Anfield Red

Rafael Benitez this week again moved to defend Momo Sissoko, who came in for criticism again after the Middlesbrough game.

Sissoko was substituted in the second half, but Benitez insisted Momo is still an integral part of the team , and spoke up after the young midfielder was criticised in the press

"I want to say something about Sissoko, because he was working really hard for us and was a key player against Barcelona and in a lot of other games,"

"Okay, he didn't have the best game, but I think it's important to support players who always give 100 per cent.

"The other day I tried to change things. I was using Mascherano behind Gerrard and Momo. But because the other team was playing really deep, compact and narrow, it was really difficult for him.

"But it was my decision, and some people may say I made a mistake, but I was sure we could have a good game with this system, or at least I was checking if it was a good idea. Now we know more about the players."

Sissoko was the talk of the town after his Man of the Match performance against Barcelona, but after a couple of games that were not at the same level, he was on the receiving end of bad reports for his performances.

A quality new song was heard on the Kop for the last 20 minutes of the Wigan game yesterday by a small section of the crowd in 202, and as more people learn the words it will no doubt to be a new favourite tune.

The origins of the song came from RedandWhiteKop.com, where someone had heard PSV fans singing a popular PAOK fans song, and the words were adapted accordingly.

The words are :

"OOOOOOOOHHHHH CAMPIONE
THE ONE AND ONLY
WE'RE LIVERPOOOOOL

THEY SAY OUR DAYS ARE NUMBERED, WE'RE NOT FAMOUS ANYMORE
BUT SCOUSERS RULE THE COUNTRY LIKE WE'VE ALWAYS DONE BEFORE"

Full credit to whoever thought this up, it sounded quality yesterday!

[edit] – Youtube video added from the Albert

Rafael Benitez praised Dirk Kuyt after his two goals helped Liverpool ensure Champions League football next season.

Kuyt got a goal in each half, and has given Benitez a selection problem ahead the Chelsea game on Wednesday, but Rafa was quick to declare he was pleased with the win and also with Kuyt :

"It is important for us to have qualified for the Champions League next season with three games to go and we can now concentrate on the Champions League semi-final," Benitez.

"We had to be patient against Wigan but we controlled the game and I am pleased for Kuyt. He always works hard for the team and he is a very good finisher as he showed with his two goals.

"I wanted to rest some players for this match and it was an almost perfect day for us because we have no injuries."

Liverpool ensured Champions League qualification with a 2-0 win over Wigan at Anfield, with Dirk Kuyt bagging both goals.

The game did not have much hype to it, with all eyes on the Chelsea game on Wednesday, but the reds still needed a win to guarantee at least 4th place , giving them a champions league spot for next season.

Gerrard, Mascherano, Finnan, Bellamy and Agger were rested, as Rafa looked to make sure no one got injured before the biggest game of our season, so Zenden lined up alongside Alonso in midfield, with Gonzalez on the left and Pennant on the right wing.

Kuyt and Crouch started upfront, Sami Hyypia returned alongside Carragher, with Riise and Arbeloa covering the left and right back positions.

The game took a while to get going, the fans were quiet (apart from a section of the crowd who for the last 15 mins belted out a new song), and the first chances of the game fell to Crouch, who fired a cross from Pennant wide of Filan's goal.

Neither team had many attacks emerging, so Rafa opted to switch Pennant and Gonzalez, which rewarded the team with Dirk Kuyt heading into an empty net after he went up for a cross from Pennant with Filan. 1-0 to the reds, but the crowd still didnt get going.

The only time the Kop got to its feet, and raised the volume was when Captain Stevie Gerrard and new hero Javier Mascherano came to warm up, but that didnt last long, and everyone nearly missed Kuyt get through after he took on what seemed to be the whole Wigan defence before over hitting his final touch, meaning Filan could collect the ball easily.

The second half got better, Gonzalez was back on the left, and starting using his pace to his advantage, on a few occasions he would knock it 15 yards ahead of him and the defender and beating them to the ball, but his crosses were never a danger. To be fair to Gonzalez, he was getting up for headers well, getting neat flick ons to the strikers, and at one point started doing kick ups , as he controlled the ball down on his chest, then proceeded to do kick ups, then caught it on his foot before releasing a pass.

The second goal came from Kuyt again, after Riise and Bellamy played a good 1-2, the ball rolled to Kuyt who fired past Filan to give the reds the win.

Jamie Carragher was brought off, to keep him ready for Chelsea, but him and Hyypia had a perfect game again, Carra controlling the line , all you could hear was him screaming orders at everyone else in team , on corners and crosses from Wigan.

Gerrard was brought on for Zenden, but he didnt really have much to do as Wigan rarely posed any threat.

Kuyt was unlucky not to get 3rd towards the end, but his header was sent straight to the keeper.

Rafael Benitez has moved to defend Momo Sissoko after the midfielder has been receiving criticism recently for some of his performances.

Sissoko will probably be the first to admit he has not performed as well as he would have liked to, but despite putting in some great performances this season (Barcelona, Nou Camp for example), he has been receiving alot of stick for not making the right pass, giving the ball away, not shooting when having a good chance.

The arrival of Javier Mascherano has not helped Sissoko's cause, everyone seems to think Mascherano is a replacement for Momo, but Benitez has spoken up about Sissoko, saying he will bounce back to form better than ever :

People still don't realise how young Momo is, He's moved to a big club in a new country and played really well for a long time, but he's not an experienced player.

"We're not talking about someone like Didi Hamann who developed over a long period of his career, but a player who is still learning part of the game.

"When Momo came back from his shoulder injury, he played at a really high level immediately. Sometimes this happens when you come back, but then after four or five games it's harder to play at the same consistency if you've not played for a long time. Before this he also had a serious eye injury. I don't think that's still troubling him, but he did really well to come back so quickly from this. He's been really unlucky with injuries for the last two years and still came back strong.

"When you set a really high standard people expect you to play this way in every game. That's not easy, particularly for a young player, but Momo has been really good for us. I'm not worried about him. There are times in a season when it's more difficult and with Mascherano coming here and playing well, that adds to the competition. But we all know Momo's qualities."

Liverpool will face Chelsea in the Champions League final, unless PSV overturn a 3 goal deficit.

In a re run of the 2005 semi final, where Luis Garcia scored the only goal of the game, Liverpool will face Chelsea again, after they beat Valencia 2-1 this evening.

This is of course unless PSV somehow score 3 times without us scoring.

Rafael Benitez has today again insisted that Peter Crouch is not for sale.

During the January transfer window there was talk of a bid from Newcastle, rumours were rife, he was linked with a swap deal involving Trezeguet from Juventus, a transfer to Spurs aswell as to the magpies, but Benitez said it then and has said it again : He is not for sale.

Liverpool beat Arsenal last week 4-1 thanks to 3 goals from the lanky hitman, and he scored again in midweek against PSV, but this has still led to speculation that he will be leaving in the summer.

Benitez said : "I am really pleased with Peter Crouch and I am not selling him.

"All players have moments when they suddenly realise what they have to be doing and how to achieve things in their game and this has happened with Peter."

Now that Javier Mascherano has signed, giving competition to Sissoko for a first team place, who should play alongside Alonso/Gerrard?

Sissoko has been at Anfield since 2005, and has become an integral part of the team, putting in solid performances in the FA Cup final and against Barcelona this season, but still has critics as his touch lets him down, and his passing is not the best, but no one can doubt his work rate and tackling ability, and the way he breaks up opposition's play. He has played 21 games this season, but is yet to have scored, despite hitting the bar against Barcelona, he has not had many chances.

Mascherano was signed on loan from West Ham in January, and there were question marks over his signing after he was not really given the chance to shine, but their loss has been our gain, the little Argentinian has shown what he is capable of already.

Against Arsenal the only person he didn't throw off the ball was "the beast" Julio Baptista, but other than that he was flying into tackles, winning the ball, his passing was spot on, and when he went off he got a standing ovation from the Anfield crowd.

In his first game against Sheff United he seemed to sit back, not get involved at first, then the opportunity for a quality tackle came, and since he has not looked out of place; last week against PSV he put in another great performance, second only to Steve Finnan as Man of the Match.

The problem now is: Who plays? Alonso is seen as a key part of the future, hence the need from Benitez to tie him to the club with a new contract, it is also well known that Gerrard prefers playing in the centre/performs better there, and with Pennant finding form on the right there is a selection problem that needs solving. If Gerrard stays on the right, who goes alongside Alonso?

Mascherano has only played 6 games for the reds, but Benitez is already very impressed with him, recently saying : "We knew when we decided to bring Mascherano here that we needed another holding midfielder in case Xabi Alonso couldn't play.

"I said when we signed him that he is a winner. He's a player with a very good mentality. He has 20 caps with Argentina and he's 22 years old.

"Of all the youngsters to have come through in recent seasons, the one who's impressed me most is Mascherano. He's a monster of a player and is destined for great things. He can keep possession and he's always in the right position. He wanted to show people he was good enough to play in England".

If Mascherano is already getting the plaudits, where does that leave Sissoko?

Unsung hero Steve Finnan says he is not interested in receiving praise , despite being one of Liverpool's most consistent players over recent seasons.

Everyone is quick to point out Gerrard and Carragher after a good game, but Finnan makes the news as often as he makes a mistake.

I've never minded not getting plaudits. It's a question I've been asked many times, but I'm really not bothered,"

"It's always been more important to me that the team plays well. There are other lads in the team who are playing well but don't always get the praise. In football you always expect the lads who are getting the goals to get most attention, and they deserve it.

"I'm happy with how things are going for me, but more especially for the team.

Finnan also stated he wants to stay at Anfield when his contract expires : "I would definitely like to sign for more time, but that's up to other people,"

"Everyone can see the club is heading in the right direction with the new owners. It's an exciting time. Everyone wants to be a part of it, especially me."

Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez says The Reds deserved their 2-1 win over Reading today.

Liverpool were expected to dominate the game after battering PSV in midweek, and after going a goal up after 15 minutes, Reading got back into the game, and it was only 4 minutes from time that Liverpool got their win, with Kuyt heading home the winner.

Speaking about the result, Benitez said : "We knew it was going to be a difficult game, they are a tough side to play against and they pressed us and worked hard. I think we have done a good job and in the end I think we deserved to win.

“We had chances in the first half to kill the game, but at half time we knew we still had to be careful because we remember how they came back against Manchester United earlier in the season.

“We made a mistake for their goal and then we had to try to change things by bringing on different players to give them more problems.

“We still have work to do to finish in the top four. We have to be careful, but hopefully we will play in the Semi Final of the Champions League and if we can win enough games before then, it will enable us to focus on that competition.”