Character in Spades, but Our Club’s Heart Could Not Get Us the Champions League Diamond.
Down 1-3 on aggregate and coming to a place where we rarely score a goal, not to mention winning by 3 clear goals, you could say that most of us were feeling… “doubtful” about our chances. I believed we would do well, but not really look like coming close. Like maybe a 1-0 win or a 1-1 draw or something. But TWICE being a goal away from progressing? That was beyond my wildest dreams, and I HONESTLY didn’t expect it. But that’s this Liverpool team for you. They defy the odds and consistently play well. When we do not play well, I’m surprised. I genuinely expect Liverpool for the first time ever as a supporter of the club to do well on a regular basis and win all the matches we play. So to lose against Chelsea in the first leg didn’t stop me from thinking we could win or play well in the 2nd leg. And play well we did. Too bad we couldn’t progress, but the character we showed was incredible.
Goals from Aurelio, Alonso, Lucas and Kuyt gave us real hope all in different times throughout the match. Chelsea are such a good side, though, that they were able to bounce back. And it isn’t like they don’t deserve it. Chelsea deserved to progress. They played equally as well as us in the second leg, but in the first leg they were better than us for a clear 60-75 minutes. That is enough to be better than us over the two legs, and therefore move on. We’ve often been able to pull ourselves out of these situations, but Chelsea is a different animal. They are a great side. There… I said it! Chelsea are class. They no longer bother me. At least they aren’t United, right? They may buy success, but at least they’ve curbed it and have been more sensical over the past few years regarding how they spend. United just dump out the cash. You KNOW they will buy Tevez, and if they do that will be THREE strikers of 30+ million pounds. Isn’t that worth mentioning in the media? Rather than blast Liverpool for two 20 mil players in Keane and Torres, they could always choose to attack Fergie and co. But don’t hold your breath. Because of this, Chelsea have begun to earn my respect. They are showing that they want to be stable in a reasonable fashion, not by dominating world markets and putting themselves in excessive debt and just expecting that the world will succomb to their every desire despite owing them money.
Liverpool and Chelsea have had a passionate rivalry over the last 5 seasons, and it looks like it will be continuing. But now it seems more civil than before, producing what I would call better football. Not just me. Anyone watching would say it is better football. Rather than Rafa and Jose blabbing to death about this or that, we have quality action on the field. And you couldn’t get much more quality than a dramatic 4-4 draw that saw multiple lead swings, howlers and classy goals.
What was special for me in this match is that we didn’t just play for respectability or pride. We played to win. Rafa GENUINELY believed we could go there and get a result, and our players believed it as well. Since when has THAT been true? This 2008-2009 season has produced such a massive shift in attitude amongst players and supporters alike. That word “belief” is no longer something we cringe at hearing, as it generally meant “lack of.” Now we have “abundance of.” The quarterfinal 2nd leg was a prime example of how we have this abundance of belief, and twice being a goal away from progressing is quite admirable. We may not have progressed, but we showed that we are no longer just a “grind it out” machine that hopes and prays that the scores squeek out in our favor. We are Liverpool, and we are fantastic to watch. I LOVE being able to say that! COME ON YOU REDS! Let’s snatch #19… it is all we have to focus on now!
