of added time to go now. The main thing is we got the equaliser. We still have one substitution left, Cardiff have all three. You have to give it to Cardiff, they've worked their asses off today to get to extra time. But we need to finish this match off. I really don't want it to go to penalties, despite being confident in a shootout situation. I want us to win on goals scored not penalties. Let's hope we can finish them off in these 30 minutes. Come on Liverpool!

90' - Cardiff Substitution: Filip Kiss comes on for Joe Mason.

90' - Bellamy takes a corner and SUAREZ heads it and Andrew Taylor clears it off the line! So close again! 

91' - Gerrard shoots from outside the box again and once again it's well over the bar. He's not been very clinical today our captain. I dare say he's not had the greatest of games in honesty, but we need him on that pitch that's for sure, in games like this.

94' - Free kick, Gerrard takes it and Suarez frees from his marker and volleys just wide. He was offside anyway, but great movement from the Uruguayan. 

97' - That's an odd statistic, Kuyt has the longest Liverpool career without winning a medal since Emlyn Hughes, in six years without a metal. It's true though, since he joined we haven't won any trophies. 

98' - Kiss gets a yellow card after his little tussle with Craig Bellamy.

99' - Cardiff Substitution: Mark Hudson comes off and Anthony Gerrard comes on, whose cousin is our captain Steven.

102' - Downing takes another corner and Carroll heads it backwards towards goal, a good effort. That's his last touch of the match.

102' - Liverpool Substitution: Andy Carroll comes off and Dirk Kuyt comes on. Carroll's had a mixed game, not as good as recent weeks. 

103' - BELLAMY! Just over the bar! A great one-two with Kuyt and he makes some space and curls a right footer just over the bar. Best effort from the Welshman so far. 

105' - One minute of added time. 

105' - JOHNSON! Just wide again. Lovely work from Adam who set up Johnson, his shot was nice and clean but just wide. 

105+1' - Half time.

Nothing much different to report, it's been pretty much all Liverpool with no end product. It feels destined for penalties, the way it feels at the moment. Hopefully that won't be the case, and we can score in the next fifteen minutes. 

Cardiff Substitution: Kevin McNaughton comes off in place for Darcy Blake. Cardiff and Liverpool have now made all their substitutions.

106' - Kuyt loses his defender and is free! He puts the ball square across the penalty box and it's just slightly behind Suarez, who tries to adjust but can't. Great effort from Kuyt, unfortuante of Suarez not to be positioned correctly!

107' - GOAL! KUYT! COME ON KUYT GET IN THERE! Kuyt shoots and a defender clears poorly back to him, and he shoots hard and low to the bottom corner!

110' - We need to be patient and careful now. We can't let this lead slip. 

113' - Haha, sorry, you've got to love OptaJoke on Twitter, check this tweet:


"55 - Dirk Kuyt's first attempt on goal was going 55 metres wide. Rebound."


Follow OptaJoke @OptaJoke, they're really funny.

115' - Cardiff are on top at the moment, trying their best to equalise. We're defending well enough at the moment, but they've just won a corner. 

117' - GOAL! Ben Turner. Three corners in succession for Cardiff, they almost score from the second corner and Kuyt clears it off the line, but that third corner was the same, we couldn't clear and they bumble it into the box. Penalties loom.

120' - One minute of added time. 

120+1' - Full time. Penalties.

Amazing match, Cardiff have been amazing. Penalties now. I can't believe this match. I'll cover the penalties on this site as well. I'm in bits at the moment. Horrible feeling, although as I said I'm comfortable with penalties, Reina is usually very good at penalties.

• Gerrard to take first. SAVED! Tom Heaton! Amazing save! Gerrard top corner and it was amazingly met by Heaton! Instant pressure for Liverpool! 
• Kenny Miller to take now. He hit the post and out! YES! 0-0 still! Stalemate still! 
• Charlie Adam now... WELL OVER THE BAR! WHAT THE HELL!? 
• Cowie now to take for Cardiff and it's in the goal! 1-0 to Cardiff on penalties. Not good. 
• Kuyt now for Liverpool, come on Kuyt! Kuyt scores! Thankfully! Now we need Reina to save.
• Rudy Gestede to take now for Cardiff... and it hits the post! 1-1 now after three attempts each! We're back in it! 
• Stewart Downing now and he scores! We take the lead in penalties! 
• Peter Whittingham now for Cardiff... he scores. 2-2 now with one penalty each remaining. 
• Glen Johnson now to take. Come on Johnson! He scores! Cardiff NEED to score now! 
• Anthony Gerrard now... and he misses! LIVERPOOL WIN THE CARLING CUP!

We did it! What a match! Emotions were everywhere and I'm so proud that we've won. Great credit to Cardiff who worked as hard as they could to cause the upset. We put in a lot of effort today and it felt like it wasn't going to happen, especially when we missed our first two penalties. But we did it, and hopefully this can now be the catalyst for more trophies. Hopefully we can win the FA Cup later on this season. It's about time we won a trophy. Now we want more! Carling Cup winners. Amazing. Thanks for joining me today and if you're a Liverpool fan, enjoy your celebrations!

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Live Thoughts: Manchester City vs Liverpool (Carling Cup)

I covered this match live. Here are my unedited thoughts when Liverpool took on Manchester City in the Carling Cup semi final.

Hey there and welcome to another Live Thoughts post. I haven't been writing much recently because I have a lot going on in my personal life. I have a lot planned but my time to get things done has decreased a lot. I also have Skyrim now and naturally I'm erm, addicted. Anyways this is a very important match and a win or a draw tonight will make the game very exciting when we take City back to Anfield.

If you're new to following Liverpool this is probably a great feeling for you. However if you're a long term Kopite, you'll know this feeling very well. It's a nice feeling. Dare I say it, a nostalgic feeling. This Carling Cup semi final, over two legs, is exactly the type of game Liverpool want to be part of week in, week out again. It's like the old Champions League classics we had from two years ago to seven years ago. Those were great times, and it's only now that it's not a regular thing at Anfield do we realise how much we miss it. That's why we need to make the most of this Carling Cup semi final. Not that I don't have faith in Liverpool, King Kenny or the owners, but who knows when we will be back in the Champions League. No one knows the answer and while we all hope it's next season, we can't bank on it. So let's make the most of this Carling Cup semi final folks, it'll be a great set of matches, providing we don't get our behinds handed to us anyway!

Here are the teams:

Manchester City: Hart, Richards, Savic, Lescott, Clichy, Barry, de Jong, A Johnson, Milner, Balotelli, Aguero. Subs: Pantilimon, Zabaleta, Kolarov, Onuoha, Hargreaves, Nasri, Dzeko.

Aguero ripped our defence to pieces last week and we need to make sure that doesn't happen again. What Balotelli will turn up today is anyone's guess. Dzeko also was dangerous last week and surely will come on later on. This is such a strong attacking line up. We have our work cut out for us tonight and we need to make sure we don't have lapses in concentration like we did last time. It's time for us to show the reason why our defence was the strongest in the Premier League for the first half of the season.

Liverpool: Reina, Johnson, Skrtel, Agger, Kelly, Downing, Henderson, Gerrard, Spearing, Bellamy, Carroll. Subs: Doni, Enrique, Coates, Kuyt, Carragher, Adam, Shelvey. 

It's as strong a line up we can probably offer. Enrique on the bench is interesting, does he have a knock? I didn't hear anything. But Kelly comes on in the left back position in his place, otherwise it's a strong Liverpool line up. Gerrard back in the side is going to make a big difference, and hopefully he'll be THE difference today. We'll see.

1' - My bad, Johnson is playing on the left not Kelly. Both can play both positions well so I don't mind, as long as they're happy. 

3' - Great chance for Carroll! He loses Savic and is through on goal but his shot is saved to Joe Hart's feet!

4' - Balotelli makes a run down the right wing and Skrtel times his tackle very well. Excellent tackle. 

7' - We're actually quite well at the moment, City are taking their time to influence the game. I hope it doesn't backfire, but we're looking good. 

10' - Gerrard takes a nice shot from distance and it was close to going in! I think Hart would have got it anyway! 

10' - Another great save from Hart for Carroll! Another corner and Agger WINS US A PENALTY! 

12' - GOAL! Gerrard scores from the spot! Too easy. Joe Hart went in the right direction but Gerrard's shot was low and hard to his left. Perfect spot. Fourth goal of the season for Gerrard And we're a goal up away from home! 

15' - A decent City attack, Adam Johnson whips in a cross for Balotelli and Reina punches it away, but only in the direction of Aguero who's half volley is poor by his standards. 

18' - Carroll takes the ball to the left wing and lacks control to keep it, and Savic intercepts with ease. The City fans cheer sarcastically. At least Carroll is trying! 

21' - Spearing has gone down and Charlie Adam has been told to get ready to come on. Not good. 

22' - Liverpool Substitution: Jay Spearing walks off gingerly and Adam takes his place. No news on the injury Spearing has at the moment. 

23' - It looks like Spearing's hamstring. He walked off better than most people with that injury do. Hopefully it's only a few weeks rather than the usual six for this type of injury. 

26' - Gerrard is playing very deep, spraying the ball to the attacking third. He's been doing what Lucas has been doing all season. It'd be awesome when we have Lucas back and Gerrard can go forward more. But for a match of this magnitude, having Gerrard back is important. He can always go forward when we have dominant possession. 

28' - Adam and Balotelli collide and it's a free kick for City. Adam appears to be saying something to the Italian and he retaliates. Luckily James Milner is there to stop Balotelli from reacting for too long. I really hope Adam didn't say anything racist because I'm fed up of the controversy at the club.

31' - Possession is 50%/50% at the moment. We've definitely been the better side, although the game has calmed down recently. There hasn't been too many major chances in honesty. 

34' - I just realised, Balotelli is captain for City. Really? Okay. 

34' - Carroll! Just wide of the post. A very good effort, Kelly crosses from the right and Carroll connects very well, he's not that far into the box but it was a very good effort. I wasn't sure Hart would have got to it. 

37' - I'm getting the feeling City might end this half the stronger team. I feel them starting to look dangerous. 

38' - Manchester City: Substitution: Balotelli comes off with an ankle injury, and Samir Nasri takes his place.

40' - Downing and Henderson combine well to put City's defence under pressure, it came to nothing but it was good to get a nice few interceptions there. Psychological pressure in football is very important. 

42' - Nasri takes a shot and it deflects and a lovely save by Reina! Nasri does something that City have barely done in the past 42 minutes and that's actually take a shot at our goal.

44' - A lovely run by Micah Richards, he nudges Glen Johnson out of the way and goes down the left wing and a brilliant cross to Milner who scuffs the shot terribly! What an awful attempt that was by Milner! Great run by Richards though. 

45' - Three minutes of added time. 

45+2' - Adam Johnson wins a free kick right outside the box just before half time. Last kick of the match I'd say. 

45+3' - Johnson takes the free kick and it curled very nicely, but it was thankfully, ultimately, over the bar. Half time. 

This has been a good half for us so far. Defensively we've looked pretty solid and we got the penalty early on. But it's early days, we need to keep tight in the back and go forward when we can. Now that we have a goal advantage we have something to defend. We need to keep this very strong side at bay, and we have so far. 45 minutes of hard work for Liverpool, and hopefully, even harder work for City.

48' - One thing I've noticed today is that we're not giving them much space on the wings to cross the ball. Two of our goals last week were conceded from good delivery from corners and the wider areas. It's good. 

51' - No major danger at the moment but once again you are getting the feeling City might start to take the game to us soon. I certainly hope not of course, and that we start to hopefully put them under more pressure. It'd be a brilliant result if we score a second and don't concede.

53' - Aguero gets through our defence for the first time in the match but Skrtel recovers and City earn a corner. 

54' - The game has really up a gear the past few minutes, both sides are going for it. The first half for the most part was quite a bland affair for the unbiased fan. 

55' - Kelly struggles a little and passes back to Reina but Aguero intercepts and is on his own! He takes on Reina on the right hand side of the penalty box but thankfully shoots over. That was very poor from Kelly, thankfully it was dealt with enough by Reina. 

58' - RICHARDS! Excellent save by Reina! Richards gets a clean header from the corner and Reina saves low to his body. Brilliant stop, a stop thoroughly redeeming from his mishap last week. 

59' - Liverpool Substitution: Jose Enrique comes on for Stewart Downing. A tactical decision obviously, it's welcome by me. 

62' - They show Vincent Kompany on screen, they've definitely missed him today. Kompany was absolutely amazing against us last week, it was welcome news that he was suspended as a biased Liverpool fan.

64' - A cross comes in from the right hand side and Johnson at short range chests it down for Reina. It was a bit nervy but ultimately a great defensive movement. 

65' - A City attack ends with Aguero taking on three Red defenders and turning them inside out, but the shot was tame and saved by Reina comfortably. 

65' - Manchester City Substitution: Adam Johnson, who's not had the best of games, comes off for Edin Dzeko. 

68' - I just want to say, we've defended absolutely brilliantly for the past 68 minutes. Very little has come past us and what has, Reina has dealt with or the shot was poor. It's been a fantastic display from the Pool so far. 22 minutes to go. 

71' - Manchester City Substitution: Nigel De Jong comes off and Aleksandar Kolarov comes on.  De Jong is another player who's been sub par today, in fact, I'd say most of the City players have been. It's good for us obviously.

72' - All the City subs have been used by the way. We have one left. 

75' - Well the game hasn't been the best to watch but as long as we win does it matter? The quality of matches go out the window when you win the big ones. 

77' - Ball possession for the second half is now 65%/35% in City's favour. You wouldn't think it based on the fact that they've barely threatened all match. 

79' - Liverpool Substitution: Craig Bellamy comes off for Jamie Carragher. Another defensive move that I'm in favour for. Bellamy has been surprisingly quiet today. Carroll has been more effective which is saying something. 

81' - City are trying to put some pressure on us but we're defending very well. A tame Milner shot is deflected and goes for a goal kick. 

84' - I just can't believe how crap City have been today. Sorry. I'm just being frank. I just hope they don't prove me wrong now of course. 

85' - Samir Nasri gets a yellow card for getting in Carra's face. Carra's usually the heated type of player but he kept his cool with considerable ease in that situation. 

88' - Liverpool fans start up "You'll Never Walk Alone". It must be the end of a Liverpool win surely? I hope so. 

90' - Three minutes of added time. 

90' - AGUERO! Just over the bar! A free kick from the left and Aguero connects perfectly, but it's just over the bar. Relief!

90+3' - Full time! 

Well it wasn't the best match you'll see all season and we won by 1 goal but WOO! We're hopefully one step closer to a cup final! An away win in the Carling Cup doesn't guarantee anything but it's definitely going to make the match easier at Anfield. I really want us to win this cup. Yes it's the Carling Cup. Yes it's not the Premier League. But we'll take any trophy and then move on from there I'd say. And a win against City at their stadium is a great result, especially as they beat us 3-0 last week.

My man of the match? Glen Johnson actually. He was defensively sound today, and while I haven't really mentioned him much he did a job at left back and crunched into a lot of tackles, disrupting the play considerably. Everyone goes on about his attacking ability from the back but today he proved he can defend well. All the defence was great today, Skrtel had a very good game too and Reina made some good saves. It was a professional performance.

City were awful. The leaders of the Premier League should have done much better today. They barely turned up. I think it was an off day, I'm sure they'll be more than ready when they come to Anfield. The game at Anfield will be difficult, but I'm sure the Kop will be rocking, because as I said, it's like a Champions League fixture of old. We'll be ready.

That's it from me today, have a good night!

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Inactivity

Hey there, I just wanted to put something up on my site saying I'm not going to post anything until Wednesday now. I've had a lot of personal issues that needed and resolving and had intended on putting up my WWE Music Mixtapes yesterday and today but it's not been possible.

I'll be back on Wednesday to cover the match between Liverpool and Manchester City in the Carling Cup semi finals. On Friday I'll put up the next round of the WWE World Championsip Knockout Game and then on Sunday I'll then sort out the Mixtapes.

Take care of yourselves and come back here on Wednesday!

Johnny Mercyside.

Live Thoughts: Chelsea vs Liverpool (Carling Cup)

I covered this match live. Here are my unedited thoughts when Liverpool took on Chelsea in the quarter finals of the Carling Cup.

Hey there, welcome to another live thoughts feed. We're in the quarter finals now of the Carling Cup, and we're up against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, in a rematch from the Premier League just nine days ago. And while we won that match with a pretty damn good display, this is a different kettle of fish. I'm really looking forward to this match actually. Kenny Dalglish complained (and rightfully so) about the stupidity of us playing two high quality matches in three days. It is silly. How are they going to keep up with the integrity of the cup if they don't give the first team the chance to recuperate? It's nonsense. So we'll see a lot of youngsters today I reckon, and Andre Villas-Boas has hinted he will too. So it's going to be a very interesting match, and I can't wait to watch it. Can we win? Well we did nine days ago, but just like it was then, it's going to be very hard, and some achievement too. Let's hope we get to the semi finals!

Here are the teams:

Chelsea: Turnbull, Bosingwa, Luiz, Alex, Bertrand, Lampard, Romeu, McEachran, Malouda, Torres, Lukaku. Subs: Hilario, Ivanovic, Ramires, Mata, Ferreira, Kalou, Anelka.

A weakened side for Chelsea, as expected, but this team can still cause us problems if needed. Lampard, Torres and Alex are the three players in the spine of the squad that can easily cause us issues. Wary.

Liverpool: Reina, Kelly, Carragher, Coates, Jose Enrique, Henderson, Lucas, Spearing, Maxi, Bellamy, Carroll. Subs: Doni, Suarez, Kuyt, Downing, Adam, Skrtel, Flanagan.

A strong side. Not the strongest, Suarez, Kuyt and Adam on the bench, but a lot of these players saw decent minutes on the pitch on Sunday. Lets hope fatigue doesn't hit the squad and instead we show the same form we did nine days ago! Interesting!

2' - David Luiz fell in the box and gets a yellow card for diving! Was it a dive? It was Coates in the box for the tackle. He was definitely looking for the penalty, and it looks like the ref was right.

5' - It's nice to see Bellamy back on the pitch, he just has raw pace that is hard to be equalled in our squad at the moment. While we're on the subject, my thoughts are with the family of Gary Speed, what shocking, flabbergasting news on Sunday. Such mysterious circumstances.

8' - It's also good to see Carra and Spearing getting some first team football too. Carra obviously, recovering from an injury and Spearing finding it difficult to get games this season what with the abundance of options in the centre of the pitch for us.

10' - A nice tussle between Martin Kelly and Ryan Bertrand ends in a Liverpool corner, which leads nowhere.

12' - The crowd is absolutely dead at the moment, apart from the Liverpool away crowd booing Torres whenever he has the ball. Stamford Bridge is awful when nothing is going on, and the crowd roars only when there's good action. Naive crowd.

14' - Chelsea starting to get a bit of possession in and around the final third. It's not leading to any major chances yet but the signs are there.

17' - There's so much talk about Carroll and Torres, it's a little frustrating. Everyone but Chelsea and Liverpool fans care about the transfer fees. Let's get something clear, it wasn't about the fees, it was about getting Torres out of Liverpool, and us making the most of a crap situation. Carroll hasn't scored many goals but I think long term he'll be okay.

20' - PENALTY! An odd situation. We break and it ends with Alex and Carroll tussling and Alex handballs, with only Carroll really claiming for it. After around ten seconds, the ref awards it and Chelsea players protest.

21' - SAVED! Carroll shoots right down the middle and Ross Turnbull saves. Awful AWFUL penalty. I didnt' trust Carroll with that, his shot isn't very clinical, I'd rather had someone likle Belammy take it. Well, that's that over. We've apparently missed three out of four penalties this season.

24' - One thing the penalty has done is liven things up. The game is a lot more open now.

27' - The game as I said is a step up in intensity than it was, both sides are going for it. Not full throttle, but definitely second or third gear.

30' - While the match has stepped up there's a lot of sloppy passing from both sides.

33' - Florent Malouda goes in the book for a tackle on Lucas.

35' - Chelsea are just starting to get on top at the moment, it's not clinical but the possession is definitely there.

38' - Both sides are trying to break the other down with no major chances. There hasn't been any clear cut chances all match, apart from the penalty save.

40' - Jose Enrique takes a shot at goal from the left wing, and it's easily saved. Nice to see us try though.

41' - Chelsea Sub: Ramires comes on for McEachran, who has been struggling for a few minutes now.

43' - Foul for Liverpool as Lukaku tackles Henderson awfully. It wasn't him that got booked, it was Bertrand that got booked. Odd. It was an awful challenge and the wrong player got booked.

45' - Three minutes of added time.

45' - LUKAKU! Just wide of the post. Best chance in the game so far. A cross is whipped from the left wing and Lukaku meets it and heads it wide. Should have done better.

45+3' - Half time.

This was a pretty dire first half. Neither side took control, neither side looked like scoring for the most part. The good news is that we're matching Chelsea all over the pitch. The bad news is that penalty miss. It was an awful miss. Carroll shouldn't be taking penalties, he doesn't look clinical in the face of the penalty box, Bellamy should have took it. Lukaku's header at the end is the best chance from open play. Those two chances aside, very little happened in terms of good attempts at goal. Let's hope for a better game in the second half, and hopefully we can show to quality in our play. We're still more than in this.

48' - Haha, odd statistic, Bosingwa has played eight times against Liverpool and has never won. Also, Kenny Dalgish has never lost as manager against Chelsea.

51' - Liverpool under a little bit of trouble, Torres dribbles the ball into the box and there's a scramble, which we eventually clear.

52' - A decent Liverpool move ends disappointingly with Bellamy trying his luck from the right wing, it goes well over and wide. The game is a lot more open at the moment, let's hope it continues this way.

54' - Chelsea free kick ends in a scramble and hits the BAR! We're saved by our post.

55' - Maxi breaks free! Bellamy to his right but Luiz intercepts. There was a good chance there that wasn't taken.

56' - Jose Enrique handballs at the corner flag and Torres protests, nothing comes of it. It was handball to be fair and it wasn't given.

57' - GOAL! MAXI! Henderson releases Bellamy on the right wing and there's loads of space in the box! He puts the ball square to Maxi who slots it in! 1-0!

60' - I was about to suggest that Suarez came on before we score, as the game was opening up and it would be a game that suits him more. But now we're ahead I think we should refrain from using him for as long as possible.

62' - GOAL! Martin Kelly! An absolutely splendid cross from a free kick by Bellamy is plonked on Kelly's head and he finally scores for the Reds! We have one step in the semi finals!

63' - Chelsea Substitutions: Anelka and Mata come on for Lukaku and Malouda. Chelsea have made all their subs.

65' - Ramires tackles Lucas badly and goes in the book.

65' - Bellamy has a shot from distance and Turnbull saves it with ease. Kelly scores for us finally. He has been scoring with some ease for England, it's about time he scored for us. He kissed the badge too. I really hope and expect big things for young Kelly's career with us. Homegrown talent.

67' - Lucas is having some problems, he tackled Mata and came off worse. I hope he's okay.

69' - Lucas came back on the pitch and then fell back down to the floor. He's really not good. It's suggested that it might be ligament due to the way he's reacted to the tackle. I certainly hope not. Either way Charlie Adam is about to replace him.

71' - Liverpool Sub: Lucas is stretchered off and Adam takes his place. I really hope it's not as bad as it looks. Lucas has been absolute boss this season, he's just Mr Consistent, a tacking and passing demon in the middle of the pitch.

71' - Torres takes attempts a header and it's easily saved by Reina.

74' - Anelka has space on the outside of the penalty area! Reina runs at him, Anelka nutmegs, the Reds defence block the goal and Carragher clears. Close one!

75' - TORRES! WHAT A SAVE! Chelsea Corner and it was a fantastic effort from Torres, but it was an even better save from Reina!

78' - Liverpool Sub: Dirk Kuyt is coming on for Craig Bellamy, who has been absolutely dynamite today. Probably man of the match for me. Dirk Kuyt is coming on, who's a better defender than the Welshman.

81' - Chelsea for the past five or ten minutes have been on top but without being clinical. They haven't really took their game that much better than the first half, where as we have and got two goals as a reward. But let's not tempt fate here, if they get one goal the game would be horrible to watch for us Reds.

82' - Coates has had some praise from the commentators, and to be fair he's had his best game in a red shirt. I've been quite critical of Coates in recent Live Thoughts feeds, but the truth is that he's very young and has a lot of time to develop. This is definitely a step in the right direction.

83' - The kopites are singing "You'll Never Walk Alone" a bit too early for my liking!

84' - Chelsea fans are leaving early. Good times.

86' - Torres tries to time his run against the Liverpool defence but he's just offside.

88' - Liverpool Sub: Martin Skrtel comes on for Maxi Rodriguez. A good move by Dalglish. Maxi has been effective for the most part and his goal was very important naturally. All the subs have been used.

90' - Four minutes of added time.

90+1' - We've beaten Chelsea three times in a row since Dalglish has been in charge. Isn't it wonderful?

90+2' - Now the Reds fans are singing "You'll Never Walk Alone", now is the right time!

90+3' - Torres is offside and he attempts for goal anyway, only to put it over the bar. I can't help but laugh.

90+4' - Full time!

We're in the semi finals! It's been a long time coming but we're finally in a semi final in a competition again. Let's hope we can win the Carling Cup! We beat Chelsea to get here, surely, on our day, we can take on anyone. We haven't lost to Arsenal, Man City or Manchester United this season, we drew them all. I have a good feeling about this competition. Let's hope my gut feelings are right.

As for the performance, well, it wasn't the best, we played well enough today, where as Chelsea were dire. We had a good rally in the start of the second half, and we were suddenly two goals up. After that, well, it was a crap game again. The first half was crap, and we missed a penalty. Carroll needs to keep away from the spot kicks I'd say. Bellamy is better. Speaking of Bellamy, he's my man of the match. He was quality all night, and his second spell at Liverpool is turning out to be much more worthwhile than his first. No he's not starting every match, but when he plays he's very often effective and sticking to his purpose with a maturity and quality. That's it from me, have a good night.

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Live Thoughts: Chelsea vs Liverpool (Premier League)

I covered this match live, here are my unedited thoughts when Liverpool took on Chelsea.

Hey there thanks for coming onto this page. Very important match tonight. If we win today itll be some statement, and will move us closer to the Top 4. A loss will mean we have some work to do, to catch the elite in the Premier League. Torres who? Nah, I'm through criticising him now. I just hope he has a rubbish game.

I was thinking earlier in the week, what are your thoughts about Dirk Kuyt and Luis Suarez up front in attack? I think those two have a great understanding, more so at the moment than Suarez and Carroll. It will also open up a space for Jordan Henderson for the right of midfield. Let me know your thoughts below. This is in general by the way, not just this match.

Here are the teams:

Chelsea: Cech; Ivanovic, Luiz, Terry, Cole; Ramires, Mikel, Lampard; Mata, Drogba, Malouda. Subs: Turnbull, Bosingwa, Romeu, Meireles, Sturridge, Anelka, Torres 

Strong. Very strong. It's possibly the strongest lineup they could do to be honest. Drogba's not on form at the moment thankfully, but their midfield of 5 can easily turn into a midfield of 3 and 3 attackers in an instant and they're difficult to break down as always. We have a strong test on our hands. Torres and Meireles on the bench.It means for a lovely reception later on of course, if Torres comes on.


Liverpool: Reina; Johnson, Skrtel , Agger, Enrique; Kuyt, Lucas, Adam, Rodriguez, Bellamy; Suarez. Subs: Spearing, Doni, Kelly, Carragher, Henderson, Downing, Carroll.


I think this is going to be 4-4-2 with Bellamy up front, and Maxi on the wing. Interesting. Carra and Carroll on the bench and Bellamy and Suarez will be tricky for Chelsea's defence, although it means that they'll be depending a lot on the midfield. Can we win? Sure, but it's not going to be easy.

1' - They're talking about Lampard scoring against Reina last week. There wasn't much Reina could have done about that, although some people feel otherwise. 

2' - Suarez almost let in Maxi and Terry brought him down, arguably a foul. Terry's hurt his arm. 

4' - This will be a good preview for when we take on Chelsea in the Carling Cup quarter final. We go away to Stanford Bridge for that too. 

5' - Haha, that's an interesting statistic, Kenny has never lost to Chelsea as manager. Different times now though, to the eighties. But it's still a cool stat.

6' - There's a "Just Can't Get Enough of Luis Suarez" chant, bizarre that we're making so much noise in Stanford Bridge. No wait, it's not surprising. I keed I keed! 

8' - Lucas and Charlie Adam double team against Ramires, it looked a little nasty. Unintentional though. 

9' - Malouda whips in a long, deep cross and Mata couldn't make the most of it. A lovely cross then by the Frenchman. 

11' - MIKEL! Saved by Reina. A stinging shot from about 25 yards out is pushed over the bar by Reina. It was a straight shot, but there was a lot of power in that. 

12' - The ball is laid nicely for Bellamy down the left wing who cuts towards the post, and tries to snap pass to Suarez, but Ivanovic intercepts for a corner.


13' - Glen Johnson has a nice run down towards the penalty area and almost scores! The ball ends up with Cech, in safe hands. A very open, attacking game so far, for both sides.

16' - Yeah, nice to hear about Suarez scoring for in a match for international duty. If only he can do it for us! That'd be awesome. Tonight please? 

17' - Charlie Adam, with pace, intercepts a ball into space and tries to cut the ball to Suarez who was free on his tod up front, but he was just offside. Shame. 

19' - Drogba takes on a few Liverpool players and falls down to a challenge. A little desperate, but it gives Chelsea a free kick in a dangerous position. 

20' - JEEZ! A lovely free kick form Drogba was on the wrong side of the post! Reina had no chance and looked absolutely no chance. Drogba thought it went in, everyone did! Thankfully it didn't.

23' - This has been a very entertaining game so far, both sides going for it, and both could have scored. Chelsea have been slightly better overall though, but if we score, naturally everything will change. 

26' - Black armbands are worn today by Liverpool players because of the unfortunate death of Brad Jones' son passing away from cancer. He was six. 

27' - Suarez is put through! But he had a few options, and chose the wrong ones and Chelsea intercept. Lucas then brings David Luiz down, who makes a meal of the challenge. 

28' - Lucas goes into the book for his challenge.

29' - Suarez tries to take on two or three Chelsea players and more options open up, but he's selfishly trying to take on all the players and Cech gets the ball. He's not making the right options at the moment. 

31' - Brilliant attacking play by Liverpool! We pin Chelsea back to the final third, lovely passing from Enrique, Bellamy, Suarez and one or two others! We pin them back, a nice roar of applause by the travelling Reds! Come on you red men! 

32' - GOAL! MAXI RODRIGUEZ! Adam intercepts off Mikel, passes to Bellamy who runs forward, a one-two with Suarez lets in Maxi, who pokes it past Cech! 1-0 Liverpool! 

34' - I saw Maxi on the starting lineup and I thought it was a bold move, but I also knew it could be one that would work, his trickery and scoring ability when on form is a constant threat for Liverpool. It's only his second goal of the season, that being said he's only played five times due to Bellamy and Downing being preferred.

36' - A corner for Chelsea allows Terry to get a header but it's put over for another corner. Ivanovic gets close this time but once again it's dealt with. Goal kick.

38' - All of a sudden our squad looks like it has good depth again. Not in the starting 11 are are Gerrard, Henderson, Downing and Carroll for attacking options. It's good.

39' - Lucas gets angry for a decision going against him. He needs to be careful, it does feel like the Chelsea players are targeting him today, in terms of getting him riled up. He needs to 'calm down, calm down', Scouse style. 

41' - David Luiz is in the book, he tries to take on three Liverpool players in his own third, loses interception and takes a Red down clumsily. How bizarre! Just clear the ball from your half mate! 

42' - Petr Cech has an adaption on his mask to protect his nose, he got hit by Yakubu when Chelsea took on Blackburn. I wouldn't be surprised if he wears a helmet next season. This should suffice.

45' - One minute of added time. 

45' - Glen Johnson brings down Malouda on the left wing. Last attack for Chelsea in this half. 

45+1' - Drogba takes it, Johnson heads it over, corner. Nothing comes of it and it's half time.

A great first half. From an unbiased perspective you've had two sides going for it not full pelt, but with enough energy that it's very entertaining. After around half an hour of back and forth action, we start to build a bit of lovely attacking play and get the goal. The last fifteen minutes was basically frustration for Chelsea, and us trying to get a second, not dominantly but with more ease than before. Hopefully this type of play will continue, and if Chelsea continue to implode internally, we can get the three points today. Come on!

45' - Chelsea Substitution: Daniel Sturridge comes on for Mikel, who had a pretty bad first half.

48' - DROGBA! Just over the bar! That could have been in! Thankfully not. 

49' - Juan Mata comes close by Skrtel makes sure it goes for a corner. Some strong attacking play from Chelsea in the start of this half. 

51' - Torres is still on the bench, Sturridge is on, I wonder if this is because it's Liverpool playing or because he's genuinely not considered the best option off the bench? 

52' - Some lovely footwork from Jose Enrique there, it didn't lead to anything really, but I just thought I'd go on record here by mentioning it. He's had a great season for us, flourishing as our left back. 

54' - GOAL! Chelsea equalise. Daniel Sturridge gets the ball in the back of the net, Florent Malouda storms down to the left of the penalty area, and whips a cross towards Reina's left post and Sturridge clips it in. Shame. 

55' - Free kick in a dangerous area and DROGBA! Reina saves it very well. Our lead could have been made into a losing position in two minutes then, if it wasn't for Reina. Frustrating, things were looking so well 15 minutes ago. 

57' - Chelsea are definitely on top now, what a half time team talk can do to a world class team. We look like a shadow of the tenacious side of the first half. Come on Liverpool, shake it off! 

59' - Suarez goes for goal and it goes wide. Should have done better with that effort. 

59' - Malouda takes on Glen Johnson and whips in another dangerous low cross and Skrtel puts it over for a corner. Malouda's such a threat at the moment. 

61' - We try to break up Chelsea's play and successfully do. Skrtel storms forward and Ramires takes him down, and gets booked. Good stuff, let's hope we can break their play up more. 

62' - A long Chelsea ball is dealt with by Reina, kind of, Drogba challenges him and the ball ends up in the air, and Reina volleys it out of our third. Bizarre, but dealt with. 

63' - Dirk Kuyt goes in the book for pulling a Chelsea player back. 

65' - Liverpool Substitution: Jordan Henderson is coming on and Bellamy is coming off. He had a good first half. I think this means that Maxi is going to the left, and Henderson on the right. Kuyt up front? 

67' - The atmosphere is absolutely electrifying, we have a great match on at the moment and both sets of supporters are in good voice. 

69' - Malouda with the volley! Wide of the post! That was an exceptional piece of skill to control the ball in the penalty area, he chested it and tried the bicycle kick. It almost paid off. 

72' - The game has lost some of the excitement from earlier but it's still a good game. Chelsea look the more likely to score, although we have recouporated a little now. We look more defensively capable that's for sure. 

74' - Torres warms up to a mixed reaction. Chelsea fans still haven't warmed to him and let's not get started with Liverpool fans!

77' - Liverpool Substitution: Stewart Downing comes on for goalscorer Maxi Rodriguez. I think we're going for the draw now, or at least the less risky. 

80' - Charlie Adam with a free kick, it goes for a corner. Another corner won by Suarez. Chelsea clear. 

81' - Torres is looking likely to come on.

83' - Chelsea Subsitution: Raul Meireles comes on for Ramires. And Fernando Torres comes on for Didier Drogba. Mixed reactions... awkward...

85' - KUYT! Just wide! He just couldn't curl the ball past Cech's left post, gutted! 

88' - GOAL! Glen Johnson! What a solo effort! Johnson does one of his runs that usually don't end well, but guess what, this one does and we're back in front! Woo! He past both Ashley Cole and Malouda in that!

90' - Liverpool Substitution: Andy Carroll takes Luis Suarez's place on the pitch. All six subs made.

90' - Three minutes of added time. 

90+1' - It is true, all this talk of Torres and Meireles, and an ex Chelsea player scores. It's great. Johnson has been very good for us, despite not scoring often for an attacking pacey full back. 

90+3' - Full time!

What a win! We nabbed that in the end to be honest, Chelsea were all over us for the most of this half. Yet we dug in, dug through, and got the goals. Johnson's goal is probably the best goal of Liverpool's season so far, seriously, check it out later tonight if you haven't seen it. The way he drops the ball, cuts out Cole and Malouda and clips it past Cech is amazing. We were better in the first half than the second, probably outmatching Chelsea overall. In the second half we got pushed around and they could have scored three or four if it wasn't for better accuracy or our defenders and Reina being on decent form. And then we nicked it in the end. Excellent! A great statement! Let's hope we can go on a good run now! That's it from me, have a good night.

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Live Thoughts: Stoke vs Liverpool (Carling Cup)

I wrote this live. Here are my unedited thoughts when Liverpool played Stoke in the Carling Cup.

Hey everyone, welcome to another one of my Live Thoughts feeds. I'm sorry I missed this weekend's action, I had family over and was occupied all day. I'm not going to be covering the weekend's action that's to come either, I'm away from Saturday to Thursday with an important trip. Where am I going? You'll find out in a few months.

Onto the football now. We were disappointing against Norwich on the weekend, and that combined with the fact that we only lost to Stoke a few weeks ago in this stadium suggests there's doubts about the outcome today. All I say is, we were on decent form not too long ago, and I personally think we're a better team than Stoke, no disrespect to them. Yes they are a very tough nut to crack, especially at home, but we can do it. Keep the faith!

Here are today's lineups: 

Stoke: Sorensen, Huth, Shawcross, Woodgate, Wilson, Shotton, Delap, Whelan, Etherington, Jones, Walters. Subs: Nash, Diao, Pennant, Upson, Crouch, Jerome, Palacios.

It's a strong lineup, especially in defence. It's not going to be easy and Jon Walters is turning into a decent player recently. Crouch, Pennant and Palacios on the bench also shows some strength in depth for Stoke. It's still a team we can beat though, if we play our game right. 

Liverpool: Reina, Kelly, Carragher, Coates, Agger, Henderson, Lucas, Spearing, Maxi, Suarez, Carroll. Subs: Doni, Aurelio, Kuyt, Adam, Skrtel, Flanagan, Bellamy.

Who's playing at left back? Carragher? Agger? Kelly? If Kelly is playing left does that mean Carra is playing right? We'll find out soon. I think it's Kelly on the left and Agger on the right. That confusion aside, having Suarez and Carroll up front from the start is great. As much as Carroll is getting a lot of stick recently, I still want and hope that Suarez and Carroll can be a perfect match up front for Liverpool. There's no reason why they shouldn't. Let's give them our support today and hope they both have a great game!

2' - Agger is playing at left back. It's the best option I think, I still don't understand why we don't play Flanagan or Aurelio instead though.

3' - We're playing the better football at the moment. Some early pressure without any threat at the moment. 

5' - The commentator comments on us taking the Carling Cup seriously this season. We have and it's really refreshing. 

6' - Walters! That was close. He drives the ball form the corner of the left side of the penalty box and it dips just over the right side of the bar. 

8' - Suarez! Should have done better. Carroll takes a shot from distance and Thomas Sorensen  palms it low and it comes to Suarez but he shoots wide. He had more time than he thought.

9' - Walters again! Wide. There's a bit of frenzy in the Liverpool box and it ends with Walters on the left side of the penalty box and he shoots it wide. Very lively opening this match on both sides!

12' - Some good passing from Liverpool in the centre of the pitch. We're playing the better football now but it can still go either way based on the attempts so far. 

15' - An opening for Liverpool and we counter attack, Stoke only have two players back but Carroll couldn't control the ball in the box and it dissolves. Shame. 

17' - Carroll! A low header bounces of the ground and it goes straight to Sorensen. 

20' - Yellow card for Carragher. He fouls Etherington and walks off in a huff. 

23' - The game has slowed down a little now. We're still playing a little better than Stoke, but you just can't rule them out. Not after last time. 

25' - Carroll! Saved. A neat bit of football ends in Maxi Rodiguez being surrounded by Stoke players and he shoots, it ricochets off one of the players into the path of Carroll who shoots low and it's saved by Sorensen again.

28' - Kenwyne Jones has gone down and it looks like he's going to have to be replaced. 

29' - I tell a lie, I think he's staying on. 

31' - Tensions are rising as both teams claim fowls for separate incidents.

34' - Stoke celebrate as they head the ball into the net but the whistle blew for a foul in our box. Thank god. 

36' - Kelly! Good shot but saved. Some good attacking football all over the pitch, it ends with Kelly who takes his chance from a good 35 yards out, a low drive to the bottom right but Sorensen gets to it. 

39' - Stoke keep giving the ball away in midfield but we're just not capitalising at all. 

41' - Ryan Shawcross gets a yellow card for a tackle on Suarez.

42' - This match is very similar to the previous match at the Britannia. I don't like that feeling.

44' - GOAL! Kenwyne Jones has scored. A sloppy interception, Coates loses possession and Jon Walters storms down the Stoke right wing and cuts it back and Kenwyne Jones heads it into the bottom right corner. Against the run of play arguably. Frustrating. 

45' - Two minutes of added time. 

45+2' - Half time.

It's been a good first half if you're an unbiased fan. As the match went on we made more and more chances and played better football than Stoke. Then we had the sucker punch at the end of the half. It's very similar to the match earlier in the season when we lost here. We played very well that day but couldn't score, they got a goal and we lost. I really hope this isn't going to be the same outcome.

I don't like being negative in general, especially when it comes to the younger players, but I really don't think Coates is ready for the first team yet. He always looks nervous and concedes too easily, it's disappointingly his fault we conceded that goal, he didn't control the ball and Walters intercepted with some ease. It wasn't good. I'm not going to say "sell Coates" or anything stupid, but I do think he should go to the reserves, build his confidence from the ground, get him used to how football is played in England and then give him some game time towards the end of the season. He's not ready for the first team at all unfortunately.

45' - Liverpool Sub: Martin Skrtel is coming on for Jamie Carragher. It must be because Carra is on a yellow card. I'd rather Coates go off but hey ho. 

48' - Am I being too harsh on Coates? Comment if I am. I try to give the younger players a chance and long term I reckon he'll be a great asset. It's just too soon I think. 

51' - Free kick in a dangerous area for Stoke. Around 25 yards out, central. Spearing is the culprit. 

53' - GOAL! Suarez! Belter! The free kick is dealt with and we slowly counter attack, it ends with Spearing crossing the ball to Suarez who is on the left wing, he goes to the corner of the penalty area and bends it round the defence and into the bottom right corner! Excellent! 

54' - Well we equalised. A quality goal too. We've done more than we did last time we were at the Britannia. That's good. Let's see if we can now get a second! 

55' - Glenn Whelan has been booked for Stoke. 

57' - I forgot to mention, the Stoke fans were starting to boo Suarez in the second half, his response is his fantastic curler. Great stuff. 

58' - Jermaine Pennant is coming on for Stoke. Glad to see he's finally got a club that he seems happy with, and them in return like him.

59' - Stoke Sub: Pennant comes on for Ryan Shotton. Like for like swap. 

62' - Pennant's best moment in a Liverpool shirt? This. 

63' - Stoke Sub: Another quick sub, Cameron Jerome comes on for Matthew Etherington. 

66' - Cameron Jerome will offer more presence up front for Stoke, and with no Carra and a Sebastian Coates who's very green, that could be dangerous for us. 

69' - We could have had a free kick but the ref played on and Carroll was on his own up front, he got pushed to the right wing and we didn't really take advantage of the situation. 

72' - I'd like to hope we can score a second, I'd rather us not go to extra time if we can avoid it. 

75' - Glenn Whelan knocks Spearing over and you can argue he could have been given a second yellow. He's still on the pitch for now. 

76' - Kuyt and Bellamy are warming up. A good move if you ask me. 

77' - Shawcross and Suarez have a few words and one of the other Stoke players moves Shawcross away. That's two games now where Suarez has a sparring partner. He likes to annoy the opposition doesn't he! Just for the record I doubt Suarez said anything racist last week. 

79' - Stoke are starting to pile some pressure. There's been a lot of Rory Delap throw ins the past five minutes. 

81' - Liverpool Sub: Craig Bellamy is coming on for Maxi Rodriguez. A very good move I say. Let's hope his pace and recent goal scoring touch can continue. 

83' - BELLAMY! Hit the post and out! So close! He sets up a layoff with Carroll and shoots low and it was so close! Sorensen was beat! 

84' - GOAL! Suarez! A brace! The ball is headed back to Henderson who whips in a lovely sharp cross from the right and it's a perfect header for Suarez from the left, straight into the net! Great stuff and it looks like we're in the quarter finals!

87' - Peter Crouch is about to come on. His best Liverpool moment? This.

87' - Stoke Sub: Kenwyne Jones is off and Crouch is on. All Stoke's subs are used.

87' - Liverpool Sub: Dirk Kuyt is coming on for the man of the match, Luis Suarez. Of course, he's taking his time to come off. Good times!

89' - There's a huge scramble in the Liverpool box and Crouch scores but he was offside. Very confusing then, so many bodies. 

90' - Four minutes of added time. Yellow card for Robert Huth. 

90+2' - Despite Stoke's dominance since the second goal, we have a moment of attacking football and both Agger and Kelly were high up the pitch. It was good but concerning due to the fact that we need to be careful for the next two mintes. 

90+3' - Nice to see Suarez having a laugh and joke on the subs bench. He usually sulks when he's taken off. I love that guy. 

90+4' - One last Rory Delap throw goes for a goal kick and it's full time!

We're in the quarter finals! All thanks to a certain Uruguayan menace! This is a great result, to go to Stoke, where we earlier lost a few weeks ago, and come back from behind. It's a fantastic result. Stoke played very well today for most of the match and gave us a game. We were definitely the better side though, and if it wasn't for that man, we wouldn't have won. Seven goals to his name now. Luis Suarez is turning into a new Kop hero and I'm so happy he's playing for us rather than against us. That's all from me, as I said, I won't be covering this weekend's game as I'm away, but I should be back the week after. Have a good night.

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Live Thoughts: Brighton vs Liverpool (Carling Cup)

I covered this game live. Here are my unedited thoughts on the match. 

Hey there, welcome to another one of my live thoughts sections. This time I'm covering Brighton vs Liverpool, where I'm hoping the Reds can take one step further to winning a cup. More importantly, I'm hoping this match and performance can start another great run of form, following the horrendous result and display at Tottenham on Sunday.

Here are the teams: 

Brighton: Ankergen, Calderon, Greer, Cook, Vincelot, Buckley, Bridcutt, Navarro, Sparrow, Noone, Mackail-Smith. Subs: Brezovan, Rodriguez, Dunk, LuaLua, Barnes,Taricco, Kasim. 

The south coast team have just been promoted to the Championship after a fantastic display in League 1. Gus Poyet has made quite the impression as a new young manager. They have some decent options on the flanks, let's hope we can cope with that. 

Liverpool: Reina, Kelly, Robinson, Carragher, Coates, Lucas, Spearing, Maxi, Kuyt, Bellamy, Suarez. Subs: Doni, Gerrard, Flanagan, Downing, Wilson, Shelvey, Carroll.

Quite a few changes, as expected. Interesting to have Coates make his first start for the club, but I'm sure he'll impress against a lower league side. Bellamy starting for the first time in his second stint at the club, let's hope he can score tonight. We have some big guns in there, Carra, Suarez, Reina and Lucas are all important first team players. We're going near to full throttle tonight with our selection and I'm happy about that.

2' - Very patient start from Liverpool. I'm sure we'll apply to some pressure soon.

5' - Corner to Liverpool. Bellamy and Suarez had a decent understanding for the moment. Let's hope it continues.

6' - GOAL! Craig Bellamy! Just simple really. Suarez gets the ball on the inside of the penalty box and spots Bellamy's run between two defenders and passes easily through them, and Bellamy slots it past the keeper to the bottom right corner!

9' - Another corner. We're not dominating as such, but we're threatening when we have the ball. 

11' - There seems to be a decent amount of understanding between Suarez, Kuyt and Bellamy. It seems exciting. 

14' - Suarez and Bellamy connect again, Suarez in the middle this time and Bellamy on the right. Bellamy tries to cut a square ball into the penalty area but there's too many Brighton defenders. 

15' - There's some decent counter attacking at the moment from both sides. Both teams trying to make an impression here. 

16' - Maxi crosses the ball over all the Brighton defenders from the right and nearly gets to Kuyt but it's just too long.

17' - Kuyt! Was that over the line? Referee says no. Replays say no as well.

19' - Alan Navarro lashes out at Bellamy. It wasn't dirty, it was frustration. It's proof we're in control at the moment. 

21' - Mauricio Taricco, the assistant manager at Brighton, also plays once in
a while. He's 38 and hadn't played professionally for six years prior to his recent games for the club. He's a brave man.

23' - As the commentator has also said, we're just ripping them in midfield. There's so much space there at the moment it's just too easy. 

25' - We're in total control at the moment. Passing with ease in their half. 

25' - Suarez... that was close. Great movement from Kuyt to find Suarez who just shoots wide of the post.

28' - Coates concedes a corner sloppily. He should have done better. It comes to nothing thankfully.

31' - Free kick to Liverpool. Suarez hit the grass after the ball was played. It's around 25 yards out to the right. Bellamy takes it and Suarez heads the ball and it hits the right left post!

32' - Apparently this is only Reina's third Carling Cup match. I'm sure he played against Exeter so it shows how serious we're taking this competition when we're putting our #1 goalkeeper in this season. 

34' - Pictures of Gerrard warming up. He's getting an applause from both sets of fans. Great stuff. He has been missed, although I do wonder how much he has left long term in his locker. 

36' - Jack Robinson crunched into a 50/50 tackle in the middle of the pitch. Great to see that young kid getting a chance. I say young, he's not much older than me! 

37' - Matt Sparrow! Reina saves it with some ease. It doesn't matter, it's by far the closest they have come so far. 

39' - Tackle from behind on Bellamy by Steve Cook. It was a little reckless and the ref tells him to be careful.

40' - Bellamy! Off the bar! Beautiful attempt! He hits a rocket from the left of the outside of the penalty area and it's an arrow shot that hits the right side of the crossbar! And Matt Sparrow gets a yellow card. 

42' - Penalty claim from Brighton gets nowhere. Will Buckley fumbles to the ground against Martin Kelly and it was a soft fall really. It didn't look like a penalty.

42' - Brighton on the attack. Coates looks uncomfortable in the box again and Reina has to claim. It's not good again from the young Uruguayan.

43' - Spearing! Lovely save by Ankergren! A low drive from spearing to the bottom right corner is saved nicely by the Danish keeper.

44' - Brighton as we approach the end of the first half are starting to gain confidence. 

45' - Two minutes of added time. 

45+1' - Craig Noone! Saved by Reina! Another Brighton player tries for the rebound and Kelly smacks it for a corner. Exciting ending to the half for the wrong reasons this! 

45+1' - There's a free kick just outside our box for Brighton. This looks like the last move of the game and it's over the goal.

45+2' - Reina takes the goal kick and it's half time. Decent performance from Liverpool for 40 minutes. We dominated the game with crisp and precise passing. Their midfield was nothing. We cut through them with such ease. We had a few good chances that we should have taken. Bellamy has had a great game. At the end Brighton gained confidence and had a few decent chances to equalise. We did just enough. We have to score early in the second half I say or this game could turn difficult, with Brighton having a good spell late on.

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48' - Noone! Off the bar! That was close and easily Brighton's best effort so far. Come on Liverpool, get back to the way you were playing earlier! 

50' - They just showed the replay of that belter from Noone. Reina was beaten. It was a top class strike that. 

51' - We're giving Brighton a lot more of the ball in this second half. Not to say they're on top of us, it's around the same at the moment. 

52' - Inigo Calderon works hard and gets into our box and hits a square ball past everyone. They're starting to look impressive now.

54' - Matt Sparrow! Reina saves to the ground. They're now on top of us, I'm sorry to report. Let's hope we can get control again soon. 

56' - Brighton corner. They've been dancing around our box for a good few minutes. It's looking dangerous. Their confidence is through the roof. Nothing comes of it and Reina collects. 

58' - Yellow card for Spearing for as he pulls back one of the players. Can't see who it was at the moment. 

60' - Brighton Sub: Will Buckley, who I believe was the player tugged by Spearing, is replaced by Vicente Rodriguez.

60' - If you didn't know, yes that is THE Vicente. He was a great player a good few years ago. Spanish international. I wonder how good he is now, he hasn't been a prominent player for a few years unfortunately.

62' - The stoppage time earlier seems to have calmed the atmosphere down, which hopefully will come in our favour. Calderon now needs a bit of treatment.

65' - Yeah the game is more even now. Let's hope we can start to take them on again.

66' - Yellow card for Romain Vincelot. 

67' - Vicente has his first proper effort as he dances through a few Liverpool players and dinks the ball just wide of Reina's post. 

70' - The crowd clap loudly as Noone earns a corner. He's been their best player so far. 

71' - The referee stops the play as a fan is on the pitch. 

72' - Steven Gerrard is getting ready to be brought on. Half a year he's been out of action for, too long.

73' - Free kick from around 30 yards out in a central position. Suarez takes it and it hits the Brighton wall and goes high for a corner. 

74' - Liverpool Sub: Steven Gerrard comes on, long overdue, for Luis Suarez. 

77' - Brighton Sub: Matt Sparrow goes off for Kazenga LuaLua, who is on loan from Newcastle United.

79' - Some pressure from Brighton then and we were slightly shaky in defence. We clear it.

80' - GOAL! Dirk Kuyt! First goal of the season for Kuyt, it started off as a Brighton corner and we somehow counter attack and Maxi storms forward and cuts the ball to Kuyt's path who squirms the ball to the leftof the keeper and it hits the right post and in. 2-0!

81' - That was a relief. Brighton were starting to look dangerous again. It should be okay now, unless we screw up.

82' - They announce the attendance and apparently it's Brighton's highest so far this season. Kudos to them, they've been great tonight the fans, and the club as well. It's a good club Brighton. 

84' - Flanagan is about to come on. Good ol' Flanno.

85' - Liverpool Sub: Flanno comes on for Martin Kelly, who has had a great game today, possibly the best player for us, as Bellamy has had a quiet second half all in all. 

87' - Craig Noone has been chosen as Brighton's man of the match. A completely justified choice, he has been a threat for good spells of the game and his belter against the bar was immense.

88' - PENALTY! Spearing was at fault there, a rare mistake. He tries to keep the ball from going for a corner. And Vicente takes the ball before Carra takes him down. Definite penalty.

89' - GOAL! 2-1. Ashley Barnes scores for Brighton. They are being quick to get the game going again, they want the game to go to extra time!

90' - Four minutes extra time announced. 

90' - Yellow card for Lucas, who knocks LuaLua over with some venom near the right corner. That was quite vicious and there's a claim he should be off the pitch. I think it was harsh but not worthy of a red. 

90+3' - Brighton for the most part are putting a lot of pressure on us but Bellamy earns us a free kick. He wines a bit though, which is a bit silly. 

90+4' - Full time.

It wasn't an amazing performance but it was enough. We played some very good stuff in the first half, as we approached half time and the start of the second half Brighton showed some good class and made it a match. As we approached full time we got a second goal, arguably against the run of play before we concede a penalty. All in all I think we were the better team, but were tested tonight. The main thing is we go through to the next stage, and who knows, with a bit of luck and class we can win this thing. Thanks for your time.