Liverpool have booked a place in the FA Cup semi-final against Aston Villa at Wembley…
Blackburn Rovers 0-1 Liverpool – Philippe Coutinho produced a lovely one-two with Jordan Henderson before slamming the ball past Simon Eastwood and booking a place at Wembley.
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The Reds endured one or two scary moments but successfully saw out the game to end a mini-run of poor results. We’ll now be looking to put those last couple of defeats behind us and finish the season strongly.
Read the full Liverpool player ratings below:
GK) Simon Mignolet – 8/10
Two more great saves from the Belgian – first to deny Tom Cairney and then to stop Ben Marshall. Held his nerve to deny Rovers goalkeeper Simon Eastwood in stoppage time, as the whole of Liverpool held its breath.
RB) Glen Johnson – 8/10
Used all of his experience to his advantage and stood out tonight. He’s had to deal with a lot of criticism so far this season but he was excellent tonight and may well have booked himself a spot in the team for the next few weeks.
CB) Dejan Lovren – 7/10
Like Johnson he’s struggled at times this season. However, it was a good night for the Croatian, who did well to dominate in the air as Blackburn threw in a number of big crosses for Rudy Gestede and co.
CB) Mamadou Sakho – 5/10 (Toure – 28′)
Limped off mid-way through the first-half with what looked like a hamstring injury, having been very, very shaky up until that point. It’s a big blow for the Reds, who are already without Martin Skrtel and Emre Can through suspension. Let’s hope he’s not out for long!
LB) Alberto Moreno – 7/10
Recovered well from a couple of dark moments against Manchester United and Arsenal, with a quietly effective performance. The Spaniard looked more assured in a more customary left full-back role.
DM) Lucas Leiva – 6/10
Looked far more comfortable than he did against Arsenal, while it was pleasing to see him complete consecutive 90 minute matches following his recent injury problems. Swept things up well in front of the defence.
CM) Joe Allen – 6/10
A couple of shaky moments early on but a decent all-round performance from the Welshman. He kept us ticking over and did everything he needed to do, without particularly standing out.
CM) Jordan Henderson – 7/10
Good work in the build-up to the goal, producing the crucial pass for Coutinho. Looked far more comfortable being back in a natural central role, working hard throughout and ensuring our progress.
AM) Raheem Sterling – 6/10
His threat was marshalled well by the Blackburn defence, who ensured it was a quiet evening for the youngster. Nonetheless, he did cause a few problems with his pace and will be pleased to have left last week’s talk behind him – although for some reason – the Rovers crowd booed him relentlessly.
AM) Philippe Coutinho – 8/10
Got the goal with a moment of brilliance. He went missing too often against United and Arsenal, so the next target for the Brazilian will have to be to ensure that he still makes a difference when his team isn’t on top. Ability wise, he’s completely superb, and his performances in this FA Cup run have been the main reason we’re in the semi-finals.
ST) Daniel Sturridge – 6/10 (Lambert – 85′)
A quiet night up front. His touch let him down on more than one occasion and he was eventually replaced with five minutes remaining. He’s still to gain full fitness, and we probably won’t see him at his devastating best until 2015/16.
Subs:
1) Kolo Toure – 7/10 – Recovered well from his weekend nightmare with a solid performance.
2) Rickie Lambert – 5/10 – Little time to make an impact, although almost scored with his first touch.
