Liverpool vs Wigan 3-2, EPL 2008, week 8

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Emile Heskey has grabbed the headlines for his England displays and is even linked with a transfer to the Reds, a move that has surprised Rafa Benitez, but he would have to wait for a return as he was ruled out of action for the afternoon kick-off.



Amr Zaki has been in imperious and emphatic form for Latic side Wigan Athletic, and Liverpool will have to be wary of the Egyptian threat.



Wigan glovesman Chris Kirkland may breathe a sigh of relief as key 'Pool striker Fernando Torres' absence was confirmed.



FIRST HALF



Chelsea thrashed Middlesbrough 5-0 earlier in the day so if Liverpool wanted to maintain their early pace with last year's league runners up then a home win would be mandatory.



The home side were searching for their fifth successive win, and were firm favourites for the tie, but there were distinct murmurs of an upset.



The opening fifteen minutes saw relative little action in either goals, but Albert Riera retained his promising form of late as he hugged the touchline and threatened from the wide areas.



Frenchman Kapo almost broke the deadlock 23 minutes. Reina was forced into a save that was pounced on by Kapo but reliable Jamie Carragher was there to block.



Six minutes later Amr Zaki took advantage of some confusion between Agger and Reina and the powerful Egyptian - likened to Alan Shearer - neatly slotted the ball home.



Liverpool begin to ease their way back into the game as the second half draws to a close and they finally find their equaliser when Agger - making amends for his earlier mistake that gifted Zaki a goal - set up Dirk Kuyt who smashed the ball into the net.



On the 44th minute Kirkland denies Kuyt a chance to give Liverpool the lead going into the break but only moments later Zaki scores an outrageous goal after good play from Valencia.



SECOND HALF



Riera begins the second half brightly and attempts to level the scoreline with a glanced header, but Titus Bramble is there to intercept.



Ten minutes later Zaki had the opportune moment to claim his first Premier League hat-trick but his strike fails to thwart Reina.



Gerrard was unusually quiet thus far in the game, especially considering these are the conditions that the scouse skipper usually thrives, and with just over 30 minutes remaining he tries a long drive but the ball is high and wide.



On the 72nd minute a Steven Gerrard free kick is whiskers away from the frame of the goal and Liverpool were getting closer and closer, but time was not on their side.



The home side were gifted a lifeline though as Valencia saw red for a second bookable offence as he lunged in on Alonso.



Then, five minutes later, the lively Riera capped his performance with a goal and for the first time in a Reds shirt he picked the ball out of the net and Liverpool looked good for their comeback.



Dirk Kuyt, often criticised for not scoring enough, sealed the win five minutes from time and the Latics, who had taken the lead twice, looked to go home empty handed.



LINE UPS



Liverpool: Reina - Dossena; Agger; Carragher; Arbeloa - Riera; Gerrard; Alonso; Pennant - Kuyt; Keane.



Wigan: Kirkland - Scharner; Bramble; Melchiot; Figueroa - Valencia; Palacios; Cattermole; Kapo; Ridder - Zaki.



Liverpool Raih kemenangan Tipis



Kemenangan atas Wigan ini membuat perolehan poin Liverpool tetap sama dengan Chelsea, yang beberapa jam sebelumnya memetik kemenangan besar 5-0 di kandang Middlesbrough.



Meski memperoleh poin yang sama, yaitu 20 angka dari delapan partai, Liverpool untuk sementara harus memberikan posisi puncak klasemen kepada Chelsea. Pertimbangannya, The Blues memiliki produktifitas gol yang lebih baik. Adapun Wigan harus turun ke posisi 14 dengan delapan poin.



Bertanding di Anfield, Sabtu (18/10) malam WIB, Liverpool mengakhiri babak pertama dalam posisi tertinggal 2-1. Adalah Amr Zaki yang membuat The Reds menanggung malu.



Liverpool sendiri tampil menekan sejak peluit dimulainya pertandingan dibunyikan. Sejumlah peluang didapat, beberapa di antaranya datang dari Albert Riera dan tendangan Xabi Alonso di menit 18, namun belum ada yang membuahkan hasil. Demikian juga bola hasil tembakan Dirk Kuyt yang masih mengenai mistar.



Wigan tak ketinggalan melakukan ancaman. Olivier Kapo sempat menguji keberuntungannya dengan melepas tendangan di menit 21. Namun Jose Reina masih sigap mengamankan gawangnya.



Baru di menit 29 usaha tim tamu membuahkan hasil. Zaki dengan sempurna memaksimalkan kegagalan Daniel Agger menyapu bola untuk mengecoh Reina, sekaligus membuat timnya memimpin 1-0.



Keunggulan tersebut tak bertahan lama setelah Kuyt berhasil menyamakan kedudukan di menit 36. Striker asal Belanda itu menggetarkan jala lawan usai menerima bola sodoran Agger.



Kuyt nyaris saja membuat Liverpool memimpin bila saja bola hasil tendangannya tidak ditepis Chris Kirkland dan hanya mengenai mistar. Malah tuan rumah berada dalam posisi tertinggal setelah Zaki, untuk kali kedua, menggetarkan jala Reina, kali ini melalui tendangan setengah salto, di menit 45.



Memasuki babak kedua, Liverpool meningkatkan daya gempurnya. Kondisi ini memaksa kubu Wigan menghalalkan segala cara untuk menghentikan alur serangan tim tuan rumah.



Imbasnya Antonio Valencia harus menerima dua kartu kuning, yang artinya ia harus meninggalkan lapangan, usai melakukan pelanggaran berbahaya kepada Xabi Alonso. Wigan pun bermain dengan 10 pemain sejak menit ke-74.



Keunggulan jumlah pemain dimanfaatkan dengan baik oleh kubu Liverpool. Dua gol tambahan pun bersarang ke gawang Kirkland, yang membuat pertandingan berkesudahan 3-2 untuk tuan rumah.



Gol penyama kedudukan dicetak oleh Riera di menit 80. Operan Nabil El Zhar dari dalam kotak penalti berhasil disambut pemain asal Spanyol itu dengan tembakan first time.



Lima menit kemudian Kuyt membalikkan keadaan usai memaksimalkan umpan silang Jermaine Pennant dengan tendangan saltonya. Sontak gol tersebut disambut sorak sorai pendukung Liverpool yang pada akhirnya tim kesayangan mereka menang dengan skor 3-2.



Susunan Pemain:

Liverpool: Reina, Agger, Carragher, Dossena (El Zhar 76), Arbeloa (Benayoun 77), Alonso, Gerrard, Riera, Pennant, Keane (Hyypia 94), Kuyt.



Wigan Athletic: Kirkland, Bramble, Scharner, Figueroa, Melchiot, Kapo (Brown 82), Cattermole, Palacios (Koumas 90), De Ridder (Kilbane 77), Valencia, Zaki.