Fire from ashes shall spring (Liverpool 2-0 Tottenham)

This score line will bring a smile to many of the ardent Red’s fans and any genuine Football lover unless you are one of the few Spurs supporters. I won’t say this match was a classic by any means but the spirit with which Rafael and his men played the game was truly astonishing. From the first tackle Carragher made till the second goal in injury time of second half, all the players showed what playing for The Liverpool FC meant to them.

The race for Champions league looks more open to the reds now as they are just one point a adrift of currently fourth place Tottenham. The fight is between City, Villa, Reds and Spurs for the Champions league final spot is hotter than ever now.

One player who is worth talking about in the context of this game is Alberto Aquilani. Although it was Dirk Kuyt who scored twice but the flair with which the Italian played his game was outstanding. In absence of Gerrard he took the responsibility of being the game maker and the score doesn’t reflect the actual finesse this guy brought on the field.

The Reds were full of energy in the early stages and opened the scoring after just six minutes when Alberto Aquilani played in Dirk Kuyt and the Dutchman provided a fine finish from outside the area. Chances were few and far between for the remainder of the first half as Tottenham struggled to find their usual fluency, although Pepe Reina had to make a fine save from Luka Modric just before the interval.

Jermain Defoe had a goal controversially disallowed at the start of the second period and from then on Liverpool contained the Londoners expertly.Rafa Benitez’s side missed several opportunities to double their advantage before Kuyt eventually secured the points with his second goal of the night. The striker scored from the penalty spot deep into stoppage time after substitute David Ngog had been brought down by Sebastien Bassong. There was a brief early scare when Reina spilled a Gareth Bale cross under pressure from former Liverpool striker Peter Crouch, but he reclaimed the ball bravely from the challenge of Defoe.Reina picked himself up to hoist a long kick downfield which Kuyt knocked back to Aquilani, playing in the hole behind the striker.The Italian’s close control took him past Michael Dawson, who brought down the playmaker, but the ball rolled to Kuyt on the edge of the penalty area and he fired low past Heurelho Gomes’ right-hand to give his side the lead.

Considering their recent habit of conceding in the last minute the hosts desperately needed a second goal to give them a cushion but the longer the game went on without one the more confident Spurs became.The danger was highlighted when Jenas’ first-time shot from 25 yards had Reina going the wrong way before he stuck out a hand to deflect it behind.Having sent on Alan Hutton for Vedran Corluka, Spurs boss Harry Redknapp then replaced Niko Kranjcar with ex-Reds striker Robbie Keane.Liverpool should have made it easier for themselves in the 66th minute when Degen opted to play in Kuyt instead of shooting and over-hit his pass.Liverpool continued to press and Kuyt volleyed over at the far post after Degen had flicked on Aquilani’s free-kick while Riera was just wide with a 25-yard swerving left-foot shot.

Overall, the combined effort of Reina, Carragher, Aquilani, Mascherano, Kuyt and last but not the least Ngog brought the smiles back to all the Red’s supporters.