Liverpool 2 – 1 Stoke City
Sunday, 18 March 2012 22:52 Darren Phillip
Liverpool made full use of home advantage and progressed to the FA Cup semi-finals courtesy of impressive strikes from Luis Suarez and Stewart Downing.
Stoke provided persistent and tenacious resistance to the Reds. Both teams lacked fluency but the visitors lack of rhythm over the last half hour – a crucial period of the game – proved their downfall.
Those goals came in either half. Peter Crouch sandwiched a reply between those two well taken efforts.
Maxi Rodriguez gained his first start since Manchester United were put out of the competition in late January. Jordan Henderson made way and Downing switched to the right flank in order to accommodate the Argentine.
Craig Bellamy remained absent.
Tony Pulis made four changes Thomas Sorensen, Crouch, Matthew Etherington and Glenn Whelan were restored to the line-up beaten at Chelsea. That made the Stoke XI as strong as it could be when enforced absences were factored in.
Until Suarez netted much of the opening quarter was played in midfield with possession exchanged fairly regularly. Most attempts to break the deadlock came from range.
There was only one exception for each side.
Maxi flicked a Steven Gerrard free-kick over in the opening minutes.
Crouch threatened at the other end after drifting to the far post and meeting an Andy Wilkinson cross which Pepe Reina saved without too much fuss. Had the former Liverpool man tried to pick out a colleague chances are that the keeper would have struggled to keep the ball out.
Suarez netted the first after dropping deep and taking the return from a one-two with Maxi; then keeping Dean Whitehead at bay before arcing a low shot past Sorensen and inside the right hand post.
Stoke levelled within three minutes but had already come close to squaring matters.
Crouch was inches away from reaching another Wilkinson centre. Only Jamie Carragher’s glancing intervention stopped the ball falling into the striker’s path.
The resulting corner led to another scrambled clearance behind but an equaliser came from the third corner – won after the ball went out off Ryan Shawcross.
After making his way beyond Andy Carroll and consequently free, Crouch arrived late to nod home inside the six-yard area. Etherington flighted the ball at a good height.
Reina earned a booking for complaints about the circumstances and what he felt to be Ryan Shotton causing an obstruction to his hopes of claiming the centre.
Jonathan Walters blazed into the side netting.
Carroll and Downing made acrobatic attempts at volleys which only concerned those in the Kop as gravity took effect.
Gerrard also fired over, but only narrowly so from a set-piece just inches outside the penalty area which Suarez tapped to his skipper.
During injury time a Maxi cross reached Suarez but hit his chest then arm. A few minutes earlier the Uruguayan had tried to chip Sorensen from an acute angle but the ball floated lightly into the keeper’s grateful hands.
When proceedings got back underway Gerrard tried to sneak a low shot in close to the area’s edge. Suarez stretched to meet a Downing free-kick but the ball flew just wide after leaving his head.
Stoke were struggling to offer their forwards anything other than scraps as Liverpool held the ball far better than had been the case during the opening half.
Downing was able to capitalise on a bright period around the hour and cut in from the right in order to feed Gerrard.
The recipient got his feet wrong and could do no more than deflect the ball back with his heels. Downing had already determined that he would continue the run and after sending a couple of Stoke defenders the wrong way was able to adjust himself and place an emphatic finish with his favoured left foot which gave Sorensen no chance.
Dirk Kuyt’s long range effort was absorbed by Sorensen’s chest.
Though the Danish stopper had to be at his best to parry then gather a Suarez shy at his posts. As it reached goal the ball swirled away requiring some last second adjustments to be made.
Jay Spearing was unable to keep the ball down and apply a suitable finish to some intricate work between Gerrard and Suarez.
Martin Kelly sustained an ankle injury in trying to extend the advantage. A link with Kuyt got him into the area on an overlap. Shawcross intervened with a sliding challenge which took the ball away at the crucial moment. But it left the full-back limping and eventually unable to continue.
Liverpool could face a Merseyside derby in the last four having been drawn to face either Sunderland or Everton in the semi-final. The pair drew 1-1 at Goodison Park on Saturday.
The ties are due to be played on the weekend of 14 or 15 April. However, Liverpool are set to lobby against the latter date.
Liverpool: Reina, Kelly (Coates), Carragher, Skrtel, Enrique, Maxi (Kuyt), Gerrard, Spearing, Downing, Suarez (Henderson), Carroll Unused Substitutes: Doni, Adam, Flanagan, Shelvey
Stoke City: Sorensen, Wilkinson, Huth, Shawcross, Wilson, Shotton (Pennant), Whitehead (Delap), Whelan, Hetherington (Jerome), Walters, Crouch Unused Substitutes: Nash, Jones, Upson, Palacios
Match Stats
Possession
Liverpool 56% Stoke City 44%
Shots on target
Liverpool 8 Stoke City 4
Shots off target
Liverpool 8 Stoke City 2
Corners
Liverpool 2 Stoke City 5
