Crouch claims first blood for Liverpool

Kevin McCarra at the Millennium Stadium
Monday August 14, 2006
The Guardian


Make that three defeats in a row for Chelsea. It is an exceedingly
deceptive statistic, yet rivals have to muster hope as best they can.
The champions were overcome in the closing two Premiership fixtures of
last season, once the title had been retained, but the Community
Shield match here yesterday was played in earnest, especially in the
first half.
There was bound to be a snarl to the game, even if this occasion is
prone to being a well-bred affair. Liverpool, after all, are the one
club who always get under Jose Mourinho's skin. The Chelsea manager
had limbered up for the season, though, with an uncharacteristic ploy
as he depicted his club as disadvantaged.


His reckoning was that Liverpool, needing to get into shape for the
Champions League qualifier with Maccabi Haifa, were in better
condition than his own squad, who returned to training later. If the
new rivalry was to see who could seize the role of underdog then
Rafael Benítez was ready with his reply.
Stalwarts such as Sami Hyypia, Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso, plus
the new signing Craig Bellamy, were named among the substitutes. The
first half came close to illustrating that the rapport in Liverpool's
line-up can be worth more than individual merit. Chelsea might argue
that they rebutted that theory since it was the unique quality of
Andriy Shevchenko that allowed them to equalise.

Considering that the Ukrainian cost £30m it is understandable that
there is no one on Liverpool's books who bears any resemblance to him,
yet still the Anfield team discovered within their ranks the means to
win. As Benítez's men have previously proved in the Champions League
and FA Cup, there is no fluke in their capacity to unsettle Chelsea.

The winner came 10 minutes from time when the substitute Bellamy
crossed from the left and Peter Crouch took advantage of slipshod
marking to head past Carlo Cudicini. Despite the welter of players
introduced after the interval to share the workload, Chelsea lacked a
little focus and the impressive contribution of Michael Essien was not
sufficient to halt Liverpool.

Mourinho will have departed reflecting that, for all his fabled
resources, it will be important to get Petr Cech and Joe Cole back
from surgery and injury. He might conceivably make a mental note to
seek conciliation with the disaffected William Gallas. In addition,
Claude Makelele's rest must be well and truly over now.

Even if this game had meandered on to a penalty shoot-out, the
Merseyside supporters would have been heartened. The Community Shield
held a significance for them that was not reciprocated by the other
set of fans. There were great swaths of empty seats in Chelsea's end.
Perhaps the absentees have too much confidence about a season that
begins in earnest next weekend to have any concern over a quaint yet
unimportant trophy.

All matches with Chelsea, on the other hand, are critical to
Liverpool. So enraptured were their followers at Crouch's goal that a
few ran on to the field before being wrestled to the ground by
stewards. Incidents arising at a Community Shield game cannot be
treated as definitive, yet the events in Cardiff, couple with victory
in the 2006 FA Cup final at this ground, do tend to suggest that
improvement is inexorable under Benítez.

Before the interval, they revelled in their own play and had it not
been for the lack of a specialist finisher could have made Chelsea's
position irretrievable. Momo Sissoko was utterly dominant in that
phase and was the outstanding player in the match overall. The
midfielder was critical in imposing an authority that upset Chelsea.

The Premiership champions are not used to such treatment and Frank
Lampard's booking for a kick at Bolo Zenden showed how rattled they
were by Liverpool's aggression. Mourinho, in fairness, did have a
point when he contended that Chelsea are not in peak physical
condition, but Benítez's group are still likely to be formidable even
when rivals are perfectly honed.

The opener, none the less, was a surprise. Shevchenko had almost burst
through after running at Jamie Carragher and Steve Finnan, before
being checked by John Arne Riise. From the resultant corner, in the
ninth minute, however, the Norwegian broke down the right and came
inside to let fly from 25 yards. A firm shot reached the net, even
though Cudicini ought to have parried it.

Liverpool could not quite polish off Chelsea at that stage. Luis
García turned delightfully after 42 minutes to find Mark González but,
homing in with Crouch on the return ball, failed to connect properly
and Cudicini tipped the attempt over the bar. With Shevchenko around,
though, there ought to be double anguish over any missed opportunity
to hurt Chelsea.

The striker was always dangerous in the first half and Lampard picked
him out in the 43rd minute as he slipped into the gap between
Carragher and Finnan. Shevchenko controlled with his chest, raced
through and slipped the ball past Jose Reina as if there was no fuss
about converting such a chance.

That expertise is no shock, but it is gladdening for Mourinho to see
that nothing has been lost in the forward's exchange of Milan colours
for Chelsea's. Having observed Michael Ballack go off with a hip
knock, the Stamford Bridge manager will appreciate that encouraging
sight. Liverpool ensured that there was nothing else for Mourinho to
savour.

Man of the match - Momo Sissoko - At 21 he is becoming more measured
and using the ball better, even if his power remains crucial.
Best moment The tough yet fair tackle on Germany's World Cup captain
Michael Ballack that rattled Chelsea early in the first half.


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Independent:

Chelsea 1 Liverpool 2: Sissoko stands tall in the face of Mourinho's
new muddled army
By Sam Wallace at Millennium Stadium
Published: 14 August 2006


When Andrei Shevchenko was sold the dream of Chelsea's new football
utopia by Roman Abramovich, it cannot have been much like that which
he experienced in Cardiff yesterday afternoon. The Premiership
champions seem to have found winning so easy they have decided to
reinvent themselves for the hell of it, but embracing long-ball
football will not give them the army of converts their ambition
craves.

Yesterday it was not even enough to win them one of English football's
last great irrelevant trophies when Peter Crouch stole in at the back
post to nod in the Community Shield winner 10 minutes from time. No
one, not even Jose Mourinho, was about to deny that Liverpool were the
more deserving winners, and if this match is the great cryptic clue to
the way the rest of the season will unfold then it looked far more
promising for Rafael Benitez's team.

Piece together the fragments of an afternoon where nothing of any
great significance was at stake and the pattern is clear. Benitez's
side looked pacey on the wings with Mark Gonzalez and Jermaine Pennant
and, in Momo Sissoko, had the match's outstanding player in midfield.
Chelsea looked for the long ball without fail and, while no one doubts
they have the players eventually to make this approach work, it will
not be a season of great beauty at Stamford Bridge.

This new dawn must have taken some adjustment for Shevchenko, who
chased down plenty of long balls before, on 43 minutes, he eventually
cradled the best of the lot from Frank Lampard on his chest and
slipped the ball past Jose Reina. Even amid the incoherence of
Chelsea's new approach, the Ukrainian striker was the pre-eminent
player in blue, comfortable and strong on the ball when he was
provided with it.

So what has happened to the width that made Chelsea the home of four
of the world's best wingers last season? Mourinho said after the match
he had decided it was time for a change, although fiddling with a team
that have swept all before them in the Premiership for the past two
seasons is a risky business. If he is being leant upon to play
Shevchenko, and if this system does fail, then it will be some irony
that a player this good was part of Chelsea's undoing.

But it is early days yet and Mourinho explained away some of the more
alarming new problems with another reminder of how little time he had
to prepare his team and what an outrage it was that his squad would be
taken from him this week for international friendlies. Michael
Ballack's day ended on 25 minutes when he appeared to damage his left
hip stretching for the ball, although his introduction to English
football was made particularly unhappy by Sissoko, who hustled and
dispossessed him enough to lure the German into a bad-tempered tackle
that earned a booking.

Ballack, Shevchenko, the new England captain John Terry and Frank
Lampard - albeit still straining for form: it would seem sacrilegious
to doubt this team but they were upstaged for much of a first half in
which John Arne Riise gave his side the lead after nine minutes. When
the surprise substitutes Steven Gerrard, Xabi Alonso and then Craig
Bellamy came on in the second half it was Liverpool rather than
Chelsea who looked like the team with the endless supplies of talent.

Their 11th meeting since Benitez and Mourinho took charge two years
ago was the least important of them all - even the 2005 Carling Cup
final meant more - but they kept up that tiresome charade of refusing
to shake hands at the end. These two foreign managers seem desperate
to retire this old English tradition, although the roots of the
dispute have long ceased to be important. Of the 11 matches, Benitez
has now won three to Mourinho's five.

Against Sissoko, Lampard looked out of sorts before the 17th minute,
when he picked up a booking for kicking out at his former team-mate
Bolo Zenden, a foul that was spiteful, unnecessary and suggested a man
ill at ease with his own form. He hammered one free-kick deep into the
Liverpool fans. But then it was Lampard's delicate through-ball that
set Shevchenko in on goal two minutes before half-time.

Riise's goal was an unusual effort that began in humble circumstances
and ended up a memorable kind of strike. He picked the loose ball up
from a Chelsea corner and ran from deep in his own half before beating
Carlo Cudicini. The notion of shooting only seemed to dawn on Riise
late, when he redirected his run down the wing on goal and hit a low
shot that the Italian goalkeeper should have stopped.

An absence of pace in attack was what Benitez identified as key to
Liverpool's failings last season and certainly Gonzalez is no Antonio
Nunez, the Spaniard who was the most abject winger Anfield has endured
in the modern era. The Chilean crossed for Luis Garcia and Peter
Crouch just one minute before Shevchenko's goal and the two Liverpool
players combined to put in a lame shot that Cudicini tapped over the
bar.

Five minutes after the break Garcia played in Zenden but the Dutchman,
converted to a central midfielder for the day, failed to score.
Gradually Liverpool took hold of the game, with a great roar for
Gerrard as he came on to impose himself. Bellamy's pace embarrassed
Terry into a crude body charge.

It was a fine ball from another new signing, the substitute Fabio
Aurelio, that picked out Bellamy on the left with 10 minutes left. His
back-post cross found Crouch, who beat Terry to the ball and headed
past Cudicini. This, according to Mourinho, was Chelsea at just "50
per cent" of their potential and he fears that after international
week they may be "40 per cent" to face Manchester City on Sunday. But
rarely has he been so relaxed about what he seems to regard as another
anti-Chelsea conspiracy on the fixture list.

In this fixture last year Chelsea came to Cardiff, swept aside Arsenal
and then did much the same to the rest of the Premiership. One year
later life is not so easy, although it will take more than this to
learn whether the gap has closed. Yet even with Shevchenko, Chelsea do
not seem to be making things any easier for themselves.

Goals: Riise (9) 0-1; Shevchenko (43) 1-1; Crouch (80) 1-2.

Chelsea (4-1-3-2): Cudicini; Geremi (Bridge, 53), Terry, Carvalho,
Ferreira (Mikel, 82); Essien; Lampard, Ballack (Kalou, 25), Robben
(Diarra, 63); Drogba (Wright-Phillips, 71), Shevchenko. Substitutes
not used: Hilario (gk), Mancienne.

Liverpool (4-4-2): Reina; Finnan, Carragher, Agger, Riise; Pennant
(Alonso, 59), Sissoko, Zenden (Gerrard, 59), Gonzalez (Aurelio, 56);
Crouch (Sinama-Pongolle 88), Luis Garcia (Bellamy, 69). Substitutes
not used: Dudek (gk), Hyypia.

Referee: M Atkinson (West Yorkshire).

Booked: Chelsea Ballack, Lampard, Diarra; Liverpool Alonso.

Man of the match: Sissoko.

Attendance: 56,275.

Rafa's cups of cheer

Although Jose Mourinho has the better Premiership record against
Liverpool, Rafael Benitez has a hold on Chelsea when it comes to Cup
matches, allowing his London rivals just one win in seven games.

* YESTERDAY (Community Shield)
Liverpool 2 (Riise 9, Crouch 80)
Chelsea 1 (Shevchenko 43)

* 22 APR 2006 FA Cup semi-final
Chelsea 1 (Drogba 70)
Liverpool 2 (Riise 21, Garcia 53)

* 6 DEC 2005 European Cup group game
Chelsea 0
Liverpool 0

* 28 SEPT 2005 European Cup group game
Liverpool 0
Chelsea 0

* 3 MAY 2005 European Cup semi-final second leg
Liverpool 1 (Garcia 4)
Chelsea 0 (Liverpool won on aggregate)

* 27 APRIL 2005 European Cup semi-final first leg
Chelsea 0
Liverpool 0
* 27 FEB 2005 League Cup final (aet)
Liverpool 2 (Riise 1, Nunez 113)
Chelsea 3 (Gerrard 79 og, Drogba 107, Kezman 112)

* TOTAL
Played 6
Liverpool 3
Draws 3
Chelsea 1
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Telegraph:

Lively Liverpool challenge Chelsea to a run for their money
By Henry Winter at the Millennium Stadium

Liverpool (1) 2 Chelsea (1) 1

Using the Community Shield as a yardstick for the imminent Premiership
race is rather like judging Olympic potential at the village fete, but
there were signs yesterday that Liverpool may give Chelsea, the
favourites for a third successive title, a run for their immeasurable
money.


For all the steel-and-velvet excellence of Andrei Shevchenko and
bright promise of Salomon Kalou in Chelsea's attacking surges,
Liverpool thoroughly deserved this victory. Never a work of great art,
the Community Shield went through a brief blue period, particularly
when Shevchenko was rampaging around either side of half-time, but
otherwise Cardiff again belonged to Liverpool.

The FA Cup holders fielded the game's class act in Momo Sissoko, who
took the sight of a Chelsea player in possession as a personal
affront. Echoes of Patrick Vieira reverberated in every tackle, every
break made by the rangy Sissoko.

Rafa Benitez, such a shrewd operator in the market place, also appears
to have recruited well in wide fliers Jermaine Pennant, Mark Gonzalez
and Fabio Aurelio, plus the bullish striker, Craig Bellamy. If Jose
Mourinho's side remain odds-on to retain the Premiership, Benitez's
hungry team at least have a deeper pool of talent with which to
challenge them.

The Merseysiders also deserved to prevail because their supporters
turned out in force, lending a rare lustre to the Community Shield.
Large gaps scarred the Chelsea end, almost as embarrassing and
extensive as the expanses that John Arne Riise and Peter Crouch
exploited in scoring Liverpool's goals.

For those Chelsea fans who did make the trek, Shevchenko was worth the
expense and effort. Many qualities have been bought for £30 million,
notably stealth and intelligence, an adhesive touch and the confidence
of a serial finisher, as seen with his first-half strike.

Chelsea fans were also treated to a glimpse of Mourinho's 4-1-2-3
formation, which allowed Frank Lampard and Michael Ballack (briefly)
to roam forward in front of the anchoring Michael Essien (who did well
as Claude Makelele's deputy). Shevchenko switched between the three
prongs of Chelsea's attack, also dropping deep to good effect.

Until Shevchenko had Roman Abramovich doing a jig in his corporate
box, the first half proved bleak for Chelsea. Liverpool had settled by
far the quicker, given width by Gonzalez and cohesion by Sissoko.

Such was Sissoko's early control that Ballack hit him with a late tackle.

Sissoko responded by catching the German: Welcome to England - or
Wales. Liverpool's brio was embodied marvelously by Riise in the ninth
minute, who seized possession following a Chelsea corner and embarked
on an extraordinary odyssey up the Millennium pitch.

For 15 seconds, the Norwegian left-back raced down the right and then
moved inside, all the while relishing the bizarre decision by Chelsea,
and John Terry in particular, to back off him. Soon, Carlo Cudicini's
goal was within range and Riise let fly, the dip and speed of the ball
deceiving the Italian.

Frustration ate into Chelsea's souls. Only Essien and Shevchenko
seemed at ease. Ballack then hurt a hip and eventually departed, being
replaced by the lively Kalou.

The versatile Ivory Coast player invigorated Chelsea, running at
Liverpool players, signaling his danger with a lovely trick to guide
the ball around Riise. Yet Liverpool were still threatening, and
Cudicini made partial amends for his earlier error with a magnificent
save from Luis Garcia.

Yet Kalou's presence began to stretch Liverpool's defence, creating
space for Shevchenko. Moments after one failed Shevchenko attack,
which had the touring Kopites chanting "who are you?", the Ukrainian
came visiting again, released by a brilliant Lampard pass. With Steve
Finnan slow to react, Shevchenko controlled the ball and placed it
nervelessly past Jose Reina. "Who are you" chortled Chelsea's
followers.

Liverpool enjoyed the last laugh. Aurelio dinked the ball down the
left and Bellamy was away, creating space to cross past Ricardo
Carvalho for Crouch to head home. Having failed to pick up Crouch,
Terry sought to make amends by serving as an emergency centre-forward
alongside Shevchenko.

Defeat was a reminder that Chelsea may not have everything their own
way this season, but the enduing presence of Terry and the
breath-taking, goal-taking purchase of Shevchenko make Mourinho's
champions still the team to beat.

Match details

Liverpool (4-2-3-1): Reina; Finnan, Carragher, Agger, Riise; Sissoko,
Zenden (Alonso 60); Pennant (Gerrard 60), Garcia (Bellamy 66),
Gonzalez (Aurelio 57); Crouch (Sinama Pongolle 88).
Subs: Dudek (g), Hyypia.
Goals: Riise (9), Crouch (80).
Booked: Alonso.
Chelsea (4-1-2-3): Cudicini; Geremi (Bridge 54), Carvalho, Terry,
Ferreira (Mikel 81); Essien; Ballack (Kalou 25), Lampard; Shevchenko,
Drogba (Wright-Phillips 72), Robben (Diarra 63).
Subs: Hilario (g), Mancienne.
Goal: Shevchenko (43).
Booked: Ballack, Lampard, Diarra.
Man of the match: Momo Sissoko (Liverpool).
Referee: M Atkinson (West Riding).

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The Times August 14, 2006


Chelsea ask for time to settle in
By Matt Hughes

Chelsea 1 Liverpool 2


UNLIKE THEIR SHAMEFULLY SPARSE side of the Millennium Stadium, it is
difficult to judge whether Chelsea's glass is half-empty or half-full.
Inspired by Andriy Shevchenko to compete with a Liverpool side
possessing superior fitness and application, the Barclays Premiership
champions conceded an uncharacteristic late winner to Peter Crouch,
but it will take more than this setback for them to lose confidence in
retaining their crown.
Chelsea, with all the comings and goings at Stamford Bridge this
summer, are undoubtedly a work in progress, but questions spring to
mind more readily than answers. There are no signs of obvious
solutions to the problematic pairings of Frank Lampard and Michael
Ballack and Didier Drogba and Shevchenko — no matter how promising the
Ukrainian's performance yesterday — but the deeper mystery is why José
Mourinho should choose to rebuild a team who have been so dominant for
the past two seasons. The Portuguese predicted his side could be even
worse when they face Manchester City in their opening Premiership
match on Sunday.



"Liverpool deserved to win, but a competition over ten months is
different to a game between team A and B," Mourinho said. "If I play
against them tomorrow it will be difficult, but over the season we can
have them. We have ten months to work and improve, although next week
we could be 40 per cent as my players are away. If something happens
in the next two weeks, we lose a match or two points, it's not a
drama. That's why I prefer to play over ten months."

Mourinho has rightly bemoaned the fact that the World Cup has left him
only three weeks and four friendlies to prepare for the new season,
but many of his problems are of his own making. The lack of quality
full backs in his squad is looking ever-more negligent, even
accounting for Ashley Cole's imminent arrival, with Gérémi and Paulo
Ferriera both exposed yesterday, and the task of accommodating Lampard
and Ballack while retaining some width is giving everyone who watches
them a headache. They did little else but pick up bookings in the 26
minutes they played together yesterday, before Germany's captain
limped off with a hip injury that will be examined today.

With Chelsea stagnating, at least in the short term, Rafael Benítez
appears to have used the summer to take Liverpool forward, adding the
crucial ingredients of pace and a greater goal threat to the most
resilient team in the country. Mohamed Sissoko's dominance of midfield
enabled Mark González and Jermaine Pennant to rampage down the flanks,
while the match-winning Crouch also appears a better player for his
mixed World Cup experience.

"I'm happy with the performance of my team," Benítez said. "It's
always important to win against the top teams and it's more important
than the trophy. Last season we had a problem as [Djibril] Cissé was
our only player with any pace. Now we have [Craig] Bellamy, González,
Pennant and other players who can run into space. We have lots of
options. That' s why I say my team is better than last season."

Buoyed by such belief, Liverpool started strongly and deservedly took
the lead through a perfectly worked counter-attack. Lampard's
ninth-minute corner fell to John Arne Riise on the edge of his own
area and the Norway international ran and ran. By the time John Terry
approached him at the other end of the pitch, it was too late, with
Riise unleashing a powerful shot from 30 yards that eluded Carlo
Cudicini. The Italian goalkeeper made amends after 42 minutes, saving
well from Luis García after a cross from González, but with Petr Cech
in the wings, it could be his last mistake for a while.

With little possession to play with, Chelsea were reduced to knocking
long balls forward in hope rather than expectation, although with
Shevchenko chasing them, it is not an entirely forlorn tactic. After
several tame shots, he showed his true self just before half-time,
collecting an angled chip from Lampard cleanly on the chest before
side-footing calmly past José Manuel Reina to score his first goal for
Chelsea. Roman Abramovich looked suitably chuffed with his new toy.

Shevchenko, having broken his duck, looked most likely to shatter the
stalemate, heading Lampard's corner narrowly wide in the 57th minute,
but it was a rather less heralded striker who settled the game. With
the supporters preparing themselves for another unwanted penalty
shoot-out, Bellamy had other ideas, collecting the ball on the left
byline and picking out Crouch, who escaped the attentions of Terry to
head the winner.

The new England captain will hope his performances improve this season
and, much like Chelsea as a whole, he will have to.

Chelsea (4-1-3-2): C Cudicini 6 — Gérémi 5 (sub: W Bridge, 54 5), R
Carvalho 5, J Terry 5, P Ferreira 4 (sub: J Obi Mikel, 82) — M Essien
6 — M Ballack 4 (sub: S Kalou, 26 5), F Lampard 6, A Robben 5 (sub: L
Diarra, 63 5) — A Shevchenko 7, D Drogba 6 (sub: S Wright-Phillips,
72). Substitutes not used: H Hilário, L Diarra, M Mancienne. Booked:
Ballack, Lampard, Diarra

Liverpool (4-4-2): J M Reina 6 — S Finnan 5, J Carragher 6, D Agger 6,
J A Riise 6 — J Pennant 6 (sub: X Alonso, 60 5), M Sissoko 8, B Zenden
7 (sub: S Gerrard, 60 5), M González 7 (sub: F Aurélio, 56 5) — L
García 6 (sub: C Bellamy, 67 6), P Crouch 6 (sub: F Sinama Pongolle,
89). Substitutes not used: J Dudek, S Hyypia. Booked: Alonso

Referee: M Atkinson. Attendance: 56,275



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