Blackburn Rovers 0 Liverpool 1
Liverpool have worn the look of the condemned since their Champions League dream faltered at Arsenal but the last rites for their season were unnecessary at Ewood Park.
Philippe Coutinho’s 70th-minute strike in the FA Cup quarter-final replay with Blackburn Rovers finally cast off their shadow and gave Brendan Rodgers a timely respite. Aston Villa and a semi-final at Wembley beckons.
Coutinho proved the match-winner in a Lancashire replay just as he did at Bolton Wanderers in round four and Liverpool’s belief in FA Cup destiny was only enhanced by the final act at a sold out Ewood.
Simon Eastwood, the Blackburn goalkeeper, had the last kick of a close-fought tie having raced forward for a 94th-minute corner but his powerful shot was stopped on the line by opposite number Simon Mignolet.
Rovers’ hope of marking the 20th anniversary of their Premier League title win with a Wembley date was over. Liverpool, for all the inquests and misery of the past few days, marched on.
Gary Bowyer selected the same side that stifled Liverpool comfortably at Anfield minus towering centre forward Rudy Gestede, so effective in the goalless draw one month ago but restricted to the bench due to a hamstring injury suffered in the 3-0 win at Leeds United on Saturday.
Jordan Rhodes offered a decent alternative but lacked support in his attempts to harry Liverpool’s defence into the errors that contributed to their dreadful display at Arsenal on Saturday.
Liverpool made a composed start and controlled possession without seriously troubling Eastwood until taking a firm grip on the game 10 minutes before the interval. Joe Allen should have extended Eastwood at the very least from Liverpool’s opening attack but dragged a good chance wide when the ball dropped invitingly into his path 12 yards from goal.
Jordan Henderson instigated the opportunity with a floated cross into Daniel Sturridge and Liverpool’s captain, in the absence of the suspended Steven Gerrard, was a dynamic influence throughout.
Rodgers’s problems concerned the options at his disposal rather than any clear evidence of confidence or form draining after damaging league defeats to Manchester United and Arsenal. Having denied Liverpool’s 3-4-2-1 formation had been found out or was a factor in recent below-par displays, the manager reverted to a four-man defence for the first time since December as he sought to address the weaknesses of The Emirates.
The suspensions of Emre Can and Martin Skrtel may have influenced that decision but Rodgers lost the third member of his first-choice back three, Mamadou Sakho, after only 26 minutes with an apparent hamstring injury. Not that it appeared a cataclysmic setback given the France international’s early contribution at Ewood Park.
Sakho gifted Blackburn their first chance of the night when he allowed Marcus Olsson’s deep free-kick to run into the Liverpool area despite the presence of Craig Conway on the defender’s shoulder. Conway intercepted but Sakho made amends with a covering challenge to block the winger’s low shot.
The home side’s only other chance of the first half fell to Rhodes, who was picked out by an excellent left-wing delivery from Ben Marshall yet sent a free header over Mignolet’s crossbar. Rhodes’s furious reaction at failing to hit the target said it all. At the other end Sturridge shot just over from the edge of the area and Coutinho forced Eastwood into his first save of note after Lee Williamson made a mess of trying to clear a Henderson corner.
In contrast to a cautious first half both teams enlivened the second with greater urgency and attacking intent. Liverpool were indebted to Mignolet for keeping the scores level with two fine saves before they had a chance to settle. The first was an acrobatic stop to prevent Tom Cairney finding his top corner. The second was even better from the resulting corner, a superb reaction save that steered Marshall’s header onto the post.
Rodgers’s team responded immediately and it needed a desperate clearance from Alex Baptiste to foil Henderson in the six yard box. The Ewood atmosphere ignited when Gestede came off the bench to replace Conway and sent Rhodes scurrying clear with his first touch, only for Kolo Toure – Sakho’s replacement – to intervene.
Yet just as the momentum appeared with Blackburn, Liverpool produced the first goal of the extended quarter-final. The home side failed to clear a corner taken by Coutinho and, when the ball was returned to the Brazilian, he exchanged passes with Henderson before drilling an angled shot through the legs of Matt Kilgallon and in off the far post.
(Guardian service)
