Zenit St Petersburg 2 Liverpool 0: Reds on brink of Euro exit as Suarez blows chances
By DOMINIC KING
Of all the words Brendan Rodgers spoke during a sensitive press conference here, none struck a chord more than his pay-off.
‘We take great pride in being a winning football club,’ said the Liverpool manager, when asked about the club’s traditions after dealing with questions about the spectre of racism and the concerns he had about coming to Russia.
Not any longer. Liverpool used to carry an air of invincibility in Europe but in St Petersburg, the fallibilities of this squad emerged again to consign them to a 2-0 defeat that leaves their hopes of Europa League glory looking improbable.
Screamer: Hulk celebrates his long-range strike which gave Zenit the lead with 20 minutes to play
MATCH FACTS
Zenit St Petersburg: Malafeev, Aniukov, Luis Neto, Lombaerts, Hubocan, Shirokov, Denisov, Witsel, Hulk, Kerzhakov (Faitzulin 82), Danny (Semak 54).
Subs not used: Zhevnov, Rodic, Lukovic, Djordjevic, Evseev.
Goals: Hulk 70, Semak 72.
Booked: Hubocan, Luis Neto.
Liverpool: Reina, Johnson, Skrtel, Carragher, Jose Enrique, Gerrard, Allen, Henderson, Downing, Suarez, Sterling (Lucas 78).
Subs not used: Jones, Coates, Borini, Suso, Shelvey, Wisdom.
Booked: Skrtel.
Att: 21,000
Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo (Spain)
The Liverpool of old would, in all likelihood, have emerged from the first leg of this last-32 tie holding a handsome advantage. This Liverpool should have done after creating six glorious chances, four of which were carelessly
spurned by Luis Suarez.
At the very least Liverpool should have secured a draw but a lack of mental steel, the absence of a killer instinct and poor defending enabled Hulk and Sergei Semak to plunder the goals that have pushed Liverpool to the brink of elimination.
Rodgers, typically, was optimistic that Liverpool can progress at a baying Anfield, but will they be able to score three unanswered goals? Statistics suggest not: Liverpool have conceded two or more in 20 of their 41 games this season. It is a figure to alarm.
So while there may have been relief that the game passed without the slightest hint of racism from Zenit’s notorious supporters — 2,500 local police kept the home crowd in check — the trip still ended up being unsatisfying.
‘We are very disappointed,’ said Rodgers. ‘I thought it was a near-perfect away performance. We had chances to score and should have been in front. We looked defensively solid so to concede those goals, especially the second one, was very disappointing.’
Cruising: Sergei Semak (right) doubled Zenit's lead within minutes of Hulk's goal
It was a night to chill the bones. Zenit’s stadium is on the banks of the River Neva and the huge expanse of water splitting St Petersburg was frozen over; temperatures plummeted to -5°C during the game.
Suarez had his hands inside his long-sleeved shirt, and blew on them furiously in an attempt to warm up. He, though, was not the only member of Liverpool’s team to be caught cold as Zenit almost scored from the opening attack.
That they did not was down to a superb save from Pepe Reina, who denied Aleksandr Kerzhakov by plunging to his right. The Spaniard followed it with an impressive parry from Hulk in the fifth minute, after the Brazilian had powered through two flimsy challenges.
In between was a gilt-edged opportunity which Suarez missed to set the tone for his night. He had been picked out beautifully by Glen Johnson but, after twisting Luis Neto inside out, the Uruguayan dragged his shot wide of Vyacheslav Malafeev’s far post.
Wasteful: Luis Suarez missed a number of clear-cut opportunities
The tempo was excellent. Suarez should have put Liverpool ahead on 15 minutes yet, after intercepting a Nicolas Lombaerts pass, he dithered when running through on goal and allowed the Belgian to recover. How the score remained goalless at the break was a mystery. Zenit stayed on the front foot, asking questions of Liverpool at every opportunity.
Central to the pressure was Hulk, the €60million striker who has experienced the malevolence of Zenit’s ultras more than anyone. A fake bomb was found at Zenit’s training ground with a picture of him on and the words ‘Hulk Out’, but there was no hostility towards him during the game. He looked the most likely to score and came close on 27 minutes when hitting the post.
Yet from then, Liverpool dominated. Only the over-elaboration of Suarez on 40 minutes, when he back-heeled a Raheem Sterling cross rather than putting his foot through the ball, prevented them taking the lead.
Captain: Steven Gerrard led a strong Liverpool side in Russia
This was Liverpool’s most assured performance in Europe this season. The emphasis at Anfield may now be on recruiting youth but there were only three starting players under 23, and the experience reflected in their play.
Encouraged by the first 45 minutes, Liverpool opened the second period in a similarly buoyant fashion. Rodgers thought his side had taken the lead when Johnson motored forward on 48 minutes but his shot was diverted wide, as the manager stood with his arms aloft.
Then, on the hour, Stewart Downing drove forward but after he guided the ball to Suarez, Liverpool’s No 7 watched in exasperation as his arcing shot curled past the post.
On the brink: Liverpool will need an improved performance in the second leg next week
Everything seemed set for the visitors to go on and finish the job but when Martin Skrtel backed off in the 70th minute, he allowed Hulk an opening to drill a 25-yard drive that swerved past Reina.
If that was a brilliant strike, what followed within two minutes was anything but.
Liverpool hesitated on the left and Zenit engineered an opening that led to substitute Semak sweeping in at the far post. Reina and Jamie Carragher were apoplectic, as others could have stopped the danger. Rodgers sported a look of disbelief.
‘We are wondering how we lost it,’ said Rodgers. Privately, however, he will know exactly why. When it mattered, Liverpool were simply not good enough.
Fancy dress: One Zenit supporter wears a Hulk mask
Hostile: Zenit fans dominated the pre-match talk but they were happy with what they saw from their team
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