A tip of the cap and a rise of the Miller Lite can to everyone involved with today's insanely bizarre Chelsea/Liverpool Champions League Texas Tornado match, which ended 4-4 at Stamford Bridge, with the Blues advancing 7-5 on aggregate.
Honestly, I don't even know if whatever I cobble together in this post can do it any justice. I'm not sure if epic is the right way to describe the action. Surreal might be more like it.
Considering the oars-in, tactical, 1-0 snooze-fests Chelsea/Liverpool has produced in the past, who would have thought this time -- in the Champions League quarterfinals -- would produce 12 goals over 180 minutes?
Actually, the best way to describe this one is to go use the words of the immortal Coach Eric Taylor from 'Friday Night Lights' (spoiler alert, if you haven't seen Season Three.)
Ok, if you've watched the clip maybe this doesn't exactly apply to the Liverpool players like Jamie Carragher or Xabi Alonso, who participated in the 'Miracle in Istanbul' (fun fact, the only two that played in both). But you get my point. This was a game to be recalled and remembered for the ages.
Ebbs and flows. Oohs and aahs.
Alex's swerving, unreal, Roberto Carlos-equese freekick.
Liverpool's early gusto and near fight-back in the final 10 minutes.
Chelsea's never say-die-attitude personified by Frank Lampard.
This had it all.
In in a game like that, what more can a writer possibly add to it?
Surely, if any club could pull itself out from a 3-1 deficit, it would be Liverpool. And what fan of the Reds wasn't belting out YNWA after Alonso's penalty kick gave the team hope?
It just wasn't to be. With Steven Gerrard looking on miserably in street clothes, it was time for his England midfield rival to steal the King of the Scousers almost patented late-match heroics. Not once, but twice Lampard slayed the Liverpool dragon in the closing minutes
Yeah, there are some major concerns if you're Chelsea. How does the once air-tight defense allow seven goals in two games -- at Stamford Bridge no less!? And what's going on with Petr Cech? Aside from the brilliant punch at Dirk Kuyt's header, he looks like a punch drunk prizefighter.
It doesn't matter much, since the Blues move on to play their other recent European foil -- Barcelona.
And it's easy to find a word for that one -- epic.
Honestly, I don't even know if whatever I cobble together in this post can do it any justice. I'm not sure if epic is the right way to describe the action. Surreal might be more like it.
Considering the oars-in, tactical, 1-0 snooze-fests Chelsea/Liverpool has produced in the past, who would have thought this time -- in the Champions League quarterfinals -- would produce 12 goals over 180 minutes?
Actually, the best way to describe this one is to go use the words of the immortal Coach Eric Taylor from 'Friday Night Lights' (spoiler alert, if you haven't seen Season Three.)
Ok, if you've watched the clip maybe this doesn't exactly apply to the Liverpool players like Jamie Carragher or Xabi Alonso, who participated in the 'Miracle in Istanbul' (fun fact, the only two that played in both). But you get my point. This was a game to be recalled and remembered for the ages.
Ebbs and flows. Oohs and aahs.
Alex's swerving, unreal, Roberto Carlos-equese freekick.
Liverpool's early gusto and near fight-back in the final 10 minutes.
Chelsea's never say-die-attitude personified by Frank Lampard.
This had it all.
In in a game like that, what more can a writer possibly add to it?
Surely, if any club could pull itself out from a 3-1 deficit, it would be Liverpool. And what fan of the Reds wasn't belting out YNWA after Alonso's penalty kick gave the team hope?
It just wasn't to be. With Steven Gerrard looking on miserably in street clothes, it was time for his England midfield rival to steal the King of the Scousers almost patented late-match heroics. Not once, but twice Lampard slayed the Liverpool dragon in the closing minutes
Yeah, there are some major concerns if you're Chelsea. How does the once air-tight defense allow seven goals in two games -- at Stamford Bridge no less!? And what's going on with Petr Cech? Aside from the brilliant punch at Dirk Kuyt's header, he looks like a punch drunk prizefighter.
It doesn't matter much, since the Blues move on to play their other recent European foil -- Barcelona.
And it's easy to find a word for that one -- epic.
Labels: champions league, Chelsea, Liverpool, Soccer
People often say Liverpool and Chelsea produce boring affairs. And that may have been true at one point, but the last two years in the Champions League, and even the Premier League of late, have shown off some incredible play between these two.
GREAT match for neutrals, GREAT match for partisans. Los Reds gave it their all. Left it all out there. Made people proud today.
Here’s to hoping Porto can bring it tomorrow.
It was an absolutely epic battle to determine who gets fed to Barcelona in the semifinals.
But seriously, this game was so good, it got the full ESPN highlight treatment on Sportscenter -- Scott Van Pelt even tried on some of the names! (Although he used a hard G on Gerrard -- saying it GARE-ARD -- and also inexplicably didn't know how to pronounce "Didier".)
What a game! I hoped, I believed, I cried, I despaired, I hoped, I cried.
Never forget the 96.