Liverpool 4-1 Steaua Bucharest
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Liverpool ( home ) vs Steaua Bucuresti
Venue : Anfield Road
Thursday Morning
3.05AM
Live on mioTv
Good luck .
Free Live Streaming from http://atdhe.net/index.html
Good Luck !!!
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Reds seek European tonic in front of Kop
After a stuttering start to the domestic campaign, Liverpool should look welcomely at the distraction of a Europa League group stage clash with Steaua Bucharest at Anfield.
An uninspiring goalless draw against Birmingham City precedes Thursday's European clash and in that Premier League fixture, star players Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard were criticised for failing to galvanise their team-mates in a limp display.
However, both stars will be denied redeeming themselves in front of the Kop against the Romanians as manager Roy Hodgson looks to spare his best players the ordeal of an early season slog through the Europa League foothills. That means Torres, Gerrard and even Jamie Carragher are likely to be rested, with new signing Raul Meireles set for a full debut and Joe Cole filling in as he looks to gain fitness upon his return from suspension.
Despite the refreshened player selection, Hodgson will want a good run in the competition after the Reds reached the semi-finals last season, where they were knocked out by eventual winners Atletico Madrid. Hope will be gleamed from the fact that in the only previous meeting between Liverpool and Steaua, during a Uefa Cup tie in 2003-04, the Reds came out on top with a 1-0 win at Anfield after a 1-1 draw in Romania. They can also boast a stretch of 10 unbeaten games in the Uefa Cup/Europa League itself at Anfield.
Returning Giants
Meanwhile, Steaua head into this clash after a solid start to their league campaign. They currently sit in third place after seven games and are level on points with leaders and city rivals Dinamo. New boss Ilie Dumitrescu, club legend and former Spurs and West Ham player, will be hoping to end a barren few years for the most decorated club in the history of Romanian football.
The Romanian giants finished fourth last season but won the last of their record 23 league titles in 2005-06. And the match at Anfield comes at a somewhat difficult spell for the side who have failed to win in their last three matches. Last weekend they were beaten 1-0 at Unirea Urziceni, who Liverpool knocked out of the Europa League at the last 32 stage last season.
However, Steaua have pedigree in Europe and won the European Cup in their halcyon days in 1986 when they beat a Barcelona side managed by Terry Venables 2-0 on penalties after a goalless draw. They followed that up a couple of months later by defeating Dinamo Kiev to lift the European Super Cup. Steaua also reached the 1989 European Cup final but lost 4-0 to AC Milan. These achievements are long in the past though, and any unfounded optimism will be tempered by the fact that the Romanians have never beaten an English side on the road.
TEAM NEWS
Liverpool
New left-back Paul Konchesky should be fit to face Steaua despite failing to last 90 minutes against Birmingham City at the weekend.
Raul Meireles is set for a full debut alongside Joe Cole with Hodgson also giving a chance to youngster Daniel Pacheco.
Daniel Agger is set to return to his favoured position in central defence, while Dirk Kuyt is out with a long-term injury.
Possible starting XI: Reina; Johnson, Kyrgiakos, Agger, Konchesky; Poulsen, Meireles; Pacheco, Cole, Babel; N'Gog.
Steaua Bucharest
Striker Bogdan Stancu is likely to be given the nod to lead the line up front and is the side's leading scorer this season with six goals.
Defender George Galamaz is ineligible, as is left-back Pablo Brandan, and strikers Marius Onofras and Marius Bilasco. All have played in the Champions League qualifiers for Unirea before joining Steaua and are thus ruled out.
Possible starting XI: Lungu; Latovlevici, Alves, Martinovic, Bonfim; Radut, Tanase, Angelov, Vilana, Matei; Stancu. -
Europa League: Liverpool 4-1 Steaua Bucharest - David Ngog and Lucas Leiva see off spirited Romanians after Joe Cole's first-minute opener
Reds triumph without Steven Gerrard or Fernando Torres...
Liverpool's gamble to play a much-changed line-up paid off as they cruised past Steaua Bucharest 4-1 in their Europa League Group K clash at Anfield.
Joe Cole pounced on a defensive error to put the home side ahead in the first minute but Cristian Tanese got the Romanians a deserved equaliser minutes later. But in the second half, the visitors seemed to run out of steam and a brace from David Ngog and a Lucas Leiva thunderbolt sealed another European victory in front of the Kop.
As had been anticipated, Roy Hodgson selected a heavily shuffled line-up in anticipation of the big clash with Manchester United on Sunday, with both Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres rested and Jamie Carragher given a spot on the bench.
Those changes meant a full debut for Portuguese dynamo Raul Meireles, who started in midfield next to youngster Jay Spearing. Ngog was entrusted to play up front alone, although with support from Ryan Babel and the returning Joe Cole. Paul Konchesky passed a late fitness test to continue at left-back.
Steaua also had to make changes with defenders George Galamaz, Pablo Brandan and strikers Marius Onofras and Marius Bilasco all ineligible. But dangerman Bogdan Stancu was present up front to keep Hodgson's side on their toes.
The Reds have won the last six European games on Merseyside and they looked odds-on to continue that record after they went ahead within the first minute of the match.
Defender Octavian Brudan was guilty of putting the Romanians firmly up against it after his disastrous back-pass was easily intercepted by Cole who ran through and finished neatly at the far post.
It was a perfect start and naturally the hosts received an immediate boost in their play, pinging the ball around with aplomb in an unusually subdued Anfield. Spearing was the next to threaten when he was allowed too much space in front of goal and he unleashed a vicious drive that cut just wide of the bar.
But it was all too quiet and something was threatening to happen, and that duly arrived in the 12th minute when Steaua silenced the crowd completely by drawing level against the run of play.
Great play from Stancu saw the Romanian cut through the midfield and slide a ball between the Reds' back-line where Cristian Tanese was all too happy to punish Martin Kelly's neglect and finish neatly into the bottom right corner.
Now Liverpool were in a game and that feeling was reinforced minutes later with Stancu popping up on the right this time and delivering a perfect cross that forced Pepe Reina into a point blank save. Luckily for the Reds, the flag was raised for Pantelis Kapetanos whose effort was ruled out for offside.
But the heavily changed line-up by Hodgson was beginning to show its shortcomings as Steaua began to burst forward at will. Spearing and Meireles were guilty of shrinking in midfield and this allowed Stanislas Angelov space to curl a dangerous ball that forced Daniel Agger to sprawl onto his knees and intercept with a desperate header.
When Meireles did get his foot on the ball he worked it up neatly to Cole but the England international was wasteful when played through into space, cutting into the centre but hitting a tame long-range effort straight into Ciprian Tatarusanu's gloves.
The Romanians were looking the better side but just before half-time, a clumsy tackle from Abrudan on Maxi Rodriguez gave the Reds some hope of stealing a lead, but Konchesky's set-piece flew just wide of the far post.
Lightning start | Cole scored within a minute as Steaua defence failed to Kop on
No changes were made at half-time but Liverpool needed to go up a gear. A glimpse of an improvement from them arrived shortly after the resumption, with Cole bringing down an accurate long-ball before cutting into the centre again and laying off to Kelly on the right of the box. But in space, the local lad could only hit a powder-puff shot straight at the 'keeper to waste the chance.
Minutes later you could sense that Hodgson must have had harsh words for his players' limp display at the interval as they were playing with more purpose now.
The increasingly impressive Cole sparked another attack when he neatly chested down a Meireles lob into the path of Babel whose shot was just about blocked by a desperate Abrudan.
And then minutes later, in the 55th minute, the home side had the breakthrough they were looking for. Maxi produced an inswinging corner and in the aftermath, Kyrgiakos was seen lying on the turf with Pantelis Kapetanos standing over the Greek with a guiltily look. The referee had no doubt and pointed to the spot, showing Kapetanos a yellow for his troubles.
Up stepped Ngog and the Frenchman rolled the ball into the right of the goal to put the Reds back in the lead.
Steaua had certainly lost the zest they possessed in the first period and that was no more apparent than in the midfield. Meireles and Spearing had a better understanding now and the Portuguese was confident enough to start having shots from range. One stinging effort forced Tatarusanu to dive dramatically to his right-hand post.
In what was now a rare attack from the visitors, Steaua had a shot on target with Stancu testing Reina from range, but as the game approached the 70th minute mark it was clear the Romanians had lost some steam.
A good break from the Reds almost punished them minutes later, Babel jinked down the right channel and stood the ball up for Ngog at the far post, but Steaua's defending was adept enough that they only conceded a corner.
Down the other end, Steaua had another attack with adroit footwork from Tanese twisting Agger inside out before curling an effort wide of the left-hand post.
But then Lucas, who had just come on as a sub, sealed the three points with a thunderous long-range effort that clearly delighted watching captain Gerrard in the crowd.
If that didn't make completely certain of the result, Ngog pounced again for his second and to turn the match into a bit of a rout. The young Frenchman can't seem to stop scoring in Europe and his finish from the edge of the penalty area showed a lot of promise, and gives the Reds a perfect start to Group K in this season's European campaign.
