Liverpool are facing a Europa League demise to go with their
Champions League torment after a late winner from midfielder Eden
Hazard left their hopes of a quarter-final place hanging by a
thread here at the Metropole on Thursday night.
The lesser of UEFA’s club competitions is supposed to provide
some compensation for those sides who narrowly fail to make it
beyond the Champions League group stage, but there was no consoling
Liverpool’s sorry-looking players as they dragged themselves off
Lille’s heavy, churned-up pitch.
Just when Rafa Benitez felt his side’s fortunes could not
plummet any lower — after a bedraggled, shapeless performance in
losing to Wigan earlier in the week — they did, as their French
hosts claimed a deserved advantage to take to Anfield on
Thursday.
Benitez saw it differently, though, saying: ‘It is a pity we
could not manage an away goal, but if we score early at Anfield we
can manage the return leg. The players’ attitude was fantastic.
They knew they could not let the fans down and they didn’t. I saw
enough positives to believe we will win the tie.’
On target: Lille's Eden Hazard scored the only goal
of the game
But there was very little positive about the performance of
fit-again right back Glen Johnson, who struggled to cope whenever
Emerson went on one of his attacking sorties. And Emiliano Insua
fared little better on the other side. The Argentinian youngster
was given a torrid time at Wigan and again looked ill-at-ease when
put to the test by Hazard.
Lille’s right-sided star had such a success rate in one-on-ones
with Insua that Florent Balmont increasingly drifted over from the
centre to try his luck, both players reaching the by-line and
whipping in crosses with alarming regularity.
There was a Hazard warning for Liverpool after only 40 seconds,
as the Lille danger man unleashed a drive which flew straight into
Pepe Reina’s midriff.
Striker Pierre-Alain Frau was a fraction away from applying a
decisive touch to another right-flank delivery from Hazard in the
11th minute, before Liverpool finally showed signs of imposing
themselves on a side with just one defeat — by Manchester United —
in their last 16 home games in Europe.
Firing blanks: Fernando Torres (right) jousts with
Lille's Franck Beria on another miserable night for
Liverpool
Lille (4-5-1): Landreau
6; Beria 6, Chedjou 6, Rami 7, Emerson 7; Hazard 8, Balmont 7,
Mavuba 6, Cabaye 6 (Dumont 73min, 6), Obraniak 6 (Toure 83, 6);
Frau 6 (Aubameyang 77, 6).
Booked: Aubameyang.
Liverpool (4-2-3-1):
Reina 6; Johnson 6, Carragher 7, Agger 6, Insua 5; Mascherano 7,
Lucas 5; Kuyt 5 (El Zhar 88), Gerrard 6, Babel 6 (Riera 73, 6);
Torres 7.
Booked: Insua,
Torres.
Man of the match: Eden
Hazard.
Referee: Claus Bo Larsen
(Denmark).
Fernando Torres had already set up Ryan Babel for a chance that
was ushered to safety by Adil Rami’s outstretched boot when the
Spain striker combined with his team-mate in even more impressive
style in the 26th minute.
The pace and accuracy of the passes exchanged between them
belied the uneven surface and left Babel with a clear run on goal.
The Holland forward has fallen short in several areas since his
£12million move from Ajax, and finishing is one of them, especially
when he has time to think through his options.
Here, he set himself on the edge of the area before firing a
shot at keeper Mickael Landreau’s knees.
There were more encouraging signs as Steven Gerrard saw a
35-yard effort sail narrowly over, then applied even more pressure
on the Lille goal in the 42nd minute. A fierce drive by the
Liverpool skipper was parried by Landreau, who then had to react
sharply to keep out Torres’s header.
Watch this space: Belgian wonderkid Eden Hazard
(left) tormented Emiliano Insua
Liverpool were starting to sense a first-leg lead might be
theirs for the taking. Torres certainly did in the 59th minute
when, after being fouled midway inside the Lille half, he gave no
thought to eating up a few valuable seconds and, instead, rolled a
quick free-kick to Gerrard.
The ball was switched to Dirk Kuyt, then nudged into the path of
Johnson, whose charge into the area was halted by what looked — but
not to referee Claus Bo Larsen — like an unfair challenge.
Babel forced a diving save with a ferocious drive on the hour,
but it was a measure of Liverpool’s lingering frustration that
Torres talked his way into Larsen’s book with his protests about
not being awarded a free-kick in the 67th minute.
Final anguish: Captain Steven Gerrard bursts into
the area, but sees his late chance to grab a draw saved by Lille
keeper Mickael Landreau
Reina would at least have had grounds for complaint had Stephane
Dumont’s 76th-minute shot found a way past him. The keeper was
about to gather it up when the ball bobbled off a divot and hit him
flush in the face.
The pitch could hardly be blamed for Lille’s 84th-minute
breakthrough, though. Hazard’s free-kick sailed towards the
six-yard box, evading attackers and defenders alike and nestling in
the far corner of the net, with Reina rooted.
It could have been worse — Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang hitting the
post soon after — but not much. This was another dispiriting result
and display to match from a side desperately low on confidence.
