Player Ratings: Liverpool 1-1 Chelsea

LIVERPOOL

Jose Reina: 7 - Comfortable and will probably have been surprised at what little work he had to do. Had no chance with the goal.

Alvaro Arbeloa: 7 – Coped well against Malouda defensively and looked to have the beating of Ashley Cole when going forwards too.

Jamie Carragher: 7.5 - Battled well against Drogba and was a rock at the back for Liverpool.
Martin Skrtel: 7.5 – Not in the mood to mess around this was a strong performance by the Slovakian. Refused to be bullied by Drogba.

Fabio Aurelio: 7 – A decent performance by the left back, never afraid to get forwards and attempt a cross but injury forced him off after an hour.

Dirk Kuyt: 8 - A lively performance and another European goal for Kuyt. Once again Liverpool’s much maligned Dutchman was in the right place at the right time to put it away – and you can’t argue with that.

Xabi Alonso: 8.5 – The best player on the pitch. Great pass to put Kuyt through in the first half and then intelligent thinking to take the free kick quickly which led to the goal.

Javier Mascherano: 7 - His scuffed pass somehow ended up at Kuyt’s feet for the goal. Mopped up well otherwise and was neat and tidy.

Ryan Babel: 6.5 – A decent performance if occasionally lacking an end result. Had a great shot in the second half which just whistled wide of the post.

Steven Gerrard: 7 - Not quite at his best but not far off it, this was a typical Gerrard
performance. Great shot with five minutes to go which forced Cech into a decent save.

Fernando Torres: 6.5 – Had his chances but couldn’t beat Petr Cech. Kept Carvalho and Terry on their toes all night with his pace but not his usual razor sharp self.

Substitutions:

John Arne Riise: 3 - On for Aurelio after 60 mins and put through his own net with only seconds left to turn the tie on its head. He could have booted it away without breaking a sweat. Very poor judgement.

Yossi Benaynou: n/a – Replaced Babel for the last fifteen minutes but made little impact.

CHELSEA
Petr Cech: 7.5 - Good stop from Torres in first half but could do little with the goal. Saved well from Gerrard and Torres in the last few minutes to keep Chelsea in the tie.

Paulo Ferreira: 6.5 – Coped against Aurelio and Babel but rarely ventured past the halfway line.

Ricardo Carvalho: 7.5 – Chelsea’s best defender the Portuguese produced another fine display in what has been another impressive season.

John Terry: 6 - Lost Kuyt early on in the game which nearly cost his side a goal and looked strangely hesitant at times. The Chelsea captain was not at his best and will be thankful for Carvalho’s calming presence beside him.

Ashley Cole: 5.5 – At fault for the goal and looked slow to react at times. Was beaten on occasion by both Arbeloa and Kuyt and his crossing was poor when he did venture forwards.

Frank Lampard: 5 - Started well, but lost the ball on the edge of the area - trying to be cute in the wrong place, one has to add - and seconds later Liverpool had scored. Performance dipped as the match went on and in truth he looked a little rusty.

Claude Makelele: 5 - Hot and cold. Made a hash of defending the goal when he should have cleared the ball. Made several good interceptions in the second half but was also sloppy in possession.

Michael Ballack: 6.5 – Sluggish, the German improved as the match went on, but was not involved enough. Effort was there, but clearly not match fit.

Joe Cole: 4.5 - Cut a frustrated figure at times in a quiet first half and an even quieter second half. Was substituted after an hour after making little impact on the game.

Didier Drogba: 6.5 - His sheer physical presence was a handful for Skrtel and Carragher but it simply wasn’t happening for the Ivorian. Was at his dramatic best at times much to the frustration of the Anfield crowd.

Florent Malouda: 5 - Preferred to Kalou but was fairly anonymous for the first hour of the match. Improved in the second half and had a wonderful opportunity to score but dallied and shot eventually deflected wide.

Substitutes:

Saloman Kalou: 7 - Replaced the ineffective Joe Cole and provided more of a threat and some much needed pace. Did well to carve out the cross that produced Riise's moment of madness for the own goal.

Nicolas Anelka: n/a Given the last five minutes but arrived too late to make a difference.
Gill Clark