After a few weeks off channels that I get, mostly draws that Liverpool Football Club should have won, Fox Sports World finally came through with a Saturday match on the road at Manchester city that was no trouble at all and we ended up on top 3-0. The best thing about the afternoon, against a team fresh up from Division One, was Michael Owen finally getting the ball to go in the net; after getting only one goal (and that on a penalty shot) in the first ten games of the year, Number 10 scored all his side’s tallies for a hat trick.
Abel Xavier was nowhere to be seen, not even on the substitute list, and manager Gerard Houllier had a surprise: he also benched defender Stephen Henchoz, moved Jimmy Traore into center to partner with captain Sammi Hyypia, and moved John Arne Riise to Traore’s left defensive spot. Henchoz was reportedly out due to a strained hamstring. Emile Heskey stayed in midfield and Milan Baros took the other striker spot.
Baros and Owen have major speed and gave the Man city defense troubles all afternoon, though Baros couldn’t find the ball in the second half and made way at 70 minutes for El Hadji Diouf. The Nigerian didn’t score but did show significant improvement in effort from the beginning of the season and after four games on the bench one wonders if he’ll be back alongside Owen in the starting 11 on Wednesday as the Reds host Spartak Moscow in a must-win Champions League game.
Besides Owen, props have to go out to Dietmar Hamann and Danny Murphy in midfield, Riise, Hyypia, and Traore on the backline, and, without question, Jerzy Dudek in goal. Dudek took two major elbows to the head from MCFC’s Marc-Vivien Foe and almost had to leave the game but instead stayed on to bring another clean sheet into the locker room.
The win keeps the Reds second in the Premiership behind Arsenal (who won 4-1 on the road at Leeds) and four points ahead of number three Middlesboro and Manchester United. Only Arsenal and Liverpool have yet to lose a match this weekend; the difference in the standings is one more win for the Gunners. If the boys just hadn’t given up that last minute goal to Birmingham City earlier in the month!
BillSaysThis 
