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For once, Luis Suarez forgot all his wastefulness in front of the goal and for the first time a competitive Liverpool side turned up in the Premier League this season. Brendan Rodgers’ side gained their first victory in the Barclays Premier League for the 2012-13 campaign. A Suarez hat-trick and goals from Nuri Sahin and Steven Gerrard proved enough to subdue a Norwich side which was left shell-shocked by Liverpool blitzkriegs at the start of both halves.
In an early kick-off, Brendan Rodgers gave starts to Nuri Sahin, Andre Wisdom and Fernandez Saez (Suso), while Borini dropped to the bench. Liverpool got off to the best possible start when Luis Suarez latched onto a loose ball outside the Norwich box and stroked a precise finish past the Norwich goal keeper John Ruddy. The early lead provided much needed belief to the Liverpool side and they played with a fluency that was missing all this while.
The presence of Wisdom, who has impressed in his performance in Europe and the Capital One cup, was comforting for the Liverpool midfield which had looked tame till now. Norwich were not having the best of afternoons at Carrow Road as they found it difficult to get hold of the ball and whenever they did, Liverpool managed to get the ball right back in control.
Suarez was a real live wire up front; he was full of running and endeavor, something that Liverpool fans expect to witness from the Uruguayan international, but it was his much maligned finishing that proved to be the difference. Suarez had a chance to double Liverpool’s advantage when he was clean through on goal with only Ruddy to beat, but he managed to send his shot wide. But the Uruguayan could not believe his luck when, from the restart, a defensive howler presented him an opportunity to redeem himself and he did not disappoint this time, and sent an exquisite finish past Ruddy. The first half ended 2-0 in Liverpool’s favor.
Brendan Rodgers would have been extremely happy and surprised (all pun intended) with his team’s display in the first half, while Chris Houghton appeared worried throughout the first half as his team just could not find any inspiration. Maybe leaving Grant Holt on the bench was proving not a very good decision.
The second half started much as the first half did and Liverpool were in the ascendancy. On 47 minutes Luis Suarez again made a run into the Norwich box and after his attempt was intercepted he gathered the loose ball and squared it for Sahin to tap in. It was the Turkish international’s 3rd goal in the last two matches for Liverpool.
Liverpool were not looking content to settle for a 3-0 margin and wanted to rub it in. On 57 minutes, Suarez completed his hat-trick as he collected the ball at the edge of the Norwich box and his curled effort was deflected in. The Liverpool striker had scored a hat-trick in the corresponding fixture at Carrow Road last season too. The game was threatening to turn into a riot now as every time Liverpool came forward they seemed to pose a serious threat on the Norwich goal.
Norwich were enduring a painful afternoon in front of their home crowd. They got what seemed to be a consolation when Steve Morison shot home after Pepe Reina made a mistake of parrying a Russel Martin shot back into the danger area. The Spanish international goalkeeper looked miffed with himself for conceding a cheap goal.
Liverpool were not done though as Steven Gerrard got his second goal in two consecutive Premier League matches. The ball went into the goal courtesy a deflection off a Norwich defender, the Liverpool captain was not complaining. Norwich were to grab another consolation goal when Grant Holt came on and provided a good finish past Pepe Reina. Chris Hughton should have taken note of the impact the big striker has on the team morale just by his mere presence on the field. Liverpool were not able to add to their tally before the final whistle and it ended 5-2.
Brendan Rodgers would be mighty pleased with the result as Liverpool have shown signs of recovering from their slump in the beginning of the season. Luis Suarez’s performance up front would be the talk of the town as he was simply superb in leading the line for Liverpool. Sterling, Sahin and Suso also put in effective performances. Defense still looks an area of concern for Liverpool as they seem to be prone to lapses in concentration time and again. But no one at Merseyside would be complaining as the goal fest provided by the Reds today would be enough send everyone to bed smiling.
