Rafael Benitez said the self-belief of his players combined with the passion of the Anfield faithful had driven Liverpool into their third Champions League semi-final in four seasons.
The Liverpool boss watched his side come from behind to seal a memorable 4-2 victory over Arsenal on Tuesday night, courtesy of an 85th-minute penalty from Steven Gerrard and an injury-time strike from substitute Ryan Babel.
But it was a much closer-run thing than the final scoreline might suggest, with Arsenal coming agonizingly close to progressing on the away goals after Emmanuel Adebayor’s 84th-minute strike leveled the match at 2-2, and 3-3 on aggregate.
PHOTO :AP
“I was really disappointed when they equalized, especially with the way they scored,” Benitez said after seeing Arsenal sub Theo Walcott run the length of the pitch to set up Adebayor for the equalizer.
“But after I was very, very happy with the reaction of my players and the character they showed. And the crowd was amazing. We heard them from the beginning. Their support is massive for the players. They never give up because they hear the people,” he said.
Benitez’s late introduction of Babel for a tiring Fernando Torres proved an inspired move as it was the Dutch winger who drew Kolo Toure into a clumsy challenge that resulted in the decisive penalty that Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger described as a “dodgy decision.”
Television replays suggested that Toure had fouled Babel, but Wenger was adamant that his side had been treated as unfairly on Tuesday as they had been in being denied a penalty for Dirk Kuyt’s foul on Alexander Hleb in the first leg.
“Over the two games it is very difficult to swallow,” Wenger said. “It is a double disappointment because all the big decisions went against us and with minutes to go we were qualified against a Liverpool side who had many less chances than us over the two legs. In football sometimes you have to swallow what is not swallowable. For me it was not a penalty and last week it was.”
Wenger admitted however that his side had contributed to their own downfall with the lapses in concentration that followed Adebayor’s goal and contributed to Liverpool’s first two goals, a first-half header from an unmarked Sami Hyypia and a 69th-minute shot from Torres after he was allowed to turn in the box.
“We were too naive and we lack a bit of maturity defensively,” Wenger said. “We made big mistakes, conceding a goal from a corner and giving Torres too much space on their second. But I believe this team has plenty of talent and potential. It does not lack mental strength.”
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