Chelsea 1-1 Liverpool – The Reds put in arguably one of their best performances of the season. Unfortunately, it was not enough to secure us the victory we so desperately needed to maintain our top four challenge.
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John Terry gave Chelsea an early lead but after that it was all Liverpool! Steven Gerrard grabbed a deserved equaliser just before half-time and we carried that momentum forward after the break, with our hosts forced to propel wave after wave of attack. We just couldn’t find that winner.
Read the full Liverpool player ratings below:
GK) Simon Mignolet – 6/10
Dealt well with a succession of high balls into the area and bar one dodgy punch had another good game. He could do nothing about the goal, as Lambert lost Terry and virtually allowed him a free-header into the corner of the net.
RB) Emre Can – 7/10
Chelsea appeared to be targeting the young German early on but he stood up to the pressure well. He became better and better as the game went on with a couple of surging runs late on causing no end of problems for them.
CB) Martin Skrtel – 7/10
Excellent at the back, making several crucial last-ditch interventions. The Slovakian is always a reliable presence and the fact that he seems to have gone some way to sorting out Dejan Lovren as well is simply an added bonus.
CB) Dejan Lovren – 7/10
As we mentioned above, the Croatian is looking better and better in a Liverpool shirt, so it’s a shame in a way that the season’s almost over. Nonetheless, it bodes well for next season, where there should be some strong competition for places with Mamadou Sakho back as well.
LB) Glen Johnson – 6/10
Got forward well down the left but lacked the end product that we craved. Whatever you think about Johnson, you can’t question his desire today. This was one of his better performances this season and could also be his last.
DM) Steven Gerrard – 8/10 (Lucas – 79′)
Controlled the tempo in midfield and deservedly grabbed his goal just before half-time. He was jeered all day long by the Chelsea fans but thankfully received a good reception when he was taken off with ten minutes remaining.
CM) Jordan Henderson – 6/10
Provided the cross for Gerrard’s goal and had a couple of other nice touches. However, he was a lot quieter than his fellow midfielders and gave the ball away a little more often than he would have liked. Still decent all in all.
CM) Philippe Coutinho – 8/10
Was the danger-man again for us and definitely outshone Cesc Fabregas, who was lucky not to be sent-off. The Brazilian caused a lot of problems for the Chelsea defence but perhaps should have scored when he instead shot narrowly wide at the start of the second-half.
AM) Adam Lallana – 7/10 (Ibe – 71′)
Promising display again from Lallana, who is almost starting to look like a £25m signing… He’s had a difficult first year on Merseyside, but if he can stay injury-free next campaign then there’s no reason why he can’t push on again.
AM) Raheem Sterling – 7/10
That’s more like it, Raheem! Sterling was back to somewhere near his best today. He was excellent running with the ball, using his pace and directness to cause plenty of problems for the Chelsea back-line. Let’s just hope he wasn’t just turning it on for a potential suitor (via the Daily Express).
ST) Rickie Lambert – 5/10 (Sinclair – 68′)
Put a shift in up front but just doesn’t have the movement of a Suarez or a Sturridge. Picked up a needless booking early on which meant he had to be careful for the rest of the game. Rightly taken off with twenty minutes to go.
Subs:
1) Jerome Sinclair – 5/10 – Didn’t get much of a sniff up top on his Premier League debut.
2) Jordon Ibe – 6/10 – Looked good on the ball but lacks the end product he needs to take him to the next level. Yet.
3) Lucas Leiva – 6/10 – Did his normal job but his introduction came at a strange time, with us needing a goal.
