Steven Gerrard's penalty handed Liverpool an important advantage in their League Cup semi-final with Manchester City as the visitors came away from Eastlands with a 1-0 first leg lead. Liverpool, who have won the League Cup competition a record seven times, are seeking their first trophy in six years and are now favourites to advance to the final against Championship opponents Crystal Palace or Cardiff.
Given the negative publicity Liverpool have endured over their handling of the Luis Suarez racism case, victory at a ground where they were beaten 3-0 by the Premier League leaders just eight days earlier could not have come at a better time. "It's set up for a cracking (second leg) match at Anfield," Gerrard told BBC. "There's still 90 minutes to play and I'm sure it will be a cracker at Anfield. The advantage is ours but it's still not over."
City manager Roberto Mancini insisted his side did not deserve to lose. "The first half we didn't play well because after six months it can happen for the first time. "It is clear that without three or four players it's more difficult but in the end we didn't deserve to lose the game," the Italian added. "We played poorly in the first half but the result is not right. The right result was a draw."
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.