Liverpool: James, Jones (McAteer 46), Kvarme, Babb, McManaman,
Fowler, Riedle, Berger, Ince, Bjornebye, Carragher.
Subs Not Used: Harkness, Thomas, Owen, Nielson.
Booked: Ince, McAteer.
Goals: Berger 20, 35, 57, Fowler 64.
Chelsea: De Goey, Petrescu (Flo 60), Clarke, Lambourde, Poyet,
Hughes, Wise, Le Saux, Di Matteo, Sinclair, Zola (Gullit 27).
Subs Not Used: Babayaro, Vialli, Hitchcock.
Sent Off: Lambourde (26).
Booked: Lambourde, Wise, Petrescu.
Goals: Poyet 85 pen, Zola 22.
Att: 36,647
Ref: D R Elleray (Harrow-on-the-Hill).
[PA-report] [Telegraph-report] [Times-report]
Patrik Berger proved history can repeat itself in spades as Liverpool handed 10-man Chelsea another Merseyside mauling. A year ago the Czech midfielder had been the two-goal inspiration of the 5-1 defeat that had been the worst result of Ruud Gullit's managerial career. And today he went one better with his first hat-trick in English football to prove reports of Liverpool's demise are greatly exaggerated -- and put Stamford Bridge title hopes in better perspective. Berger's first goal of the season had put Roy Evans' side on their way, even though Chelsea controversially equalised instantly when Gianfranco Zola slotted home after David Elleray ignored the clearest of pushes by Mark Hughes. But after Frenchman Bernard Lambourde had picked up Chelsea's third red card of the season not even Gullit's first appearance for seven months could stem the red tide.
And it was Berger who took centre stage with a glittering personal show which illuminated a frantic and at times downright unpleasant match. Ten minutes before the break Berger's emphatic finish from Stig Bjornebye's low cross restored Liverpool's advantage, and when he ghosted through soon after the interval the points were secure. To celebrate his hat-trick Berger then laid the fourth on a plate for Robbie Fowler as Liverpool made the most of their extra man. And although Gustavo Poyet slotted home a late spot kick -- Chelsea had more valid claims rejected -- there could be no denying the Reds their win and Berger his afternoon of personal triumph.
Gullit had suggested that last year's Anfield thumping had been what his team needed, and it did look that way as the much-changed Chelsea side -- just five of the same starters -- controlled the early tempo. Liverpool's possession was taking them nowhere, while the Blues looked to get Hughes and Zola -- back after being rested in Bratislava -- beyond the Liverpool backline.
But from the outset there had been undercurrents of nastiness, scores to be settled, and Mr Elleray was always going to be busy. So it proved, with Lambourde picking up his first caution for the clearest of tugs on Karlheinz Riedle, the German partnering Fowler for the first time as Michael Owen reverted to the bench. Ed De Goey saved from Riedle's header but there was nothing the keeper could do when Berger put the Reds ahead in the 20th minute, although Graeme Le Saux was decidedly more culpable. Paul Ince's long ball looked to be covered by the England defender, but he allowed it to bounce and the off-break spin back over his head left Berger in the clear. It still needed a cool head -- and there were not many in Anfield by this time -- but Berger had precisely that, exquisitely lobbing over De Goey and into the net.
Anfield was ecstatic, but within two minutes the emotion had changed to outright fury. Poyet played through the middle and Hughes, surely from an offside position, body-checked Bjorn Kvarme. Even Zola, at first, could not believe neither Mr Elleray nor his linesman had spotted something wrong, but as Liverpool stood waiting for the whistle the Sardinian rounded David James to slide home. The Liverpool fans erupted, the players likewise, with Ince incurring the wrath of the referee for his comments, but the goal stood.
Zola's assured finish had been ominous for Glenn Hoddle -- surely wincing at home as he watched the television footage of the increasingly ugly tackles -- but that was to be his last act after Lambourde's crude block on McManaman. Gullit, sensing the need for a clear head, decided it was time for his first appearance since being injured at Derby on March 1. Zola was sacrificed as Gullit slotted into a defensive role, but Liverpool were determined to press home their advantage.
And it took them just eight more minutes to do exactly that. Bjornebye played to McManaman and went for the return, beating Frank Sinclair for pace. The Norwegian looked up and spotted Berger standing on the penalty spot, with the Czech's first-time shot proving he does have a right foot after all as he rammed it home.
Chelsea, with Hughes alone up front, might have feared the worst, yet bizarrely it was they who went in at the break complaining about the officials. Rob Jones jumped through from behind Poyet after Dennis Wise -- who, to no great surprise, had been booked as well -- had clipped into the box. Poyet, Roberto Di Matteo and Le Saux surrounded the referee, but in vain. Jones, however, did not appear after the interval, Jason McAteer coming on, but even Gullit's experience could not save the Blues in this situation.
Fowler shot across the face of goal from McAteer's centre and McManaman's strike from outside box was held by the keeper. But when Berger completed his trio before the hour the writing was firmly on the wall. Again there were appeals for a flag as McManaman's ball found both Berger and Fowler through on goal. Berger could have slipped to his team-mate, but it is hard to pass up the opportunity of a Premiership hat-trick and a jink past De Goey was followed by a simple roll into the net.
Having completed that three-timer, Berger turned provider when next put through in the 64th minute, rolling back for Fowler to crash home his third in as many Premiership starts. The game won, even the jeers that had greeted Gullit's every touch were ended, all the more so when his response to a chant of "Ruudy, what's the score?" was to point at the No 4 on his back. Everybody knew the game was up -- most evidently the home players, who collectively went to sleep.
Gullit -- through on goal then falling over the ball -- and Tore Andre Flo, who had replaced Dan Petrescu, wasted chances before Poyet did convert after McAteer had hauled down the Norwegian beanpole. Not that it really mattered. Now it is just one Anfield win in 61 years for Chelsea. Liverpool, however, announced in the best way that they are back in the title race.
Liverpool's England midfield contingent of Paul Ince and Steve McManaman emerged from today's 4-2 Premiership win over Chelsea fit, well and raring to go for the international and domestic challenges ahead of them. Ince was unmoved by thoughts of the developing championship race for Liverpool, insisting one game at a time will do for the Anfield men. "We do not think too much about all of that. The main thing for us was to get three points, and we have done that," said the club and country midfield linchpin. Looking forward to next Saturday's World Cup qualifying crunch against Italy in Rome, Ince was similarly focused. "It is just a big game. We all know how important it is for us to get a result. But the main thing is that the players who have been playing during the weekend have all come through without injuries."
McManaman echoed Ince and stressed he, along with the whole of the rest of Glenn Hoddle's squad, will be right behind the team effort, whether they are in the starting line-up or not. "The whole squad of players who took part in the World Cup qualifiers will be totally up for the game," he said.
Berger steals the spotlight in
Liverpool's show of strength
By Henry Winter at Anfield
Liverpool (2) 4 Chelsea (1) 2
A RED glow is beginning to settle across the land. Before a clamorous crowd of 36,647 at Anfield yesterday, Liverpool at last signalled their eagerness to chase Arsenal and Manchester United at the top of the Premiership. Racing from 11th to sixth, Roy Evans' players gave a team display finally commensurate with the sum of their prized parts.
Some headlines will doubtless acclaim the achievements of 'Hat-trick Patrik' after Berger departed kissing the match ball, which he had placed three times beyond the long reach of Ed de Goey. Convenient though it may be to focus on one individual, this was an all-round performance by Liverpool, though defensive doubts still persist.
Steve McManaman ran everywhere, even running Chelsea's right side ragged after the break. Paul Ince and the excellent Jamie Carragher provided the muscle in midfield. Robbie Fowler and Karlheinz Riedle darted around diligently in attack, opening spaces for the men in red.
As befits a contest with Ince and Dennis Wise at its competitive core, this was a game combining physical edge and controversy. Both managers left Anfield complaining about David Elleray, the Harrow referee. Ruud Gullit could have no grievance with the dismissal of Bernard Lambourde for two cynical checks on Liverpool attackers. But where Chelsea, who fought well with depleted ranks, were short-changed was in the decision not to award them a penalty when Rob Jones clearly impeded Gustavo Poyet.
Liverpool too had cause for disquiet over Elleray. After Berger had lifted in a brilliant first, following Graeme Le Saux's misjudgment of Ince's long pass, Chelsea equalised in a truly contentious manner. Poyet's drilled pass was arrowed straight towards Liverpool's central defence. Bjorn Kvarme's attempt to divert the danger was pre-empted by Mark Hughes's barge, so allowing the ball to run on to Gianfranco Zola. "That was a diabolical non-decision," Evans observed. The Kop appeared more heated over Zola's run, believing the little Italian to be offside when actually he had timed his dash with typical intelligence. On he scampered, rounding David James before coolly scoring.
The game descended into a niggly period. The midfield war of attrition inevitably saw Wise's name entered into Elleray's book. Yellow fever became red for Chelsea. Lambourde, already cautioned for a foul on Riedle, received his second card, and consequent marching orders, for knocking McManaman out of his stride.
The Frenchman departed disconsolate. So, too, did Zola, the unfortunate victim of Chelsea's tactical rejig which brought Gullit to centre-back. Zola trudged to the bench, exuding the air of a schoolboy evicted from the playground by an unsympathetic teacher. Graham Rix cradled Zola's head in his hands, Gianluca Vialli offered his condolences, but the loss was not purely Zola's. His exit effectively signalled the end of Chelsea as a consistently potent threat.
It was a perplexing substitution. Chelsea, who have prevailed only once here since 1936, would have needed to hold on for an hour for their draw, always going to be a tall order. Gullit argued he had to sacrifice a player and concentrate on funnelling the ball to a lone front runner, which had to be Hughes, such an awkward customer in possession. Having produced some lovely stuff in midfield, Chelsea now resorted to a more direct approach with Gullit, still classy, lifting some howitzer deliveries forward.
Liverpool's numerical supremacy was soon reflected in the score, Berger registering his second after 34 minutes. It arrived following a great left-wing move which saw a devastatingly executed one-two between Stig Bjornebye and McManaman before the Norwegian cut the ball back into the box. From 15 yards, Berger's right foot did the rest to complete his first hat-trick for the club.
A thoroughly eventful, frantic first period contained further shocks. Berger took time out to win tackles; McManaman took out Wise. Then, on 40 minutes, came real controversy. Wise's ball from right to left dropped invitingly to Poyet, who was bowled over from behind by Jones. Play on. "We deserved a penalty," Gullit said. "Poyet was definitely knocked over."
The second half was open though less controversial. Fowler and McManaman, irresistible down the left, went close before Berger sealed his hat-trick on 57 minutes. McManaman, popping up in the middle, squeezed the ball through for Berger and Riedle to beat the offside trap. Berger skipped round De Goey and slid the ball home. The poacher turned goal-maker six minutes later. Berger shimmied down the left and cut the ball back to Fowler, whose hard shot tore in.
Chelsea, to their credit, never gave up. Tore Andre Flo, introduced to give them options, finally won them a penalty when he was felled by Jason McAteer. Although this provided a reminder that Liverpool's defence remains vulnerable, Poyet's penalty was a sideshow.
For Chelsea this was their fourth game in succession against the Premiership heavyweights. They will take heart from their ability to compete until hamstrung by dismissals. Chelsea also lost a player, Frank Leboeuf, in a defeat by Arsenal, but with full complements took four points off the Uniteds of Manchester and Newcastle. Asked what he had learnt over the past games, Gullit said: "It's important to play with 11 men."
No signposts for Rome but a Berger to relish
BY OLIVER HOLT, FOOTBALL CORRESPONDENT
THE frantic search for clues to the outcome of England's World Cup qualifying showdown with Italy, the analysis of every result, every pass, every kick, every foul, drew a blank at Anfield yesterday. There were, admittedly, Englishmen and Italians on the pitch, and they took what encouragement they could from the result, but they were all upstaged by a Czech.
The fanciful suggestion that Paul Ince would use the match as some sort of last-minute opportunity to flatten Gianfranco Zola was exposed as groundless. The two men will be pivotal players in the match in Rome's Olympic Stadium but they hardly exchanged a dirty look, let alone a lunging tackle, in Liverpool's 4-2 victory.
Both of them played well enough, of course. Zola scored the first Chelsea goal, a neat sidestep round David James and a simple sidefoot into the net; Ince laid on Liverpool's opening goal and was a model of controlled aggression and combative excellence throughout. Among the other England squad members on view, Steve McManaman had another fine game, Robbie Fowler scored his third goal of the season and Graeme Le Saux struggled in an undermanned Chelsea defence. All came through unscathed by injury.
Under the cover of the growing fervour that the match between Italy and England next Saturday is generating, though, the significance of this game was that it finally gave Liverpool a chance to test themselves against other prospective title challengers. Defeat would have left them dangerously out of touch with Arsenal, the leaders of the FA Carling Premiership. This victory propelled them into the thick of things.
They were helped by the fact that Chelsea had Bernard Lambourde, their French defender, sent off after only 25 minutes when the score was 1-1. But they had already established themselves as the better team by then and, when presented with a numerical advantage, too, they ran wild.
At times, it seemed as though a reprise of their 5-1 win over Chelsea here last season was comfortably within their grasp, but they relaxed a little in the last half-hour. By then, though, the game had been put beyond the reach of Chelsea by the man who scored two against them last year, Patrik Berger.
Berger, who has been in the team only sporadically so far this season, capped a fine game yesterday by scoring his first hat-trick for the Merseyside club. After his trio of clinical finishes had won the game for Liverpool, he sealed victory by setting up the fourth for Fowler, in the 64th minute.
Liverpool, fresh from their victory over Celtic in the Uefa Cup last Tuesday, began the match without Michael Owen, their precocious forward, who had begun to show signs of tiredness after his bravura start to the season. Karlheinz Riedle was chosen to partner Fowler in his stead.
The first clear chance fell to the home side after 15 minutes. Lambourde was booked for a trip on Riedle and the German nearly punished him by rising to meet the resulting free kick from Bjornebye with his head. It was bound for the top corner but brought a fine finger-tip save out of De Goey.
Four minutes later, Liverpool took a deserved lead. The goal stemmed from a searching ball from Ince, but it could have been prevented by Le Saux. The defender misjudged the bounce of the ball and Berger stole in front of him and lobbed it over De Goey.
Suddenly, the match exploded into life. Two minutes later, Hughes appeared to wrestle Kvarme aside as he tried to latch on to a through-ball. Roy Evans, the Liverpool manager, later condemned that as "a diabolical non-decision" but, as Hughes and Kvarme fell to the floor, Zola ran on to the pass, skipped round James and slid the ball into the net.
Ince was booked by David Elleray because of the extent of his protests and, a minute later, Wise was booked for a foul on Fowler as tempers boiled over. In the 25th minute, things continued in the same vein when Lambourde body-checked McManaman, as the Liverpool midfield player galloped past him, and was sent off.
Gullit immediately substituted a crestfallen Zola and brought himself on to plug the gap in the centre of defence, but he was powerless to prevent Liverpool reassuming the lead ten minutes before half-time. Bjornebye exchanged passes with McManaman on the left and took the ball to the byline. The Norwegian crossed low and hard and his centre was met emphatically by Berger, who drove it past De Goey with his right foot.
Five minutes before half-time, Chelsea were dismayed when Poyet went down under a challenge from Jones but no penalty was given. Twelve minutes after half-time, Liverpool extended their lead when Berger and Fowler beat the offside trap as they ran on to McManaman's pass. Berger got to it first, beat De Goey and slid the ball into the net.
Berger turned provider after 64 minutes, pulling the ball back for Fowler to score via a deflection. Poyet scored a consolation penalty for Chelsea five minutes from the end after McAteer tripped Flo.
LIVERPOOL (4-4-2): D James R Jones (sub: J McAteer, 46), B T Kvarme, P Babb, S I Bjornebye S McManaman, P Ince, J Carragher, P Berger R Fowler, K Riedle.
CHELSEA (4-4-2): E de Goey F Sinclair, S Clarke, B Lambourde, G Le Saux D Petrescu (sub: T A Flo, 59), R di Matteo, D Wise, G Poyet M Hughes, G Zola (sub: R Gullit, 26).
Referee: D Elleray.