English giants Liverpool's habit of leaving it to the last moment to qualify for the important stages of big tournaments was repeated on Tuesday as they inflicted a record 4-0 home defeat on Marseille to make the knockout stage of the Champions League.
The 2005 Champions League winners' victory probably also ensured that manager Rafael Benitez keeps his job after a series of reports that he was unhappy with the US owners of the club.
Liverpool were joined somewhat surprisingly in the last 16 by Greek side Olympiakos, whose 3-0 win over Werder Bremen was enough to see them move through.
PHOTO: EPA
Midfielder Ieroklis Stoltidis' double was the inspiration for the Greek side's victory which sees them one step away from emulating their teammates achievements of the 1998-1999 season when they reached the last eight.
Bremen's disappointment was not mirrored by Bundesliga rivals Schalke 04, who are now the sole German side in the knockout stage after they beat Rosenborg 3-1.
An early strike from Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard was followed by a superb solo effort from Fernando Torres, a Dirk Kuyt goal early in the second half and a stoppage time effort from substitute Ryan Babel as Liverpool became the first English club to win at the home of Olympique Marseille, France's best-supported club.
From the fourth minute, when Gerrard knocked in the rebound from his own penalty, there was little doubt that Liverpool would complete a remarkable turnaround in their fortunes in Group A.
A 1-0 defeat by Marseille at Anfield in October had left Benitez's side with just one point from their opening three matches.
Since then however they have beaten Besiktas 8-0 and FC Porto 4-1 at home and the equally comfortable nature of this win will send them into the last 16 -- and Sunday's Premier League showdown with Manchester United -- in confident mood.
"It was a fantastic performance by the players," said Benitez, who remained tight-lipped about his dispute with the club's owners. "The players were up for the game and I am now just thinking about the match with United and that we are in the knockout stages and now I want to be with the players."
For Marseille's no-nonsense coach Eric Gerets there was just a blunt reaction.
"It was a catastrophe," said the Belgian soccer legend. "We screwed the last match [of the Champions League group stage] up."
While Olympiakos celebrated Werder Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf was left underwhelmed by his side's performance.
"We are naturally disappointed," said Schaaf, whose side finish third and will have to settle for a place in the UEFA Cup. "We had put ourselves back into contention with the win over Real [3-2], but it wasn't enough."
Schaaf's Schalke 04 counterpart Mirko Slomka by contrast was in delirium after the victory over Rosenborg.
"It is fantastic what we have achieved," he said. "This is a great success for the team and the whole club."
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
Arne Slot has denied that Darwin Nunez was dropped from Liverpool’s win against West Ham because of a training-ground row with a member of his coaching staff. The Liverpool head coach on Sunday last week said that Nunez was absent from the 2-1 victory at Anfield, having felt unwell during training the day before, although the striker sat behind the substitutes throughout the game. Speculation has been rife that the Uruguay international, whom Slot criticized for his work rate against Wolves and Aston Villa in February, was left out for disciplinary reasons. Asked on Friday to clarify the situation, Slot said: “He
CUNNINGHAM CONNECTS: In the Eastern Conference, the Pistons snapped their record 15-game playoff losing streak by beating the Knicks to level their series at 1-1 Kawhi Leonard on Monday scored 39 points on 15-of-19 shooting as the Los Angeles Clippers evened their first-round NBA Playoffs series against the Nuggets with a 105-102 win in Denver. “It feels like he didn’t miss a shot,” James Harden said. “His shot-making ability is elite.” Good thing, too, because his teammates were a combined 26 of 66 for a 39 percent clip. “I made shots tonight,” Leonard said. “I just keep playing, try to stay in the zone no matter if I’m making or missing shots.” The fifth-seeded Clippers needed every bit of his brilliance to snatch the homecourt advantage in the series
RSS