Remarkably, replacement keeper Brad Jones saved Yakubu's resulting spot kick, but the Aussie was powerless to prevent his header drawing one back for Blackburn before the break. After the interval, Jones made a hash of a clearance and ended up conceding another spot kick, and Yakubu made no mistake this time around. Not to be denied, Liverpool pushed on and Carroll's injury time header clinched a rare League win for the Reds; only their third in 2012.
Club captain Steven Gerrard was rested ahead of Liverpool's FA Cup semi-final match against local rivals Everton on Saturday, as manager Kenny Dalglish made six changes to the starting line-up. Johnson returned from injury to start at left back while Maxi Rodriguez made a rare start ahead of him on the left wing. Craig Bellamy, meanwhile, partnered Andy Carroll up front while Alexander Doni started between the sticks in place of the suspended Pepe Reina, who was an interested spectator.
After a quiet opening 10 minutes, Liverpool sprang into life in emphatic fashion, scoring twice in three minutes to stun their hosts. First, Skrtel's excellent long ball picked out Bellamy in space. The Welshman squared across the face of the goal to Maxi, who, unlike Dirk Kuyt versus Villa, tapped home from three yards out.
Then, after Shelvey was denied and Carroll's shot had been blocked, the ball fell for Maxi, who clinically volleyed home his and Liverpool's second with his left foot. The two goals proved once again that Maxi, a prolific goalscorer with 11 League goals in just 10 starts, deserves far more game time and shouldn't be confined to the substitutes' bench as often as he unfortunately has been.Referee Anthony Taylor then had a stern word with Jon Flanagan after he committed another potentially bookable offence soon after receiving a yellow card for a foul on Marcus Olsson. The 19-year old was not having a good evening, as mid-way through the first period his shocking back pass sold Doni short and allowed Hoilett to go one-on-one with the second choice stopper. Unceremoniously, Doni brought Blackburn's number 23 down inside the area and the referee had no choice but to send the Brazilian off and award Rovers a penalty.
To spare his blushes, Flanagan was replaced by Brad Jones, who made his Premier League debut for the Reds in the week that he became a father again. Undaunted, Jones managed to save Yakubu's dire penalty, which went straight at his former Middlesbrough teammate. In fact, it was the second worst back pass of the evening!
In the immediate aftermath Jones pointed to the sky in recognition of his son Luca, who tragically lost his battle with leukaemia last November.Despite that temporary reprieve, the fact that Liverpool had only 10 men became evident rather rapidly and Yakubu soon compensated for his missed spot-kick. The Nigerian centre forward was left completely unmarked by Johnson and Carroll and consequently connected with Dunn's clipped free kick, guiding the ball past a statuesque Jones.
The target now for the Reds was to enter the interval with their lead intact and, thankfully, they managed to do so, despite Olsson firing a threatening ball across the face of the goal. Surprisingly, Liverpool began the second half brightly, with Carroll's diving header missing the target and Skrtel's powerful headed effort forcing Robinson into a good save, although it wouldn't have counted anyway as the Slovakian skipper for the night was offside.
On the hour mark, though, an error from Brad Jones cost the Merseysiders dearly. The number 1's attempted clearance smashed into Yakubu and then he hesitantly tried to catch the ball on his line but ended up embarrassingly spilling it and pushing over Yakubu in the box. It was clearly a penalty and the only consolation was that Jones only saw yellow, rather than red. Yakubu's resulting penalty was little different to his first missed effort but this time Jones dived too soon instead of standing his ground and therefore Blackburn equalised.
With the momentum and confidence garnered from recovering a two-goal deficit, many expected Blackburn to push on and Liverpool to capitulate in a similar fashion to against QPR in March.Fortunately, that wasn't the case, as Liverpool summoned up a response. On 66 minutes a good move involving Maxi and Bellamy playing passes in neat, intricate triangles came to an end when Carroll was flagged for offside when put in on goal. Henderson, who had performed terrifically on the right, defending well and also marauding forward when possible, did brilliantly with five minutes remaining to break down the right and fire an inviting cross into the centre but frustratingly nobody in red was there to finish. In between, Hanley beat Carroll to a deep cross and nodded over Jones' bar from an awkward angle and Coates was forced to make an excellent last ditch challenge to deny Hoilett after he'd wriggled free in the box.
The last act of the match saw Liverpool steal all three points. Coates hoofed the ball back into the box after a corner had been cleared, and Agger flicked it on to Carroll, who headed past Robinson emphatically before wheeling off in ecstatic celebration in front of the visiting supporters.
Goals, red cards for goalkeepers, missed penalties, converted penalties and late drama; this game had absolutely everything and demonstrated why we love Liverpool FC and the Barclays Premier League. The excitement was tangible and the action engaging.Most importantly, Liverpool performed well and got the win they deserved, which should provide a crucial confidence boost heading into that all-important FA Cup semi-final clash with Everton on the weekend.
YNWA
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