Liverpool vs. QPR: Winners and Losers from Premier League Game
Steven Gerrard scored perhaps his final competitive goal at Anfield to lead Liverpool to a 2-1 victory over Queens Park Rangers on Saturday afternoon.
In his penultimate appearance at the Reds' home ground, the club captain was applauded off after deciding the game with his 88th-minute header, having timed his run into the box perfectly to power home from a corner.
The strike was a sucker punch for QPR, who must have thought they were on course to steal a valuable point when Rob Green saved Gerrard's penalty with just 15 minutes remaining.
Moments before that, Leroy Fer had cancelled out Philippe Coutinho's exquisite opener, but Nedum Onuoha's subsequent dismissal changed the dynamic of the contest and QPR proved agonisingly unable to hold on.
With Southampton losing elsewhere, the victory essentially guarantees Europa League football at Anfield next season. For relegation-threatened QPR, however, the failure to take anything from the game leaves their predicament at the bottom of the table looking bleaker than ever.
Click on for some winners and losers from the game.
Winner: Steven Gerrard
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The nightmare turned into a dream for Steven Gerrard, as Liverpool's captain capped off one of his final (competitive) appearances at Anfield with a late winning goal.
It looked like being an entirely different type of afternoon for Gerrard—who in all honesty did not have a spectacular all-round performance—especially after he missed the penalty that had been gifted to the home side by Nedum Onuoha's clumsy challenge.
Rob Green looked like he was going to be the hero of the day for his team as he parried away what was a distinctly average attempt from 12 yards, until Gerrard popped up minutes later and powered home an unstoppable header from a corner to get sweet salvation.
From villain to hero in an instant, Gerrard was then afforded a standing ovation when he was subsequently withdrawn from the fray in the final seconds.
Gerrard's time at Liverpool might be coming to an end without the trophy that he (and his many fans) will have craved, but this was nevertheless another memorable moment to add to a huge collection of similar experiences.
Afterward, Rodgers told reporters, via the Liverpool Echo:
"It's world class talent. There's a very, very small group of players in that bracket where in the big games they score the big goals and they make the big contributions.
Everyone has seen that throughout his entire career at Liverpool—he missed a penalty and sometimes you think it may go against us but there's no else more determined to score than Steven. It was a very good header.
It's brilliant to get it at the Kop end, it's a real special moment for him, you can see he's still at this level, he's still contributing.
"
Loser: Brendan Rodgers
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Brendan Rodgers was the focus of a high-profile (if unimaginative) protest ahead of kick-off, and Liverpool's performance on Saturday will have done little to convince the section of supporters who are currently disaffected with the Northern Irishman that he remains the best man for the job on Merseyside.
It would perhaps be unwise to focus too extensively on the banner—"Rodgers Out Rafa In"—that was flown over Anfield prior to kick-off, considering that it could be the work of just one disgruntled Liverpool fan with cash to spare (or, perhaps, a ploy from Rafa Benitez himself). Nevertheless, it certainly served as a talking point on social media and inside the ground, further focusing the attention on Rodgers at a time when the team appear to be struggling once again.
Another change of system and personnel—including the returns of Glen Johnson and Rickie Lambert—spoke to Rodgers' current indecision and did not pay off in any obvious way on the day. Liverpool enjoyed plenty of possession but were often lethargic and sloppy in the final third against a QPR side that clearly lacked in quality. It was perhaps the visitors who created the better first half opportunities.
Coutinho's brilliance ensured Liverpool had the lead at half-time, but when Leroy Fer equalised with less than 15 minutes remaining, it did not really feel like Liverpool were on the verge of being robbed. In the end, QPR proved to be the architects of their own downfall, with Gerrard's late rescue act only heightening questions about what exactly the team will do when he is not around next season.
Victory essentially confirms Europa League participation for the Reds next season, and it is unlikely Rafa Benitez will be the man to lead them in that competition next season (even if he could end up winning it with Napoli later this month). Nevertheless, a year on from nearly leading the club to the Premier League title, Rodgers clearly has a growing number of doubters to contend with.
“I thought it was Rafa’s agent in it,” Rodgers said, again, via the Echo. “Football has a short memory, we sat here last year having nearly won the league and now we have planes flying over so you can do nothing about it."
Winner: Rob Green
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Fighting a solitary battle on occasions this season, in a fairer world Rob Green's fine penalty stop from Gerrard would have been a match-saving contribution.
Instead, Gerrard got his revenge barely 10 minutes later, condemning Green and his team-mates to a defeat that you feel leaves them with the slimmest of hopes of a relegation escape.
On a personal level, however, Green may derive some satisfaction from the game. He could do little for either of Liverpool's goals—on both occasions, it was QPR's defending that let them down, although Coutinho's finish was also sublime—but around that he made a number of good, clean saves to keep his side in the contest, with Gerrard's spot-kick the biggest save of them all at the biggest moment in the game.
At 35 years of age, Green is undoubtedly entering the final phase of his career—with his future beyond the end of the season in some question. If QPR go down, then they have youngster Alex McCarthy on the bench— a fine prospect who it would perhaps make sense to make No. 1 next season (indeed, it might make sense to promote him even if they stay up).
A number of Premier League clubs might need experienced back-up goalkeepers next season—least of all Chelsea, should they offload Petr Cech. If that is a possibility, and an opportunity that Green is interested in (he would hardly have to upend his life), then this performance would have done a lot to convince the Blues, or another side that feels it needs two top-class goalkeepers, that Green would be a capable understudy for their first-choice.
Loser: Nedum Onuoha (and QPR's Defensive Concentration)
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Nedum Onuoha seemed to lose his head completely in the second half of the game at Anfield, picking up two yellow cards in quick succession, and his dismissal ended up costing his side dearly.
The first one was perhaps debatable—Onuoha did not seem to make much contact with Martin Skrtel as the Liverpool man went down theatrically in the box—but nevertheless, the defender was extremely lucky the resultant penalty was not turned home.
After that reprieve, however, his subsequent actions were almost inexcusable, as he scythed down Jordon Ibe in a late, clumsy challenge that Martin Atkinson had no choice but to dismiss him for.
It was a fatal (and self-inflicted!) error at an inopportune moment, at a stage in the game where it looked very much like QPR could come away with a point that would have enhanced their survival prospects significantly. Instead, their numerical disadvantage ended up costing them everything, leaving them empty-handed on a day where almost all their rivals picked up points.
In the first meeting between these two sides, QPR lost 3-2 after conceding two goals in the final minutes, meaning that, when this game is included, QPR have carelessly given away four points against the Reds this season.
Those four additional points would not move QPR out of the relegation zone, but it would at least give them a realistic chance of doing so over the final three games. As it is, even a 100 per cent record from now to the end of the season might not be enough to save the Hoops.
