Bitter-Sweet

I was staring at the computer screen when I thought to myself, will Liverpool stand a chance against Benfica in today mornings UEFA Cup second leg tie? The odds are however, stacked up against them as they are a goal behind Benfica on aggregate, having lost the first leg 2-1 at the Estadio da Cruz. They(Liverpool) played pretty well on that day but they're ill fate sealed the win for a resilient Benfica side. Today's much anticipated clash is what all Liverpool fan's will call a scape-goat for Rafa Benitez, who has received a lot of criticism at late. This all probably happened after Liverpool sold their influential midfielder, Olano Xabi Alonso to Spanish giants, Real Madrid. Branded 'el galactico's', they are probably the football team with the most number of big named players. This is actually due to the funding that they've received from their club president; something that Rafa Benitez would have been craving for.

By the way, the match started not long after and believe it or not? Liverpool took the lead as Dirk Kuyt scores the opener. The goal was disallowed at first by the linesman, but after much protesting by the Liverpool players stating that the Benfica goalie's path was not obstructed by the Dutchman; the referee for the night gave the green light to the fourth official that it was a goal. Having conceded a controversial goal, Benfica pressed on; often catching Liverpool on the counter-attacks. But the over committed Benfica players paid the price 10 minutes before time when Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard slid a delightful through ball to Benitez's blue-eyed boy, Leiva Lucas who did not disappoint. Having now a two goal deficit against Benfica, Liverpool now need not concentrate on attack anymore. Now it was all about holding on to the two goal cushion until the final whistle was blown. Which they managed to do, rendering them the opportunity to move on to the next round of the knock-out competition. Personally as a Liverpool fan, I was much delighted by their performance, as I've rarely see them play this well all season. A lot of people even this girl I had a chat with last night feared the worst. But luckily though we Liverpool fan's can now sleep soundly for the time being as Liverpool are now through to the next round of the competition.