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Chelsea blow title race open after mistake by Liverpool's Steven Gerrard Chelsea blow title race open after mistake by Liverpool's Steven Gerrard
(about 1 hour later)
Over the next fortnight, it might still be that Steven Gerrard can look back at the extraordinary way this game unfolded and reflect that he got away with it. For now, however, nobody can be sure of the consequences and potentially there was one moment when everything started to unravel: Gerrard, in front of the Kop, making the sort of mistake that threatens to stick to his conscience like superglue. When it was all finished, with Steven Gerrard ruminating on a mistake that threatens to stick to his conscience like superglue, Brendan Rodgers could not disguise his disdain. "There were probably two buses parked today instead of one," he said. Chelsea, he said, had been time-wasting from the first minute, defending with 10 players on the 18-yard line. Liverpool's manager smiled and stabbed. It was not difficult to coach a team to be that negative, he added.
Gerrard will always be haunted by his error – if it proves to be a grievous setback for Liverpool – and it would need a flint heart not to try to imagine the scale of his trauma. Yet this is a hard business, as he knows only too well, and teams that want to win the league cannot as generous as he was when Mamadou Sakho's pass rolled under the foot of Liverpool's captain and Demba Ba was suddenly running clear to score the goal that changed everything. No doubt, there will be plenty who share his dislike of the way Chelsea set about to smother this game. Their tactics were cynical, calculated and often maddening. They were also, ultimately, spot on and that really was the bottom line after Liverpool's inability to get past those two buses had blown a gaping hole in their title chances. The handbrake was on, the keys had been chucked into the nearest drain and, for the first time in a long time, Anfield watched in something close to silence.
Gerrard could be seen later in the match with his shoulders starting to sag and team-mates having to encourage him to shake it out of his system. But he never did. He knew the ramifications and, in the second half, Liverpool's efforts to retrieve the damage carried none of the elegance and vigour that has been the hallmark of their season. Chelsea defended with structure, brilliance and the kind of resilience that seems to come almost naturally to José Mourinho's team on the big occasions and it culminated with Liverpool, trying desperately to find a dramatic late equaliser, losing the ball in the middle to leave Fernando Torres and Willian running clear. Mourinho will not care if the opposition manager wallows in a vat of sour grapes. Call it anti-football, or whatever you like, but this match will not go into the record books with an asterisk to remind everyone that Chelsea did it the ugly way. It may, however, be remembered as the defining moment of Liverpool's season and a personal ordeal for Gerrard bearing in mind the potential consequences.
The two substitutes had nothing between them and Simon Mignolet but open air. Torres set up Willian for an open goal and Anfield was silenced. That was the moment Mourinho could be seen on one of his victory runs, beating his chest, letting out all the pent-up emotion. Of all the people, in all the places, nobody could ever have imagined it would be Gerrard, in front of the Kop, making the mistake that changed everything. Rodgers immediately sought to absolve Gerrard, reminding his players at half-time this was someone who had "picked up this club so many times", and it would need a flint heart not to try to imagine the scale of the player's trauma. Yet this is a hard business and teams that want to win the league cannot be as generous as Gerrard was when Mamadou Sakho's pass rolled under the foot of Liverpool's captain and Demba Ba was suddenly running clear to score.
Mourinho will be accused of a lot of things in the analysis and, yes, it is difficult to remember many uglier wins. Yet his ability to lay these traps is still second to none. Call it anti-football, or whatever you like, but it works. His tactics were cynical, maddening and, ultimately, spot on – and it has potentially blown a gaping hole in Liverpool's title hopes. Glen Johnson could be seen in the second half trying to cajole his team-mate but Gerrard played the rest of the match as if he was struggling to shake it out of his system. He knew the ramifications and Liverpool's efforts to retrieve the damage carried none of the elegance and vigour that have been the hallmark of their season. Gerrard, if anything, was too desperate to make amends, rushing his work and trying long-range shots when a simple pass would have been more effective.
Lest it be forgotten, this was also a Chelsea side drawn up largely with the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid in mind. Mark Schwarzer, Branislav Ivanovic and César Azpilicueta will start on Wednesday. Ashley Cole has a decent chance but no guarantee. That apart, Mourinho had brought in his support cast, including a 20-year-old centre-half by the name of Tomas Kalas for his Premier League debut. Chelsea defended with structure, brilliance and the kind of togetherness that seems to come almost naturally to Mourinho's teams on the big occasions. He talked about it afterwards as the immaculate defensive performance – "no mistakes, the best team won" – and it culminated with Liverpool putting so much in trying to find an equaliser they left themselves vulnerable to that moment, right at the end, when Fernando Torres and Willian broke on the counterattack. The two substitutes had nothing between them and Simon Mignolet but open air. Torres set up Willian and Mourinho was on one of his victory runs, beating his chest, letting out all the pent-up emotion.
Kalas's previous Chelsea career had consisted of two appearances as an 89th-minute substitute in cup competitions and recently joked that his role at the club was to be a training ground cone. To put it another way, he had played more injury time than normal time. Yet he demonstrated here why he has already won a cap for the Czech Republic. He and Ivanovic were superb in the centre of defence. Azpilicueta and Cole matched them while Schwarzer showed again that he will not be easily fazed. Rodgers had his say afterwards but, lest it be forgotten, this was a Chelsea side put together with the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Atlético Madrid in mind. Mark Schwarzer, Branislav Ivanovic and César Azpilicueta will start on Wednesday and Ashley Cole has a fair to middling chance. That apart, Mourinho had brought in his support cast, including a 20-year-old centre-half by the name of Tomas Kalas for his Premier League debut.
Mourinho's team had given everything to make sure this could not be added to the occasions when visitors to Anfield were blitzed in the opening half an hour. It was calculated, often unsatisfactory, and in the worst moments the man who sneered at West Ham's 19th century football earlier in the season appeared to have gone back at least 50 years into history. Chelsea's players tied their shoelaces. They suffered cramp. They pretended they could not hear the referee's whistle and, when they had a throw-in or a free-kick, nobody was ever in a rush to take it. The ball came to Mourinho by the side of the pitch and there was a telling little scene as Gerrard and Jon Flanagan tried to wrestle it off him and Chelsea's manager spun it behind his back and tossed it out of their reach. That was six minutes in. Kalas's previous Chelsea career had consisted of two appearances as an 89th-minute substitute in cup competitions and he recently joked that his role at the club was to be a training-ground cone. Yet he demonstrated here why he has already won a cap for the Czech Republic. "Beautiful," Mourinho said afterwards. "Beautiful … this kid, Liverpool, Anfield, just beautiful."
If there was a defining image of the first half, it was Martin Atkinson holding up his arm and pointing at his wristwatch. At one point, André Schürrle turned the ball back to Schwarzer from the halfway line. Luis Suárez, of all people, could be seen sarcastically applauding Schwarzer. Luis Suárez chose a bad day to have one of his more undistinguished performances but a lot of that was to do with the expertise that Kalas and Ivanovic showed. Azpilicueta and Cole matched them and Schwarzer, at the age of 41, showed there is not a lot that fazes him. "They had 10 behind the ball from the first minute," Rodgers said. He had better get used to it.
The crowd howled their derision, incensed by the spoiling tactics. Yet Atkinson, despite admonishing Schwarzer at one point, added only three minutes at the end of the first half and what an irony it was that this was when Chelsea seized their moment. Mourinho's team gave everything to make sure they could not be added to the list of visitors to Anfield who had been blitzed. Time-wasters? Undoubtedly. They tied their shoelaces. They had collective, and convenient, cramp. They pretended they could not hear the whistle and when they had a throw-in or free-kick nobody was ever in a rush to take it. It was calculated, and often unsatisfactory, and when the ball came to Mourinho there was a telling scene as Gerrard and Jon Flanagan tried to wrestle it off him. Chelsea's manager spun it behind his back and tossed it out of their reach. That was six minutes in.
Their first chance came from a corner. Kalas had a clear run but could not get a clean connection. It was a minute later when Gerrard miscontrolled, slipped and then had to watch Ba slipping the ball past Mignolet. What an irony that it was in the added-on time at the end of the first half – and the referee, Martin Atkinson, really should have included more – that Chelsea took the lead. Liverpool had no choice but to take more risks in the second half but they lacked their usual creativity and dynamism. Willian slipped the ball into an empty net and Liverpool, from a position of command, must fear all that brilliant momentum has gone.
Liverpool had no choice but to take risks in the second half but it was not until injury time again that they really threatened Schwarzer. Suárez chose a bad day to have one of his least distinguished performances and Gerrard, in his desperation to make amends, just kept on making mistakes. Man of the match Tomas Kalas (Chelsea)
Willian slipped the ball into an empty net and Liverpool must fear all that brilliant momentum has gone.