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Vitesse Arnhem 0 Liverpool 1 (UEFA Cup) Nov
Scorer(s) - Michael Owen
Half Time - 0-1
Venue - Gelredome, Arnhem
Date - Thur 28 Nov 2002
Star Man - Djimi Traore
Report by Dave Usher
Well we won, which was the main thing. But it was hardly a confidence building display was it? There were a lot of good things to come out of this, but equally, there were some worrying signs, and had it not been for their young substitute missing an absolute sitter, then this tie would be evenly balanced heading into the second leg.
Vittesse were wide open at the back, and to be honest we should have put four or five past them at least. Time and again we got in behind them, but poor finishing let us down.
Owen was the main offender, missing three excellent chances, but Smicer and Murphy were also guilty of sloppiness in front of goal.
Gerard resisted the urge to rest Michael Owen, but did leave out Dietmar Hamann, whilst Carragher, Riise and Heskey also dropped out. There was a much deserved start for in form Milan Baros, and Steven Gerrard made a welcome return to the starting XI.
The biggest surprise however, was the inclusion of Stephane Henchoz, as most had felt he'd be held back for the Premiership game at the weekend. Jerzy kept his place in goal, and quite right too.
The reds lined up with an attacking diamond in midfield, with Cheyrou the focal point of it. Sadly for Bruno, he pulled up injured after only a few minutes, and was replaced by Smicer. I don't think the French midfielder had even touched the ball before he went off. A shame, as he's been looking pretty good of late.
It was clear early on that Vitesse weren't exactly strong opposition. They were raw in attack, and dodgy in defence. In short, they were there for the taking. Particularly once Owen had given us the lead after great work by the lively Baros.
One criticism which people have had of Baros is that he doesn't pass very often, but tonight he made one for Owen, and created other opportunities for his strike partner in an outstanding display. Quite why he was brought off and replaced by Heskey is puzzling, as he looked to be our biggest threat.
The first half had been very, very comfortable for the reds. Without ever needing to go above second gear, they had the lead and were not troubled at all by the Dutch side.
The second half continued in the same manner, with Vitesse unable to breach the reds back four and leaving huge gaps in their own defence. Owen missed two one on ones, and Smicer missed one too as the reds midfield dominated. Murphy and Gerrard were pulling all the strings, whilst Diao sat back and played the 'Hamann role' to good effect.
Then it all started change around the 65 minute mark. The reds began to get edgy, perhaps undecided as to whether they should protect what they had, or try and increase their lead, and all of a sudden, Vitesse became a threat, and we became nervy.
By and large, the defence held firm, with Djimi Traore turning in an outstanding display at left back. The Dutch side focused most of their attacks down our left flank, but found young Djimi an impossible obstacle to bypass.
The one occasion when they did manage to get through the back four and get a clear sight at Dudek, Mustapha hit the post, and substitute Sonne dragged the rebound wide of an open goal. A huge let off for the reds, but given how every shot against us of late has resulted in a goal, maybe it's about time we got a bit of luck.
Has the tide turned? I guess we'll find out on Sunday.
Team: Jerzy Dudek, Markus Babbel, Stephane Henchoz, Sami Hyypia, Djimi Traore; Salif Diao, Steven Gerarrd, Danny Murphy, Bruno Cheyrou (Vladimir Smicer); Michael Owen, Milan Baros (Emile Heskey):
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