 UNTIL last night, much of Liverpools Far East trip has been
spent observing and finding amusement in the cultural differences between English and
Asian football.
The Chinese may still have much to learn about the intricacies of the Premiership,
but when Liverpools teamsheet arrived it was the follies of our system which were
embarrassingly exposed.
Fernando Torres was brought on a 16- hour trip, to a country where his image is
being plastered across the city in anticipation of his appearances, only to be tied to the
bench by red tape.
Why the international clearance of Torres and Ryan Babel couldnt be rushed
through so they could feature in the Hong Kong Stadium is a mystery.
Rafa Benitez confirmed: There was a problem with the international clearance.
I do not know exactly what the problem is but hopefully we can find a solution
so they can play on Friday.
Given the millions invested in promoting the game out here, and the worthy efforts
of the PR teams and clubs trying to engage the wider community, the absence of the players
everyone most wanted to see was disappointing.
The poor Chinese fans had no idea why they were being denied their first glimpse of
the Liverpool new boys. For more understandable reasons, their chants of we want
Gerrard also had to be ignored because of the skippers abdominal injury.
In their absence, Liverpool were still able to comfortably secure their place in
the final, thanks to a couple of superb strikes and a Xabi Alonso penalty.
There were still enough uncomfortable moments in the debilitating heat to worry
Rafa Benitez, but by the closing stages the margin of victory should have been much
higher.
Sadly, the game itself told us very little about Liverpools current state of
health in the build-up to the new season. The conditions were too unique and opponents too
weak for serious judgements to be made.
Andriy Voronin was Liverpools most eye-catching performer again, while at the
other end of the scale Momo Sissokos loss of confidence has chased him across
continents.
You had to feel for the African as one wayward pass too many made him the butt of
the local supporters jokes.
They began cheering whenever he took possession of the ball. Theyre a fickle
bunch, so maybe they know more about the Premiership than we give them credit for. Not
sure about allowing thousands into the new stadium, though. In their fevered excitement,
they often forget which team they were supporting.
Sissoko did win the eighth minute free-kick which allowed John Arne Riise to
maintain his goalscoring form with a typically thunderous strike.
With Liverpool playing at an understandably sedate tempo, and South China trying to
keep the pace high, the game didnt begin as one-sided as had been predicted.
Voronin, who looks like a better version of Craig Bellamy, only with a pony tail
rather than chip brushing his shoulder, was then sent tumbling to in the box to allow
Alonso to stroke home a 27th minute penalty.
Voronin may look like a bass player in a 1980s soft rock band, but hes shown
promise. |
Perhaps the Ukranians haircut summoned images of David Seaman in the mind of
Scott Carson. That may explain his imitation of the ex-England keeper when Li Haiqiang
beat him with a dipping free-kick from 40 yards.
This provoked a tricky 20 minute spell when the hosts threatened an equaliser.
Fortunately, a series of substitutions 10 minutes into the second half swung the
balance irreversibly back to Liverpool.
Dirk Kuyt was instantly into the action, and should have grabbed a couple of goals
in the closing stages.
He settled for an assist when Daniel Aggers powerful defensive run saw him send
Riise clear, and Kuyt set up the Dane for a lethal finish on 74 minutes.
As the home side ran out of steam, the gulf in class became increasingly apparent.
Benitez was even allowed to experiment with Sami Hyypia and Alvaro Arbeloa as central
midfield partners, while youngsters David Martin and Robbie Threlfall were given a taste
of the Orient.
Liverpools 100 per cent pre-season record remains intact, although Fridays
opponents will provide the first genuine test of their credentials.
The conditions will still make it just about as untypical a Premier League contest its
possible for two English sides to play, but both sides will be seeking a morale boosting
victory.
Benitezs task between now and then is to ensure he has all his squad available.
There have been so many permit and passport applications in the last few weeks, Anfield
must now resemble the Home Office.
Liverpool: Carson (Martin 84); Arbeloa, Agger,
Carragher, Riise; Benayoun (Finnan 65), Alonso (Threlfall 74), Sissoko (Hyypia 72), Kewell
(Pennant 55); Voronin, Crouch (Kuyt 55)
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