| Thursday 15
December 2005 10:20 FIFA Club World Championship Semi-Final |
| Yokohama (Japan) |
 |
|
 |
| "Deportivo
Saprissa" |
0 - 3 |
"Liverpool" |
| |
(0-2) |
|
| |
| GOAL |
| |
|
Crouch 3, 58, Gerrard 32 |
| |
Team: 1. Jose Porras
(c), 3. Victor Cordero, 5. Jervis Drummond, 4. Ronald Gonzalez, 23. Tray Bennett, 16.
Gabriel Badilla, 19. Randall Azofeifa, 8. Walter Centeno, 2. Christian Bolanos, 11. Ronald
Gomez, 12. Alvaro Saborio.
Subs: 7. Allan Aleman, 9. Pablo Brenes, 20. Gerold Drummond, 22. Jose
Fonseca, 18. Fausto Gonzalez, 17. Jose Luis Lopez, 21. Keylor Navas, 14. Andres Nunez, 6.
Reynaldo Parks, 15. Gaul Phillips, 10. Alonso Solis. |
|
Team: 25. Jose Reina,
21. Djimi Traore, 23. Jamie Carragher, 4. Sami Hyypia, 17. Josemi, 6. John Arne Riise, 14.
Xabi Alonso, 22. Mohamed Sissoko, 8. Steven Gerrard, 9. Djibril Cisse, 15. Peter Crouch.
Subs: 20.
Scott Carson, 1. Jerzy Dudek, 3. Steve Finnan, 10. Luis Garcia, 16. Dietmar Hamann, 7.
Harry Kewell, 19. Fernando Morientes, 24. Florent Sinama Pongolle, 28. Stephen Warnock. |
| |
| SUBSTITUTIONS |
| Bennett (Solis 46), Gomez (Gerald 76)
Saborio (Aleman 83) |
|
Gerrard (Pongolle 64), Hyypia (Garcia 72),
Alonso (Hamann 79) |
| |
| OFFICIALS & BOOKINGS |
| Referee: Carlos Chandia
(Chi) Linesman: Cristian Julio(Chi), Mario Vargas (Chi) 4th
Official: Mohamed Guezzaz (Mar) |
| Booked: Azofeifa 29 |
|
Booked: |
| VENUE |
|
MANAGERS |
SInternational St. (capacity )
Attendance: 43,902 |
|
Hernan Medford (Deportivo S.)
Rafael Benitez (Liverpool) |
 
2005
UEFA Super Cup Final Players Home Shirts
2005
UEFA Super Cup Final Players Away Shirts
By
Chris Bascombe at The Mitsuzawa Stadium, Daily Post
By
Chris Bascombe at The Mitsuzawa Stadium, Liverpool Echo
Official Match Analysis
 RECORD BREAKING REDS REACH FINAL
Record-breaking Liverpool are just 90 minutes away from being confirmed as the best
football team in the world after easily overcoming CONCACAF champions Deportivo Saprissa
3-nil in the semi-final.
First-half volleys from Peter Crouch, after just two minutes, and captain Steven
Gerrard 30 minutes later ensured the Purple Monsters - as Saprissa are known back home in
Costa Rica - were in no position to derail Rafael Benitez's masterplan for world
domination. Crouch was on the scoresheet again early in the second-half as Liverpool
confirmed their place in the final against Brazilian champions Sao Paulo in Yokohama on
Sunday.
To cap a brilliant night for Liverpool fans everywhere, Liverpool's 12th
consecutive clean sheet ? thanks in so small part to some desperate defending late on from
Josemi and a couple of great saves from Pepe Reina - means the class of 2005 have now
replaced Kenny Dalglish's 1987 side in the club's record books as the meanest defence
ever.
If there were any fears that Saprissa might spring the shock of the tournament to
deprive Liverpool a place in the final, the minds of the 2,000 or so Reds who'd made the
6,000 mile trip were set at ease within three minutes as Crouch unleashed an unstoppable
half-volley to give the Reds the perfect start.
Liverpool's forward (R) heads the ball while Costa Rican
club Deportivo Saprissas defender Ronald Gonzalez looks |
Kicking off the match alongside
the recalled Djibril Cisse in attack, the pair took just two minutes to justify Rafael
Benitez's decision to rest Fernando Morientes after his two goals saw off Middlesbrough in
the Premiership on Saturday.
Linking up expertly on the edge of the box before John Arne Riise crossed the ball
low into the box, Cisse deftly set his strike partner up to finish in style.
The decision to rest Morientes was one of three changes made by Benitez with Josemi
replacing Steve Finnan at right-back and Djimi Traore slotting in at left-back allowing
John Arne Riise to take Harry Kewell's place on the left side of midfield.
Riise, in particular, proved too difficult for Saprissa to control and after Crouch
had raised Liverpool's hopes again after beating the offside trap only to fire wide and
then been brought down for what looked a penalty, it was his cross that set up Liverpool's
second goal.
When the ball fell to the No.6 halfway inside the Saprissa half, he found his
captain in space with a pinpoint cross and Gerrard smashed home as sweet a volley as
you'll see this season. Having just witnessed an absolutely astonishing 60-yard
cross-field pass from Xabi Alonso to send Cisse away just minutes earlier, Riise proved
that when the situation arises, he can almost match Liverpool's midfield playmaker for
vision. With more obvious options in Cisse and Crouch available to him running towards the
six-yard box, Riise spotted Gerrard unmarked on the right-hand side of the area and
promptly placed a perfect cross right onto the captain's Adidas boot.
With the contest practically over at half-time, Liverpool's players could have been
forgiven for taking their foot off the pedal after the interval with the final in mind but
a third goal just 12 minutes after the restart quashed that idea.
Having scored Liverpool's second, Gerrard turned provider to set up Crouch to score
his second of the night and fourth in total for his new club. It was Gerrard's pass that
sent the forward away but he still had work to do when he received the ball and after
shrugging off the attentions of two defenders, he slotted the ball beyond Saprissa 'keeper
Jose Porras.
Full Time: Liverpool 3 Deportivo Saprissa 0
Teams
Deportivo Saprissa: Porras (c), Cordero, Drummond, Gonzalez, Bennett, Badilla,
Azofeifa, Centeno, Bolanos, Gomez, Saborio. Subs - Aleman, Brenes, Drummond, Fonseca,
Gonzalez, Lopez, Navas, Nunez, Parks, Phillips, Solis.
Liverpool: Reina, Traore, Carragher, Hyypia, Josemi,
Riise, Alonso, Sissoko, Gerrard, Cisse, Crouch. Subs - Carson, Dudek, Finnan, Garcia,
Hamann, Kewell, Morientes, Sinama Pongolle, Warnock, ,
Referee: Carlos Chandia (Chi)
Conditions:
Attendance: 43,902
Liverpoolfc.tv Man-of-the-Match: Peter Crouch
Breakdown
10:20 GMT : Match Starts
1 min : Liverpool get the game underway
3 mins : GOAL! Peter Crouch: close-range volley following good play by Cisse and Riise
5 mins : Bennett fires over for Saprissa
6 mins : Cruch gets his head on the end of a Gerrard free-kick but can't direct it towards
goal
8 mins : Cisse blazes over
12 mins : Saprissa win the first corner of the match but Azofeifa heads over
16 mins : Centeno smashes a free-kick into the Liverpool wall
17 mins : Crouch is brought down in the box but there's no claim for a penalty
21 mins : Riise forces the keeper into a low diving save at his near post as Liverpool
break swiftly with Cisse down the right
26 mins : Hyypia heads down an Alonso corner and Crouch almost gets in to score a second
28 mins : Saborio breaks free of the Reds defence but shoots wide
29 mins : Booking: Randall Azofeifa: for a foul on Gerrard
32 mins : GOAL! Steven Gerrard: stunning volley from a Riise cross
38 mins : Josemi heads behind for a corner but nothing comes of it and Liverpool are
quickly back on the offensive
40 mins : Crouch is flagged offside after another impressive attacking move by the Reds
41 mins : Reina handles well from a Saprissa corner
42 mins : Riise drills a long-range free-kick wide
11:06 GMT : Half Time Reached
11:23 GMT : Second Half Begins
46 mins : Substitution: Alonso Solis for Tray Bennett:
46 mins : Saprissa restart the game
47 mins : Cisse heads narrowly wide from a Gerrard free-kick on the right
51 mins : Riise blasts a 40-yard free-kick high and wide
52 mins : Liverpool break swiftly down the right but Ciise's centre fails to find a red
shirt and a glorious opportunity is spurned
58 mins : GOAL! Peter Crouch: clinical finish when one-on-one with the keeper
64 mins : Substitution: Florent Sinama Pongolle for Steven Gerrard:
65 mins : Pongolle is denied a chance on goal by a last-ditch tackle in the box
69 mins : Crouch shows great skill on the edge of the area but fires over the bar
72 mins : Substitution: Luis Garcia for Sami Hyypia:
73 mins : The Saprissa keeper is forced to punch clear from an Alonso corner
75 mins : Reina reacts quickly to push a Saprissa free-kick away and the rebound is fired
over
76 mins : Substitution: Gerold Drummond for Ronald Gomez:
77 mins : Reina is put under pressure again but does well to avert the danger
79 mins : Another great move by the Reds ends with a Cisse shot being deflected over the
bar
79 mins : Substitution: Dietmar Hamann for Xabi Alonso:
83 mins : Substitution: Allan Aleman for Alvaro Saborio:
87 mins : Great defending by Josemi keeps the Saprissa forwards at bay
88 mins : Pongolle cuts in from the right but his shot his palmed away
89 mins : A terrific save by Reina and some heroic defending denies Saprissa a consolation
goal
90 mins : Garcia wastes a wonderful opportunity to make it 4-0 as he shoots wide with just
the keeper to beat
12:10 GMT : Match Over
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