Liverpool 2 Manchester C 2 (agg 3-2):LIVERPOOL HAVE booked their first trip to Wembley since 1996 and after waiting that long they will enjoy the opportunity to see how much the old place has changed. Kenny Dalglish's team deserve their place at Manchester City's expense after being the better team in both legs, culminating in Craig Bellamy's decisive goal against his former club.
Bellamy’s time in Manchester ended acrimoniously and he will have relished making his point to Roberto Mancini, the manager who ostracised and sold him. The striker can look forward to a final against Cardiff City, the club where he pitched up last season, and Liverpool will be strong favourites to win their first trophy of Dalglish’s second spell as manager.
This was an experimental line-up on Mancini’s part, abandoning the 4-2-3-1 system that has helped City establish a position of strength at the top of the Premier League. Instead, the Italian had lined up a three-man defence for the first time this season, with Aleksandar Kolarov and Pablo Zabaleta moving forward from their usual full-back positions to operate as wingers. In the end, it lasted only until half-time before the Manchester City manager accepted he had got it wrong and reverted to his usual formation.
The idea was undoubtedly to protect Stefan Savic, the promising but raw centre-half whose previous performances deputising for the suspended Vincent Kompany had identified him as potentially vulnerable. It was a strange time to experiment and after playing so long with a set formation it was probably only inevitable there would be times when they lacked their usual solidity in defence. Savic was the man to make way at the interval and Mancini will be relieved when Kompany is back.
Liverpool began the game with drive and purpose. They seemed determined to get the 3-1 defeat at Bolton Wanderers on Saturday out of their system, playing with far greater tempo, quicker to the ball and more decisive in possession. Jose Enrique ought to have scored after only four minutes after Kolarov’s miscued clearance and, when his shot was blocked by Joe Hart’s legs, Stewart Downing’s follow-up effort smacked of a player with sapped confidence.
Too many times this season Liverpool’s wastefulness in front of goal has been a factor in their Anfield performances and their supporters could have been forgiven for worrying about a sense of deja vu when City scored from their first period of sustained pressure.
The goal came from an unlikely figure considering that Nigel De Jong had scored only once before in 102 starts. But it was a beauty. David Silva, inevitably, was involved, turning inside Gerrard and laying the ball into De Jong’s path. The Dutchman took one touch, with Gerrard bearing down, before curling his shot into the top left-hand corner of Pepe Reina’s net from 20 yards.
This was the point of the match when Liverpool demonstrated a togetherness and competitive spirit that was simply not there at Bolton.
There was never once the sense of a team feeling sorry for themselves. Instead, they simply rolled up their sleeves and set about the business of getting themselves back into the match.
The equaliser came within seven minutes but City were entitled to question Phil Dowd’s decision to penalise Micah Richards for blocking Daniel Agger’s shot with his arms. The ball actually deflected off the defender’s legs first before ricocheting against his hands. Gerrard kept his composure as the City players protested and dispatched his shot past Hart to the goalkeeper’s right.
Two-one down on aggregate, the onus was back on City to push forward. Yet Liverpool began the second half as they had the first, with Bellamy buzzing around in attack and Gerrard, Charlie Adam and Jordan Henderson indefatigable in midfield.
Hart’s brilliant one-handed save diverted Martin Skrtel’s goalbound shot over the crossbar and, afterwards, Dirk Kuyt’s cross was just a little too awkward for Downing to turn in at the far post.
There was a look of carelessness about City at that point, culminating in Silva, of all people, overhitting a free-kick straight out for a goal-kick.
But within a couple of minutes they had regained the lead. Kolarov surged along the left flank and whipped in a low, penetrative cross. Sergio Aguero, Savic’s replacement, could not get a full touch but Dzeko, a peripheral figure until this point, was loitering at the far post to turn the ball past the exposed Reina.
Once again, Liverpool were faced with an examination of nerve and passed with distinction. After 74 minutes Kuyt came in from the right wing, Bellamy exchanged passes with Glen Johnson and then calmly stroked in the decisive goal.
LIVERPOOL: Reina, Johnson, Skrtel, Agger, Jose Enrique, Henderson, Adam, Downing, Gerrard, Bellamy (Kelly 88), Kuyt (Carroll 90). Subs Not Used: Doni, Maxi, Coates, Carragher, Shelvey. Booked: Gerrard, Jose Enrique.
MAN CITY: Hart, Richards, Savic (Aguero 46), Lescott, Kolarov, De Jong (Johnson 78), Barry, Zabaleta, Silva, Nasri, Dzeko. Subs Not Used: Pantilimon, Milner, Hargreaves, Clichy, Rekik. Booked: Kolarov.
Referee: Phil Dowd (Staffordshire).
