Chelsea took the remaining Carling Cup semi-final spot after Frank
Lampard’s deflected goal set up a 2-0 win over 10-man
Liverpool.Lampard’s deflected 59th-minute opener was followed, seconds
later, by a moment of madness from Peter Crouch who was red-carded for
a disgraceful two-footed lunge on John Obi Mikel.
Referee Martin Atkinson immediately dismissed the England
striker who unleashed a four-letter tirade at Chelsea fans before
disappearing down the tunnel.
Crouch will now miss Liverpool’s home clash with Portsmouth and the visits to Derby and Manchester City over the festive period.
The Carling Cup has never been high on Rafael Benitez’s hit-list
and he underlined that by putting out a side which did not contain
England midfielder Steven Gerrard and Spanish striker Fernando Torres.
Gerrard, laid low with a stomach complaint, was certainly
missed by the Merseysiders - who showed little drive in a goalless
opening half largely controlled by the home side.
But Chelsea’s failure to break the deadlock was largely due to the agility of Liverpool’s reserve goalkeeper Charles Itandje.
In the 11th minute he denied Ivory Coast striker Salomon Kalou
when Andriy Shevchenko’s low cross had invited him to try his luck from
just inside the penalty area.
However, the Liverpool goalkeeper had to rely on his shoulder to prevent Lampard scoring in the 24th minute.
Alvaro Arbeloa’s attempted clearance fell to Lampard’s feet on
the edge of the penalty area but the England man could not finish the
job.
A minute later Chelsea had to rely on Petr Cech, playing his
first game in the competition this season, when a move involving Andriy
Voronin and Crouch set up Lucas.
The Czech keeper, at fault for Arsenal’s winner in the Premier
League on Sunday, produced a fine diving save to deny the Liverpool
midfielder.
But they were the only real highlights in a first half littered with poor passes and choked by a packed midfield.
Chelsea continued to look the more likely to score but Lampard
was still finding his range when he sent a 20-yard shot high into the
crowd in the 52nd minute.
Less than 60 seconds later, Itandje denied Michael Essien, back
from his three-match suspension, with a flying one-handed save as the
Ghanaian’s 18-yard effort looked destined for the corner.
Liverpool’s attacks were sporadic at best but they were almost
gifted a goal in the 55th minute when Chelsea defender Ricardo
Carvalho, playing his first game since breaking a small bone in his
back against Everton in early November, failed to reach Cech with a
back-header.
The ball fell straight into the path of Crouch but the lanky striker could not lift the ball over the advancing Chelsea keeper.
But four minutes later, Chelsea were in front. Mikel found
Shevchenko with a clever pass and the Ukraine striker put Lampard in
the clear thanks to a neat first touch.
The England midfielder’s shot was half-stopped by Jamie
Carragher but the ball ballooned up and over the stranded Itandje to
register Lampard’s 99th goal for the club.
But the game erupted in the worst possible way within a minute
when Crouch inexplicably decided to launch himself at Mikel right in
front of the home dugout.
The two-footed lunge was high and dangerous and Atkinson had no
hesitation in dismissing the England striker - to the fury of Benitez
and the player himself.
Mikel was later replaced by Michael Ballack, who was returning to action for the first time since April.
In the intervening period, the Germany captain underwent two
ankle operations - but he showed no ill-effects as Chelsea went in
search of a second goal.
Indeed,
