Bleacher Report - Articles by Rosie Woolnough

My Views On The Start Of Liverpools Football Season

Rosie Woolnough — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 04:33:04 -0400

Hey everyone!

I've just received an E-mail from Barney, which was asking all Liverpool writers to write about their views on the season so far.

So I thought I'd give it a go.

Liverpool started their season with a match at White Hart Lane against Tottenham Hotspur. As soon as I saw this fixture, I had a feeling that the Reds would struggle, just like they did twice last season, in the Premiership and in the Carling Cup, so I felt a bit nervous when the whistle went indicating Kick-Off.

So many thoughts were going through my head.

"Come on Liverpool! Please just win!"

"Oh no, Spurs have scored, Come on! We must equalise"

"STEEVVVIIIEEEE!!!!"

"NOOOOO!!!!! They've scored again" and more...

If I'm honest, I thought that Spurs were all over the Reds for most of the 90 minutes. And I'm sure that if it wasn't for Reina creating some magnificent saves, the Reds would have lost by a lot more.

Overall, very disappointed and upset by the fact that the Reds had lost their first opening game under Rafa, and the fact that we were already three points behind, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United.

Liverpool's second game of the season was against Stoke City, the team that we failed to score against on both occasions last season, with a 0-0 draw, home and away.

For this match, I felt worried, worried that the Liverpool squad is so much weaker than last season thanks to the loss of Xabi Alonso, who I thought was a 'Brilliant' player.

For the start of the game, I was up in my room, listening to the game on the radio. I could hear that Liverpool were having lots of chances. Then a couple of minutes later, the commentator on the Radio said.

"There has been a goal at Turf Moor..."

My heart started pounded. I started thinking "Please don't let it be Manchester United, Pleeeeaaaasssseeee!"

"...and BURNLEY have scored a magnificent goal, well deserved"

I couldn't believe it, a team like Burnley, one of the newcomers to the Premier League, are beating the "Champions" Man United, this is incredible.

Then an even better bit of news came from the commentator on the radio.

"....and it's Liverpool 1 Stoke City 0, thanks to Fernando Torres"

That has got to be the best minute of my life. Man United going down by a goal, and Liverpool scoring. Amazing.

After that I seemed to be a lot more relaxed, and after Liverpool's second, third, and fourth goals, I definitely was.

And as I had heard that Burnley had just beaten Man United, well, it was a great night all round.

As I didn't watch the game, I couldn't wait for 'Match of The Day' to come on.

I thought some of our goals were brilliant, and Glen Johnson is a brilliant player, he played really well, and I hope that he can contribute enough this season to help the Reds do one better than last season and get Stevie G to lift the Premier League title.

I now hope that Liverpool can play very well against all the other teams, just like they did against Stoke, and that we don't repeat our performance against Spurs.

Liverpool's next game is at Anfield against Aston Villa, on Monday, Aug. 24 at 8 p.m.

Liverpool V Chelsea: Pre-Match Stat Attack

Rosie Woolnough — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 14:38:44 -0400

Here are some pre-match stats are the two teams:

Liverpool's European record (overall): Pld 298 Won 171 Drawn 64 Lost 63.

Liverpool's record in European Cup: Pld 167 Won 99 Drawn 35 Lost 33.

Pepe Reina will make his 100th appearance in UEFA club competition.

He will also become the first Liverpool goalkeeper and the sixth player overall to play 50 times for the club in the European Cup.

The next win will be Liverpool's 100th in the European Cup. Their first came in August 1964 when they won 5-0 in Reykjavik.

The Reds are playing in their fourth quarter-final in five years under Rafa Benitez.

Liverpool have met Chelsea in this competition in every season of Rafa's reign.

Steven Gerrard has scored in two quarter-final stages of the Champions League. If he scores in this tie he will equal Sami Hyypia's club record of three.

The Reds have already beaten Chelsea in both league fixtures this season for the first time since 1989-90.

This is Liverpool's 13th European Cup quarter final and they are aiming to reach the semifinal for the 10th time. Only CSKA Sofia (1982), Widzew Lodz (1983) and Bayer Leverkusen (2002) have eliminated the Reds at this stage.

The Reds are unbeaten in the last 32 games at Anfield in all competitions in the last 14 months.

Liverpool are meeting English opposition in a European tie for the ninth time. The Reds have won just four of the previous 16 games drawing seven times.

Steven Gerrard goes into the quarter finals as the joint leading scorer in the competition this season along with Bayern Munich's Miroslav Klose.

If Steven scores again during this campaign he will break the club record of seven European Cup goals in a season currently held by Roger Hunt (1964-65), Gerrard himself (2005-06), Peter Crouch (2006-07) and Dirk Kuyt last season.

Liverpool have won all five Champions League knockout ties under Rafa Benitez when the first leg has been played on a Wednesday.

The Reds have beaten Chelsea in knockout European football in odd years (2005 and 2007) with Chelsea prevailing in 2008.

Steven Gerrard has scored against every team he has faced in Europe this season from the group stage onwards.

He has scored 32 goals in Europe, the most by any British player for one English club. His next goal will take him past Alan Shearer whose 32 goals came with two clubs (30 for Newcastle and two for Blackburn). He is still some way behind Ruud Van Nistelrooy who scored 38 for Manchester United while Thierry Henry has hit the most for a British club – 42 for Arsenal.

Gerrard could break his own club record by scoring in a fifth successive home game in Europe.

Of the eight previous European meetings only Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher have appeared in them all for the Reds.

Steven Gerrard is two goals away from equalling his best ever tally in a season. That was set three seasons ago when he scored 23 times.

Yossi Benayoun's winner at Fulham last Saturday was the 10th occasion that the Reds had scored in injury time this season. They have found the net 26 times in the last 15 minutes.

The Reds have conceded only one goal in the last five games, and none from open play, since losing at Middlesbrough.

They are looking for a sixth successive victory in all competitions which will be their best run of the season.

A win tomorrow night will be their 50th over Chelsea at Anfield in this the 76th meeting on this ground in all competitions.

Chelsea's European record (overall): Pld 131 Won 70 Drawn 36 Lost 25.

Chelsea's record in European Cup: Pld 83 Won 42 Drawn 25 Lost 16.

This is Chelsea's 17th season in Europe and their seventh in the European Cup. They have reached the semi-final in this competition four times, all in the last five seasons.

They are aiming to become the first London club to win the European Cup.

In the first six meetings between the clubs in Europe only three goals were scored. Last season the two meetings produced seven.

All three previous knockout ties between the teams have been decided in favour of the team playing at home in the second leg.

Chelsea are looking for their first away win in Europe since they beat Rosenborg 4-0 in November 2007. Since then they drawn five and lost two.

This season in the group stage they drew at Cluj and Bordeaux but lost at Roma and held Juventus 2-2 in Turin in the last 16.

Ashley Cole last season became the first English player to appear in a European Cup final with two different English clubs.

Deco hopes to join Edgar Davids in winning the Champions League with three different clubs having already won the trophy with Porto in 2004 and Barcelona in 2006. He scored for the Spaniards against Liverpool in 2007 with the Reds coming from behind to win 2-1.

Petr Cech, Jose Bosingwa, John Terry, John Mikel Obi and Nicolas Anelka have featured in all eight games this season while Cech and Terry have not missed a minute.

Guus Hiddink won the European Cup as a coach with PSV Eindhoven in 1988. Only Ernst Happel (Feyenoord 1970, Hamburg 1983) and Ottmar Hitzfeld (Borussia Dortmund 1997, Bayern Munich 2001) have won it with different clubs.

Hiddink has managed in 40 Champions League games in his career, winning 18 and losing 13 while with PSV Eindhoven, Real Madrid and Chelsea.

Chelsea have lost both of their penalty shoot-outs in Europe - both to English clubs – Liverpool in 2007 and Manchester United in 2008.

Didier Drogba made his 50th Champions League appearance against Juventus in the first leg of the last round. He was sent off in last season's final.

The sides have met on 22 previous occasions in all competitions since the summer of 2004. Only two players, Jamie Carragher and Frank Lampard have played in them all.

Chelsea have played 10 games since Guus Hiddink was appointed on February 11, winning eight and losing only once – at Tottenham last month. They have kept six clean sheets while failing to score only once in that time.

The Londoners have never lost a quarter-final to Liverpool. They won at Anfield in an FA Cup tie in 1932 and beat the Reds at Stamford Bridge in the League Cup in 2007 – both by a 2-0 scoreline.

Claus Bo Larsen will take charge of this game. The Dane has referred Liverpool three times and Chelsea twice in the Champions League and neither side has ever managed to win.

He was the man in the middle when Chelsea lost at Fenerbahce at this stage last season. It will be the first time he has officiated at Anfield.

Current leading scorers: (Europe in brackets):

Liverpool: Gerrard 21 (7), Torres 11 (1), Kuyt 10 (2), Keane 7 (2), Benayoun 5 (1), Riera 5 (1), Alonso 3 (0), Babel 3 (1), Aurelio 2 (0), Dossena 2 (1), Hyypia 2 (0), Ngog 2 (1), Agger 1 (0), Arbeloa 1 (0), Carragher 1 (0), Lucas 1 (0), Plessis 1 (0), own goals 1 (0).

Chelsea: Anelka 21 (2), Lampard 16 (1), Kalou 8 (1), Drogba 7 (3), Malouda 5 (1), Ballack 3 (0), Belletti 3 (0), J. Cole 3 (1), Deco 3 (0), Terry 3 (2), Alex 2 (0), Bosingwa 2 (0), Essien 2 (1), Carvalho 1 (0), own goals 2 (0).

Preston v. Liverpool : Pre-Match Stat Attack

Rosie Woolnough — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:11:15 -0500

Here are all the important pre-match stats and facts ahead of Saturday's FA Cup third round trip to Preston.

Liverpool's record in the F.A.Cup: (all rounds including Preliminaries)
Pld. 399 Won: 213 Drawn: 87 Lost: 99 Goals scored: 666 Goals conceded: 377
This game will be the Reds 400th in the F.A. Cup.
The Reds have won the trophy seven times—the last in 2006 while Preston have lifted the Cup twice. In 1889 they completed the League and Cup double, winning the league in its inaugural season.
Then in 1938, with Bill Shankly in the team, they defeated Huddersfield Town 1-0 with a George Mutch penalty in the last minute of extra-time.
Liverpool and Preston have been drawn together only twice before in the F.A. Cup.
In 1894 Liverpool won 3-2 at Anfield in the Second Round.
In 1962 the sides met in the Fifth Round and after two goalless draws, Preston won 1-0 at Old Trafford thanks to a goal from future Reds player Peter Thompson.Both clubs were in Division Two at the time of those meetings.
In the Preston team was Dave Wilson who later joined Liverpool but only made one substitute appearance.
Since winning the Cup in 1992, Liverpool have been eliminated six times by teams from the division below. These defeats were inflicted by:
Bolton (1993), Bristol City (1994), Blackburn (2000), Crystal Palace (2003), Burnley (2005) and last season Barnsley.
Liverpool last went out of the Cup at this stage in 2007, beaten at Anfield by Arsenal.
This is the sixth time in the last seven seasons that the Reds have been drawn away in Round Three.
Liverpool have lost to lower division opposition twenty-two times in the competition while they have also gone out at this stage on twenty-two occasions.
Steven Gerrard and Yossi Benayoun both scored hat-tricks in the Cup last season—the 16th and 17th hat tricks recorded by Liverpool in their
F.A. Cup history.
The last man to achieve the feat away from home was John Barnes in a Third Round tie at Crewe in 1992.
Liverpool have kept only four clean sheets at Preston in the last 39 visits throughout all competitive meetings.
Of the current squad Steven Gerrard with eight, has scored most in the F.A. Cup for Liverpool.

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In 1887, Preston recorded the F.A. Cup's biggest ever victory when they beat Hyde 26-0.
Preston have lost their last 10 F.A. Cup meetings with top-flight opposition.
Since the conception of the Premier League, they have been beaten by Arsenal, Everton, Chelsea, West Brom, Middlesbrough and Manchester City. Seven of those ten defeats have were in front of their home fans.
They last defeated a top-flight team in the Third Round 30 years ago when they beat Derby 3-0 at Deepdale.
Alan Irvine has been in charge of Preston since November 2007 when he left his role as David Moyes' assistant at Everton.
Moyes himself had been in charge at Deepdale from 1998-2002.
This season, Preston have not drawn any of their 15 home games -winning 11 and losing four in all competitions.
Those defeats have come at the hands of Wolves, Swansea and Southampton (League) and Derby (League Cup).
Preston have lost just two of their last 11 games and have won each of their last five at home.
Referee Martin Atkinson was in charge of Liverpool last season when they were knocked out of the F.A. Cup by Barnsley.
Liverpool: Pld 20 Won 13 Drawn 6 Lost 1 Goals For 35 Against 13 Points 45 Position: 1st

Preston: (Championship): Pld 26 Won 12 Drawn 5 Lost 9 Goals For 36 Against 32 Points 41 Position: 7th

Newcastle vs. Liverpool: Pre-Match Stat Attack

Rosie Woolnough — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 20:41:22 -0500

Here are some pre-match facts about the two teams:

Last season the Reds recorded a comfortable 3-0 win at St James' Park. Steven Gerrard scored just before the half-hour mark with Dirk Kuyt and Ryan Babel adding goals after the break.
Liverpool won by the same score at Anfield with goals from Jermaine Pennant, Fernando Torres, and Steven Gerrard.
Liverpool have won 17 and lost seven of the 30 Premier League meetings between the sides.
Liverpool's biggest win at Newcastle came in October 1930 when they won 4-0. Their biggest defeat came in January 1934 when they lost 9-2.
92 goals have been scored in the 30 Premier League meetings between the sides, just over three per game.
The last Liverpool player to score a hat-trick against Newcastle was Michael Owen in May 2001 at Anfield.
Michael scored 13 goals in just nine league games for Liverpool against his current employers.
In four of Liverpool's last five wins over Newcastle Steven Gerrard has scored.
The last Newcastle hat-trick against Liverpool was scored by Andy Cole in November 1993 in his sides 3-0 home win.
The Geordies have won just one of the last six meetings home and away. That was two seasons ago when they came from behind to win 2-1 after Craig Bellamy had given Liverpool the lead.
Danny Guthrie played seven times for Liverpool with his last appearance coming against Newcastle on this ground in February 2007.
Joe Kinnear has an excellent record as a manager against Liverpool. In 19 previous meetings in his career (all with Wimbledon) he has lost just three times and never been beaten at home in nine clashes.
Current League Standings: (up to and including Christmas Day)

Liverpool: Pld 18 Won 11 Drawn 6 Lost 1 Goals For 27 Against 12 Points 39 Position: 1st

Newcastle: Pld 18 Won 5 Drawn 7 Lost 6 Goals For 24 Against 25 Points 22 Position: 12th

Liverpool V Bolton: Pre-Match Stat Attack

Rosie Woolnough — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 20:18:05 -0500

Here are some pre-match facts about the two teams:

Liverpool enter Christmas top of the table for the first time since 1996.
Two wins from the next two games will give Liverpool their best points total in a calendar year for 19 years.
Two points against Bolton and Newcastle will see Liverpool record their best points tally in a single year since 1990.
The Reds are looking to record their 11th league double over Bolton and their fourth in the Premier League following a 2-0 win at the Reebok six weeks ago. Dirk Kuyt headed the Reds into a 28th minute lead and Steven Gerrard wrapped up the points on 73 minutes.
Last season here the Reds won 4-0 with Sami Hyypia, Fernando Torres, Steven Gerrard, and Ryan Babel all finding the net.
At Anfield the Reds have won the last six meetings conceding just one goal.
Liverpool are unbeaten in the league at Anfield in the calendar year 2008. Should they avoid losing today it will be only the second time they have gone a calendar year without losing at home in the league since 1990. The other was two years ago.
The Reds are the only team in all four divisions not to have lost at home this year.
Liverpool's biggest win over Bolton came here in September 1930 when the Reds won 7-2.
Bolton last won in the League at Anfield in January 1954 winning 2-1. Since then they have drawn two and lost 11.
In the Premier League, Bolton have picked up just one point out of 27 on this ground.
Their last goal at Anfield came from Henrik Pedersen in a 3-1 defeat five years ago today—only the second time the sides have met on Boxing Day.
Kevin Nolan is the only current Bolton player to have scored for the club at Anfield. He did so in a 1-1 draw on New Years Day 2002.
Wanderers have won on this ground on Boxing Day. They recorded a 2-0 victory in 1906.
Bolton's last away win on this day came in 1996 when they beat Grimsby Town 2-1 thanks to goals from Gerry Taggart and Nathan Blake.
Matthew Taylor has scored in five Premier League games this season and Bolton have won them all.

Current League Positions:

Liverpool: Pld 18; Won 11, Drawn 6, Lost 1. Goals For 27, against 12. Points: 39. Position: 1st.

Bolton: Pld 18; Won 7, Drawn 2, Lost 9. Goals For 22, against 24. Points: 23 Position: 9th.

Arsenal vs. Liverpool: Pre-Game Stat Attack

Rosie Woolnough — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 19:49:35 -0500

Here are some pre-match facts about both teams :

If Liverpool win today - or at least match Chelsea's result - they will head the table at Christmas for the first time since 1996.
Jamie Carragher is in line to make his 550th appearance for the club and in doing so will become only the ninth player in the club's history to achieve the feat.
Steven Gerrard's next goal will see him join John Barnes in 14th place on the club's all-time goalscorers list. His two goals against Hull last weekend were his 106th and 107th for the Reds.
For the first time since 1990, Liverpool have won six away games in the league before Christmas.
Liverpool currently have 38 points. A draw at least would give the Reds their highest points tally before Christmas for 18 years since they accrued 44 points in 1990. In 1996 they were top at Christmas with 38 points from 19 games.
Last season the sides drew 1-1 at the Emirates. Peter Crouch gave Liverpool a 42nd minute lead before Nicklas Bendtner equalised early in the second half. The game came in the middle of the epic Champions League Quarter-Final matches – a 1-1 draw at the Emirates and a 4-2 win for Liverpool at Anfield.
Liverpool have not won in their last eight league visits to Arsenal.
Both Liverpool and Arsenal have 100% records against the other so-called ‘top four' clubs this season. They have both beaten Chelsea and Manchester United.
Arsene Wenger has won just seven out of 23 league games against Liverpool since he took charge at Highbury in 1996, losing nine.
Against Rafa Benitez, Wenger has come out on top in three of the eight league meetings with three losses.
At Highbury and the Emirates, Arsenal have failed to score only six times in the last 143 league games.
They have lost just three league games at the Emirates since moving from Highbury in 2006. They lost 1-0 to West Ham in March 2007 and this season have been defeated by Hull after taking the lead (2-1) and Aston Villa (2-0).

Arsenal have failed to score in only one of the last 14 league meetings between the sides home and away.
Arsenal's last hat-trick against Liverpool was scored by Thierry Henry in a 4-2 win at Highbury in April 2004.
They have won one of their last four games in all competitions since coming from behind to win 2-1 at Chelsea last month, scoring just two goals in that time – both from Emmanuel Adebayor.

Current League Positions:

Liverpool: Pld 17 Won 11 Drawn 5 Lost 1 Goals For 26 Against 11 Points 38 Position: 1st

Arsenal: Pld 17 Won 9 Drawn 3 Lost 5 Goals For 29 Against 20 Points 30 Position: 5th

Liverpool : We're Five Stars For a Reason

Rosie Woolnough — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 04:22:27 -0500

Over the last few years, I have seen Liverpool Football Club become a much better and stronger team.

Although since 2005 Liverpool haven't won the Champions League again, they have been in another final of the same competition. Against the same team, AC Milan, who have also become much greater since 2005.

Liverpool have won the Champions League more than any other English Club (five times), with Manchester United winning it three times, Nottingham Forest winning it twice, and Aston Villa just the once.

Surely this much prove that Liverpool have a great quality within themselves to achieve things.

In the Premier League, this season (2008-09) Liverpool have beaten the two finalists of this years Champions League, beating Chelsea 1-0, who were the runners-up of the competition, and also have beaten Manchester United 2-1, who were the winners.

Liverpool have been awarded many trophies including becoming league champions (now called Premier League) 18 times, the FA Cup winners seven times, and the League Cup victors seven times.

Now, for the title, "We're five stars for a reason."

Liverpool prove to be a quality club, most times, even if they have lost or drawn games that they really should of won. But doesn't every football team do this?

Saturday 1st November: League Leaders Liverpool Away to Rock Bottom Spurs

Rosie Woolnough — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 00:17:26 -0400

On Saturday, Tottenham Hotspur host Liverpool at White Hart Lane in a fixture that sees the two ends of the table battle it out for the three points that are very much needed by both teams.

Both Liverpool and Spurs have seen a good week in terms of results, the Reds ended Chelsea's 86 home game unbeaten run on Sunday at Stamford Bridge before winning a tricky home tie against Portsmouth on Wednesday night, leaving them three points clear at the top of the league.

Tottenham have stepped their game up a notch since Harry Redknapp took charge as they managed their first win of the campaign with a 2-0 victory over Bolton at White Hart Lane on Sunday. That was followed by an impressive performance at the Emirates as they managed an amazing comeback against Arsenal on Wednesday night to end the game 4-4.

With great attacking players in each squad we know that both Liverpool and Tottenham can score in most matches, but the question must be—will both defences stay intact under such firepower?

Liverpool have 26 points out of a possible 30 and are the only team in the Premier League not to have suffered the pain of defeat so far this season. Tottenham, on the other hand, have lost six of their ten games and have only managed six points out of a possible 30 as they sit bottom of the league.

Will Liverpool stay one step ahead of Chelsea and maintain their three point cushion?

Will Tottenham dent the Red's title hopes and manage to climb off the foot of the table?

We will find out on Saturday at 17:30.

Liverpool 1 : 0 Portsmouth

Rosie Woolnough — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 11:51:36 -0400

Well, there you go, Liverpool win by a goal to nil, AGAIN. Some may go and say that Liverpool are having a lucky streak at the moment, and getting the odd goal here and there, but really they are showing that they are contenders for this season's Premier League title.

Liverpool went into the match knowing that all eyes were on them, as they sit at the top of the league after beating Chelsea 1-0 on Sunday. Liverpool were also without top player Fernando Torres, who has missed a number of games due to an injury sustained while playing for his country.

Portsmouth, however, went into the game with new manager Tony Adams, as Harry Redknapp left for Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend. Portsmouth started the game in seventh position.

In the first half, both teams had opportunities to take the lead, especially Liverpool, as Dirk Kuyt hit the post from 15 yards with a curling low effort.

Liverpool were by far the dominant team, as they took 78% possession of the ball.

At half time it was still goalless.

The second half started with much more urgency from the Reds and Rafa Benitez's men went in search of another win with a succession of high-pressure attacks.

With the Kop in full voice, it seemed only a matter of time until they sucked the ball into the net like the old days, and the status quo was soon restored when Sami Hyypia—who was an assured presence at the back from start to finish—forced Papa Bouba Diop into handling in the penalty area 15 minutes from time.

Steven Gerrard made no mistakes as he fired the ball straight into the back of the net, giving the Reds a 1-0 lead at Anfield, and ensuring that Liverpool remain the only unbeaten side in the Premiership, three points clear at the top of the table.

The Reds continue to march forward as they whip up another win, which now gives them a total of eight wins and two draws. The result keeps Rafa Benitez's men three points clear at the top of the Barclays Premier League, with 26 points from a possible 30.

Out of the 39 of you that voted on my recent poll of who would of won this match, 89.7% of you were right in saying that Liverpool were going to win, so well done !

Premier League: Who Will Be The Top Four?

Rosie Woolnough — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 10:56:10 -0400

Who will this year's "top four" be in the English Premier League?

Currently, the top four are Liverpool, Chelsea, Hull and Arsenal. But it is only nine games into the campaign.

In the recent years, the so called top four have been Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal, even Everton took fourth in the 2004-05 season, forcing Liverpool to settle for fifth.

Tottenham Hotspur also nearly grabbed fourth place, but Arsenal finished just a few points in front.

Hull City, one of the three new arrivals to the EPL, have made a great start as they are equal on points with Chelsea, who last season took second place behind Man Utd.

Hull are currently in third place, with more wins than both Arsenal and Manchester United.

Is it possible for a new arrival to be in the top four, in their first season in the EPL? Well so far, yes it is. But their next two games are against Chelsea, and then they play Man Utd.

Nobody is ever certain who the top four will be at the end of the season, because, at the end of the day, it's down to the best teams that season.

When commenting please say who you think this season's top 4 will be!

Wednesday 29th October: Liverpool Host Portsmouth

Rosie Woolnough — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 22:43:08 -0400

On Wednesday night at eight o'clock, Liverpool entertain Portsmouth on home soil.

With the excitement of beating Chelsea on Sunday still fresh in the mind, there is a lot of talk around Anfield about not getting too carried away as the table leaders build up to the mid-week game.

Jamie Carragher has insisted that as Liverpool sit top of the table, they must not get caught up in the hysteria of the win at Stamford Bridge at the weekend; which saw the Reds move three points clear of their title rivals Chelsea.

Liverpool must now stay focused for the next game, and concentrate on winning another three points to strengthen their position as league leaders.

"We're not going to get too carried away—we're Liverpool," said Carragher. "Don't get me wrong, we're delighted with the win but we're not getting carried away at being top of the league after nine games.''

Portsmouth are currently in seventh place, only one point behind the champions Manchester United, who have a game in hand against Fulham to be played later on in the campaign.

Portsmouth take on the Premier League leaders at Anfield and it will be an interesting match to watch, as it is Liverpool's first game since moving in to the top position on Sunday.

What team will take home the three points available?

Will Liverpool remain the only team unbeaten this season?

Will a defeat to Portsmouth make the points Liverpool collected on Sunday worthless?

All questions will be answered on Wednesday night.

Chelsea's 86 Match Unbeaten Home Record Stopped by Liverpool

Rosie Woolnough — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 11:59:13 -0400

Well, who would have guessed it, Chelsea's run of 86 unbeaten games on home soil has been stopped in its tracks by the "Mighty Reds"—the "Comeback Kings" of this season.

As Liverpool and Chelsea started the game on Sunday at Stamford Bridge, they were both joint top of the Premier League with 20 points each, with Chelsea being in front by a plus nine goal difference.

Chelsea nearly scored their first goal in the match between the top two as early as the third minute, when Xabi Alonso slipped to allow the home team to break through, but thankfully Jamie Carragher was there to strike the ball to safety.

Seven minutes later Alonso's next contribution was, of course, the only goal of the game; an attempt on goal that took a slight deflection off Bosingwa that was enough to send the Chelsea 'keeper the wrong way.

Liverpool had many chances throughout the two halves to double their lead, including an Alonso free kick which struck the foot of the post—leaving Petr Cech a motionless spectator as he could do nothing but watch the ball cannon off the woodwork.

Yes, it is true, at the end of the 90 minutes Liverpool moved to the top of the English Premier League, leaving Chelsea three points behind in second place.

And, of course, Chelsea's unbelievable run of 86 home matches unbeaten—the new league record—came to an end; a record which was previously held by Liverpool.

I, being a Liverpool supporter, was so happy with the final whistle and, for now, I can enjoy looking at the league table and still remain a proud Liverpool supporter.

Since Sunday's match, I have wanted to blurt out so many times that Liverpool are definite contenders for the title this season; but I know that I have to keep it in my heart.

I wouldn't want to say something and then Liverpool's greatest start to a Premier League campaign as well, as their unbeaten run of games so far this season, came to an end.

So, as hard as it is, all Liverpool supporters must not get carried away and start saying that we will win it this year, because you never know, we could jinx it.