Portsmouth 2, Liverpool 1 (D,Post)

Apr 30 2007 by Nick Smith, Liverpool Daily Post

EVEN Rafael Benitez has to agree with Jose Mourinho on this one. Buried beneath the absurdity of the more manic moans last week was the one pointing out that, ahead of tomorrow’s Champions League semi-final second leg, Liverpool would be in a stronger position due to them not having a game that was ‘important’ in between.

And for once, Benitez didn’t disappoint his Portuguese counterpart. Such was his acknowledgement of Mourinho’s description of the fixture, he could potentially alter all 11 names from the Fratton Park team sheet by tomorrow night – and given the first-half performance it might not be a bad idea.

The theory of Mourinho, meanwhile, was only given extra weight on Saturday during what he described as a ‘cup final’ against Bolton Wanderers.

The pursuit of Barclays Premiership glory is something that Benitez himself would much rather be involved in at this stage of the season, of course, but the perils of Mourinho not being able to dismantle his starting line-up in the same way were outlined by centre-back Ricardo Carvalho’s injury, set to rule him out of the Anfield leg.

The decision not to risk starting top scorer Didier Drogba when three points are essential backfired too as Chelsea all but blew the title by only gaining one.

What Mourinho perhaps fails to appreciate, however, is that at the moment Liverpool could do with a ‘cup final’ of their own, and not just in Athens in three weeks’ time.

Benitez has clearly had enough of the recent lack of Premiership games that actually mean something, given his radical tinkering at Portsmouth.

Seven who started at Stamford Bridge last Wednesday were omitted, Benitez finally accepting that sitting at home with your feet up is a more strenuous work-out than playing in games that have no instant gratification.

Given the evidence of recent non-events against Aston Villa, Manchester City, Middlesbrough and Wigan nobody – except Portsmouth’s UEFA Cup chasing companions – could blame him.

But that was the central problem for Liverpool – the game was of more consequence for the blue half of Merseyside than the red.

It’s a series of events that has arguably already cost them ground in their Champions League tie.

Chelsea’s chase for honours has kept the match sharpness and the intensity ticking over nicely. Liverpool have been wide awake in Europe for most of this season, but the siesta that Benitez has to shake his players from to get up and get back to work have got longer and heavier.

This is what cost Liverpool in the first half of the first leg. Chelsea were at it from the off, picking up the big-game momentum of their title chase and FA Cup exploits like ducks to water while Liverpool looked distinctively out of their depth.

The home side were primed for the battle and were far quicker out of the blocks in the early stages, and it’s that factor which ultimately proved the narrow difference ahead of the return meeting.

Things evened out as the first leg wore on and Liverpool’s chances of capitalising on the way they stayed in the game would have been seriously jeopardised by any Carvalho-like calamities at the weekend.

Small wonder then that Benitez decided that a rest would be as good as good a trip to the south coast by leaving out the weapons that will be key to shooting down Mourinho’s men.

If Steve Finnan is, as expected, recovered from a neck injury, he will take his place in what should be a completely different back five.

Jose Reina made way for Jerzy Dudek while John Arne Riise, Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger were also preserved, along with Javier Mascherano, Steven Gerrard, Dirk Kuyt and – in a strong indication of Benitez’s more attack-minded philiosophy demanded by being a goal down – Peter Crouch. Just a shame the ‘sit this one out, lads’ seemed to transfer to the ones who did take to the field at Fratton Park.

Performances on Saturday are unlikely to sway Benitez in his selection, which he will have surely already decided on during this six-day half-time period between first and second legs.

Only Alvaro Arbeloa, Bolo Zenden, Xabi Alonso and Craig Bellamy stayed in from the previous Wednesday but the seven brought in hardly pressed their cases to alter the manager’s mind.

There were exceptions, most notably goalscorer Sami Hyypia, whose desire to make his 400th game for the club memorable at least gave him some motivation to perform.

Emiliano Insua didn’t disgrace himself in attempts to become a capable fall-back option if Riise is pushed further up the left flank but right-winger Jermaine Pennant’s late cameo in that position perhaps gave more clues to Benitez’s thinking, particularly in light of the wasteful Mark Gonzalez’s lack of impact in that berth.

And the 18-year-old left-back will be encouraged by being the first Liverpool player to make an attempt at goal, even if it did take 35 minutes.

By then his side were already 2-0 down thanks chiefly to the fatal lack of understanding in the rest of the defence.

On 27 minutes Gabriel Paletta – still struggling badly to adapt to the Premiership – unwisely left David James’s long ball for Dudek to deal with, but the Argentinian hadn’t reckoned on Benjani, who raced in to lob the ball over the goalkeeper and head into the empty net.

Just five minutes later the acres of space sub Niko Krancjar was given to advance into the area and prod the ball past Dudek merely underlined the unfamiliarity that was plaguing the back four.

It was about as well co-ordinated as the white socks that invaded the traditional red kit, only far less stylish.

At the other end, Dutch midfielder Zenden’s volley on the stroke of half-time that crashed back off the Portsmouth bar was the first-half highlight but overall, Benitez’s general disdain for the outcome was bad news for Robbie Fowler.

Given the thankless task of leading the line on his own, opportunities to fire his way into his manager’s thinking for Chelsea were non-existent.

He flourished more in the second half playing off Bellamy – whose own prospects for starting tomorrow were hardly helped by being shipped out to the right in the first half.

Former Wales striker Malcolm Allen’s assertion that Bellamy told him he wants out because he doesn’t get on with the manager – later dismissed as lies by the player – were however given some credence by the Spaniard handing him a role he’s previously never made any secret of his hatred for.

On a more positive note, there was Hyypia.

Given the problems that Daniel Agger had with Didier Drogba, Benitez could be persuaded to plump for experience after the way Hyypia not only managed to settle the defence down following their chaotic start but then rose majestically to head Liverpool back into the game just before the hour.

Subsequent efforts to force an equaliser were, however, once again lost in the insignificance of the overall result for the visiting team.

But once the supporting cast step back into the shadows tomorrow, if the main players manage to overturn their deficit it will matter even less.

And Benitez will never take more pleasure in proving Mourinho right for once.

PORTSMOUTH (4-4-2): James; Johnson, Primus, Stefanovic, Traore; O’Neil, Lauren, Hughes, Taylor (Kranjcar 21); Kanu (LuaLua 71), Benjani Mwaruwari (Davis 90). Subs: Ashdown, Mvuemba. BOOKING: Hughes 44.

LIVERPOOL (4-4-2): Dudek; Arbeloa, Hyypia, Paletta, Insua; Sissoko (El Zhar 83), Alonso, Zenden, Gonzalez (Pennant 67); Fowler, Bellamy. Subs: Padelli, Kuyt, Hobbs. BOOKING: Alonso 45.

REFEREE: Peter Walton (Northamptonshire).

ATT: 20,201.

NEXT GAME: Liverpool (0) v Chelsea (1), Champions League semi-final second leg, tomorrow 7.45pm.