Liverpool see out September 2009 in a stuttering style, with a seven goal masterclass and two two-goal defeats.
Spanish hero Fernando Torres gets recognition for his services so far in the season, and Anfield get wind of a Princely sum coming in from the East which may put right some of the friendly fire that the current owners have been put under.
So there or thereabouts, hello October and another International break: Anfield latest as Rafa’s Reds continue to entertain and perplex fans of Liverpool FC.
Liverpool FC Barclays Premier League Result
Saturday 26th September 2009
Liverpool FC 6 – 1 Hull FC
(Torres 12, 28 (Geovanni 15)
and 47,
Gerrard 61,
Babel 88, 90+1)
A Fernando Torres hat-trick helps Liverpool take Hull apart.
The Spaniard put Liverpool in front but Geovanni then levelled for the visitors.
The equality was short-lived when Torres got his second on the half hour, and put Liverpool clear after the restart with his third.
Captain Steven Gerrard got the Reds’ fourth before Ryan Babel tapped in Dirk Kuyt’s cross and then deflected in Albert Riera’s shot in stoppage time.
Unsurprisingly, Rafa Benitez was happy with six against Hull, telling the BBC: “[Fernando Torres] is now showing his ability but I think he can do it better. He is keen to learn and he will improve but how much depends on him.
“We brought him here because of his quality but also his potential. We are pleased now but he can improve.”
Liverpool FC: played 7, won 5, lost 2, gd +11, points 15, position 3rd
The following Monday 28th September, and behind-the-scenes news broke: Saudi prince Faisal bin Fahd bin Abdullah al-Saud told the Saudi Al-Riyadh newspaper “we are looking forward to acquiring 50% of [Liverpool FC]‘s stake”.
The price of £200m to £350m he is ready to pay for the half stake is more than the £174m US owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett paid for the whole club.
Reds’ co-owners Hicks and Gillett confirmed they are looking for outside investors, in a joint statement saying that the search “is at an early stage”, and that at present “there is no agreement with any party”.
Liverpool FC Champions League Group E Result
Tuesday 29th September 2009
Fiorentina 2 – 0 Liverpool FC
(Jovetic 28, 37)
Stevan Jovetic spoil Liverpool’s latest European campaign as he scores Fiorentina’s two goals in their victory over the Reds.
The teenager first beat the offside trap to get his first, then diverted a Juan Vargas strike for his second and Fiorentina’s winner before the half-time whistle.
Liverpool had their chances to get themselves back into the game, but their poor first-half display was enough to put the game out of reach.
Liverpool had found the net in their previous 21 Champions League matches, and getting one in this fixture would have had them equalising Bayern Munich’s european record of 22.
A surprised Benitez spoke to BBC sport: “There were too many mistakes and problems. Our mentality in the first half was not right, we were bad all over the pitch.
“I cannot really recall a performance like that. We certainly will never be as bad again.”
Liverpool now sit 3rd in Group E, behind Fiorentina and Lyon on goal difference.
Liverpool’s next Group E match is against Lyon on Tuesday 20th October at Anfield, kick-off 7.45pm.
The following day, Liverpool Football Clubs old hands spoke up about the previous night’s defeat:
Steven Gerrard said “We need to get the Fiorentina loss out of our system quickly, as we have a massive game at Chelsea,
“What we need is to produce a reaction from this defeat at Stamford Bridge.”
Defender Jamie Carragher agreed, saying “We didn’t perform well enough, we know that,
“We were slightly better in the second half, but still not good enough.
“Nothing went to plan. It was a massive game for them, and a massive game for us, but they seemed to be more ready for it from the start.”
October 1st saw news away from footballing matters, as a man was charged over a robbery at the home of Steven Gerrard in December 2007.
Martin Wilson, 22, of Stockbridge Village has been charged with robbery and burglary.
He is due to appear at North Sefton Magistrates’ on 30 October.
Captain Gerrard was away with Liverpool at the time, playing in the Champions League against Marseilles, his wife was at home.
2nd October saw Liverpool’s Fernando Torres being awarded the Premier League Player of the Month Award for September, having scored a hat-trick against Hull and five goals in the month, taking his tally for the season to eight and making him top-scorer.
Perhaps surprisingly, this is only the second time that Torres has won the accolade – Torres and his team-mates have scored the most goals in the Premier League so far this 2009/2010 season.
Liverpool FC Barclays Premier League Result
Sunday 4th October 2009
Chelsea FC 2 – 0 Liverpool FC
(Anelka 60,
Malouda 90+1)
Two second-half goals from Nicolas Anelka and Florent Malouda send Chelsea back to the top of the Premier League in a deserved victory against the visiting Reds.
For Liverpool and their manager Rafa Benitez, the Premier League defeat capped a disappointing week after Tuesday night’s slump against Fiorentina.
The Reds only threatened occasionally, with Torres a subdued player outplayed by his marker John Terry.
Substitute Yossi Benayoun missed Liverpool Football Club’ best chance, but that was well into stoppage time when Chesea were already two goals to the good and waiting for the final whistle.
Boss Rafa Benitez was interviewed by the BBC afterwards, and he was critical of his side’s mistakes that meant Liverpool have now lost more times this season than the whole of last year’s campaign: “It is too early.
“It is a long race and we must keep going. We are playing good football and creating chances.
“We are doing the things that you need to do. But when you have chances, you must score with them.”
Liverpool FC: played 8, won 5, lost 3, gd +9, points 15, position 5th
Prince Faisal bin Fahd bin Abdullah al-Saud spoke out agin on the 8th October, raising concerns over the club’s debt and the relationship between owners Hicks and Gillette.
Barry Didato, head of strategic investments at the prince’s F6 company said: “His Highness’s shareholding could go from anything from nought to 100%,
“But he cannot be seen as a solution to the debt or problems in the existing relationship between the owners.”
The relationship between George Gillett and his co-owner Tom Hicks has been strained for some time, with both parties owning 50% each but neither able to sell shares without the other’s consent or approval.
Liverpool FC’s next match is on Saturday 17th October, against Sunderland AFC at The Stadium of Light.
Check out Liverpool Football Club’s Home and Away Fixtures for the 2009/10 season:
Liverpool FC Fixtures List 2009/10
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