11 April 2009 BPL : Liverpool vs Blackburn Rovers
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vs 
Venue : Anfield .
Day : Saturday
Live on Ch-27 !!!
Liverpool did not do Rovers any favour when they promptly beat them 3-1 in 1995. luckily Man Utd could not win their match against Westham and Rovers were champions then.
so don't expect Rovers to do Liverpudlians any favour this time round.
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I think Robbie Fowler in the blackburn squad somewhere..
And is el hadji diouf also there? Stephen warnock also there?
Time for Gerrard to treat his ex-teammates coffee...
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Fowler went to Australia A-League liao .... in Perth i think .
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Still got diouf and warnock to worry about, but I would think its 3 points in the bag.
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3 pts? who care.
man utd already had the bpl cup in the bag unless they slip.
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liverpool can walk all over man utd and real madrid, but blackburn is the kind of team the reds is likely to fumble over.
all fans can sleep for the first half as the action will only come in the second.
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cup in the bag ?
Oh yes , the league cup , alias Worthless Cup , in the bag . That we all know .
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Originally posted by www:
liverpool can walk all over man utd and real madrid, but blackburn is the kind of team the reds is likely to fumble over.
all fans can sleep for the first half as the action will only come in the second.
always the case .... lost to Boro , held by Sunderland , held by MC , held by Stoke summed it all up . -
Ok guys .... back to the drawing board .
Liverpool must bounce back after the home defeat by Chelsea in midweek .
Let's throw the defeat and looked forward to the EPL .
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Rovers Boss is Big Sam.
After Chelsea, Big Sam will know how to score with the zonal defence of Liverpool.
Liverpool players will be saving strength for the match next week.
So, chances of draw or defeat is quite high cos Liverpool dun have a team B.
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Benitez faces conundrum over Gerrard fitness
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has admitted he faces a tough decision over the selection of Steven Gerrard for Saturday's game against Blackburn Rovers.
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Gerrard has a abductor problem
Benitez has revealed that his skipper has been struggling with an abductor problem for a number of weeks which makes it difficult for him to play two matches in a short period of time.
Should Gerrard face Rovers in what is a must-win game at Anfield it will place his participation at Chelsea in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday in serious doubt.
Benitez was quick to insist that it would not be a case of prioritising the league over Europe, but simply looking after the player's interests.
It seems most likely that Gerrard will be named on the bench against Blackburn and will then start against Chelsea, with a week's break before the next Premier League encounter. Thereafter he will have to be nursed through the remainder of the season.
Benitez said: "We were aware of the injury before the first leg against Chelsea. It is not easy for him to play two games in four days with the injury he has.
"The decision I have to make is whether I use him against Blackburn or Chelsea. If we do play him against Blackburn it does not mean we are writing off the Champions League. But we must approach each game on its merits.
"If he feels he can play, then he will and we will assess the situation afterwards. Anything more could be a risk. Maybe we could keep him on the bench and use him if we need to?
"After Chelsea we have a complete week before our next game because the Arsenal home game is the following Tuesday. If he gets injured again he could need more than a week to recover; it is tough call but we will consider all the risks.
"We have been talking about the fitness of players like Steven for a long time, do we have rotation or do we keep our key players on the pitch?
"We have had that problem with Fernando Torres and now Gerrard. We have two games in four days, both very important to our ambitions.
"After that, even if we qualify and have a Champions League semi-final, that is only two more games. We will be playing virtually one game a week and that makes it easier to manage the situation regarding Steven's fitness.
"I have spoken with Steven today and we will do the same tomorrow [Saturday] along with the doctor. If he breaks down now we could lose him for two or three weeks and that would be a serious blow. It depends on him and how he feels.
"There is no priority but we play Blackburn first and that obviously is what we are concentrating on. After that it will be Chelsea. We will try our best at Chelsea, it is not over yet, but we want to be top of the table after our game with Blackburn because that will put pressure on Manchester United.''
Benitez's concerns over Gerrard's long-term involvement in Liverpool's title chase overshadowed any annoyance he may have felt with Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce's claims "he loves a moan and a whinge''.
Benitez would only say: "I would expect to play the game tomorrow and afterwards just talk about football. I will shake his hand, no problem there.
"Blackburn are in a difficult position but they have won some games recently and they have improved. They, too, will have to win against us, it is as massive for them as us.
"But we know they are a physical team. We will try to play football but, if we have to fight for the ball, then we will do that.
"I have seen Sam Allardyce's teams at Bolton and now at Blackburn. I do not expect the style to change very much but I believe it is more difficult to manage at the bottom of the table because every defeat is very negative.
"The pressures there are so much different, losing games there is not the same as losing games in the top half of the table.
"But we will have our confidence back, the team are ready and looking forward to this game.''
Meanwhile, Jamie Carragher believes the clash with Blackburn at Anfield is the most important league game he has ever played in.
He said: "The Blackburn game is the biggest league match of my career right now. I'm not just saying that because of what happened against Chelsea, but the league has always been the priority of everyone at this club.
"In the 13 years I have been involved in the first team, this will be the biggest league game I have been involved in, it really is that important.
"If we win we can go top of the league with just six games to go, and if anyone had told us at the beginning of the season we would be in this position now, we would have been delighted.
"This is a massive chance for everyone at the club and I am sure the fans will create a great atmosphere because they know what is at stake.''
Xabi Alonso agrees with Carragher's viewpoint.
He said: "The Blackburn game is very important for us. I hope it won't be a problem to forget about Chelsea because we are professionals and this is another competition. We still have a chance to fight for the Premier League.
"At home this season we have dropped too many points, this time it has to be different. We have to start very well and play very well to win the game. It's important to do our job and that is to win this game.''
He added: "Of course, there is no doubt Manchester United are still favourites. They have the advantage and we respect that but our job is to try to go for it and fight.''
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Benitez urges players to bounce back from defeat
Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez has called on his players to show their mental strength and return to winning ways in the Premier League on Saturday.
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Rafa Benitez: Wants three points from Rovers
The Reds face Blackburn Rovers at Anfield on Saturday lunchtime knowing a point would, for two hours at least, put them back above Manchester United in the table. And Benitez is eager to heal the scars of the 3-1 Champions League defeat at home at Chelsea on Wednesday night.
Benitez said : "We have an important league game next so we have to be ready. We have two full days to think and plan for the Blackburn game. That is the first priority now.
"Only after that will Chelsea be the priority in the Champions League second leg on Tuesday.
"We will have Javier Mascherano back from now on for both these games and the rest of the season. He is very important to us now.
"We have to believe anything can happen. Firstly we must do the right things against Blackburn and then go to Chelsea with confidence. If we score first there we will be in the game.
"But at Anfield this weekend I know our fans will be behind us again, that is always the case. They will know what the first priority is, and that is to win a league game.
"They know people make mistakes. But they will be determined to help us through this situation.
"To stop the result against Chelsea having a damaging effect on us, we must keep working really hard and prepare properly for the next game.
"We must find the form that we were showing in the recent weeks. We know we can do that.''
Goalkeeper Jose Reina has also called for a positive reaction to the midweek mauling by Chelsea.
Reina could do little about any of Chelsea's goals at Anfield as Liverpool's zonal marking system was twice exploited by Branislav Ivanovic.
"It is Blackburn next, another competition, and we are very much alive in the title race,'' said Reina.
"It is an important game, and early kick-offs are never easy against a rested team so we have to be ready.
"It is our job to be ready. Whenever we lose games you have to come in the next day and forget about what happened so we can try to move forward and improve.
"We now have to prove to ourselves and our fans that we're still there in the league.''
Mascherano will return to the side and there could be a place for central defender Daniel Agger, while full-back Andrea Dossena is also in line for a recall.
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Liverpool seem likely to be without skipper Steven Gerrard for the clash with Blackburn at Anfield.
The midfielder had a scan this week that confirmed a groin problem and he could also miss the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final against Chelsea.
Javier Mascherano returns after serving a suspension in midweek but boss Rafael Benitez may well rest some of his stars ahead of the Chelsea game, with defenders Daniel Agger, Sami Hyypia and Andrea Dossena likely to be involved against Blackburn, along with Yossi Benayoun and Ryan Babel.
"Blackburn are in a difficult position but they have won some games recently and they have improved. They, too, will have to win against us, it is as massive for them as us,'' said Benitez.
"But we know they are a physical team. We will try to play football but, if we have to fight for the ball, then we will do that.
"I have seen Sam Allardyce's teams at Bolton and now at Blackburn. I do not expect the style to change very much but I believe it is more difficult to manage at the bottom of the table because every defeat is very negative.
"The pressures there are so much different, losing games there is not the same as losing games in the top half of the table.
"But we will have our confidence back, the team are ready and looking forward to this game.''
Allardyce faces a headache in attack with Roque Santa Cruz (knee) a serious doubt and Jason Roberts (foot) definitely out.
Centre-back Chris Samba may be called upon again to play an emergency striker's role, at least for some of the match, as Benni McCarthy is the only recognised forward available.
Morten Gamst Pedersen is also struggling with a calf strain but Vince Grella is available again.
Midfielder David Dunn believes Blackburn's Premier League survival will depend more on their matches against teams in the lower half of the table.
"All the games are big, but without sounding too negative about this weekend, games against the likes of Liverpool aren't going to be the ones that keep us up,'' said the 29-year-old.
"It is going to be games like the one against Stoke the week after. They are going to be the games that decide which league we are going to be playing in.''
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Lai
Liverpool gt Reina, Hypia, Jamie C, Xavi Alonso , Gerrard , Torres, Kuyt
Blackburn gt Diouf, Paul Robinson, Ooijer, Jason Roberts,Andrew, Norway Striker and Santa Cruz >? -
Jamie Carragher claims this weekend's clash with Blackburn Rovers is the biggest Premier League game of his career. Liverpool could go two points clear on Saturday lunchtime ahead of Manchester United's visit to the Stadium of Light at 3pm.
It is the first time since 2002 that Carragher has still been involved in the title race at this stage.
Back then, Liverpool stayed on the tail of Arsenal until defeat against Tottenham on April 27.
Carragher knows victory over Sam Allardyce's men is vital if the charge is to last even longer this time around.
"I'm not just saying this because of what happened against Chelsea the other night but the league has always been the priority for everyone at the club," said the 31-year-old.
"In the 13 years I have been involved in the first team this will be the biggest league game I've played in – it really is that important.
"If we win we can go top of the league with just six games to go and if someone would have told us that we would be in this position when the season started we would have all been delighted.
"This is a massive chance for everyone at the club and I'm sure the fans will create a great atmosphere because they know what is at stake."
Chelsea's victory in the Champions League on Wednesday was the first time the Reds have been beaten by a fellow member of the big four this season.
Carragher added: "Sometimes you just have to hold your hands up and say that the other team played well on the night, and this is one of those occasions.
"But it's important to remember that we've now played them and Man United five times this season and we've won four of those games.
"That's a record we can be proud of even though we are obviously disappointed about what happened the other night.
"We've played more than 40 games in the Premier League and the Champions League – the two biggest competitions – and we've only lost three times. One of the most important things is that when we have lost we've tended to respond in the right way by going on good runs.
"That's what we'll be looking to do again and no-one should be too downhearted about what happened against Chelsea because they are a good side who did well on the night. We've still got a hell of a lot to play for.
"The incentive is there for us to go back on top of the league. It may only be for a few hours until United play but you never know, it could even be for longer than that.
"That's how big this game is and that's why I honestly believe it's the biggest we've had in the league since I've been at the club - and maybe for even longer than that." -
1-0!
what a goal from torres!! -
cruz not starting 11 for this game
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wtf! so fast. . .
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2-0!
what a header from torres!! -
Should have been 4-0 at half-time. But at least we are 2-0 up now and cruising to a victory.
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well done agger!
time for pool to close shop n focus on crucial UCL match....
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4-0 pool, Ngog scores with header!
Pool building up a good goal difference...
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Originally posted by hmsg:
well done agger!
time for pool to close shop n focus on crucial UCL match....
nah, i would rather we throw that match away and forus all e way for epl
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5' [1 - 0] F. Torres 
7' D. Agger 
33' [2 - 0] F. Torres K. Andrews 75' X. Alonso 83' [3 - 0] D. Agger 90' [4 - 0] D. N`Gog -
manutd has oldbies like scholes, giggs to help them score crucial goals. Liverpool dont. now go and sleep but stop dreaming about bpl title, okay?