However before anyone could settle in for their morning coffee or before the eggs were done cooking, the Reds had already scored. 68 seconds into the contest, Daniel Sturridge put one in the back of the net. Taking a long ball from the left off the chest in the middle of the box, Sturridge spun to his left, shot toward the right and gave Liverpool a 1-0 lead.
The game entered a bit of a lull for a good while after that electric start. Sturridge saw a chance and there were a few flashes into the area, but nothing much to speak of. Then Liverpool reawoke in the 29th minute.
Alberto Moreno got into a dangerous area taking on Andros Townsend on the left. Moreno sent a cross to the middle of the pitch that was taken by Adam Lallana. Your favorite attacker and mine managed to get the ball onto his stronger foot and bury it into the top left for a comfy 2-0 lead.
After the second goal, the game settled back down again. Newcastle seemed to grab a bit more of the possession, but there was never much in it. Cisse flicked one just wide of goal but was offside and then a late chance in the half was nothing more than blasted over the target into the Newcastle fans.
Then Newcastle got theirs to start the half. In the 49th minute a high cross came into the box. Simon Mignolet came to get it, but waited a step too long and got too far underneath it. Cisse was waiting for it as it just missed the fingertips of the goalkeeper and he headed it into the goal cutting the Liverpool lead in half.
That goal opened up things. Sturridge appealed for a penalty as it looked like he had been taken down, but upon replay it did seem as though he went to ground easily espite taking a bit of a knock from the defender's hip. Immediately following that, Newcastle had a 2v1 but fortunately failed to score after Cisse was put off by Mignolet and then Townsend put the shot over.
Liverpool looked as though they had taken back their two goal lead in the 60th minute. A fine cross from the right was nodded on target by Joe Allen. The goalkeeper made a good save but it was put home by Firmino. Unfortunately the Brazilian had wandered offside just before the header so that put him off.
That missed goal was soon rued by Liverpool. In the 67th minute, Newcastle tied things up. Townsend got the ball in on the right side of the penalty area. While nobody initially got on the end of the cross, the ball popped loose toward the top of the 18. Nobody got to it except Jack Colback and his shot was tipped off the foot of Dejan Lovren and though Mignolet got some fingers on it, there was nothing he could do to keep it out.
A few minutes later, Liverpool almost regained the lead. A strike from Lallana only missed by a foot, but it may have been intended as a low cross. Regardless, all it needed was a touch from someone but nobody in red could get on the end of it. Sturridge also got a header on goal in the 81st minute but it was straight at the keeper.
The game would dully end in a 2-2 draw. Given the fixture as a whole, it was a fair result. However, given how Liverpool opened up the game and with the quality surrounding their goals you would have expected better.
It was the 19th point dropped from a winning position for Liverpool, vaulting them to the top spot or the worst spot (depending on which language you choose) in that regard. It was a disappointing result from a Liverpool perspective, but nobody got hurt and some players got a bit of a rest ahead of their Europa League semifinal.
Random Thoughts
- I know it's a particularly English thing, but for three games straight I've seen several fans in the stands making a certain gesture toward the players that involves one hand going up and down.
- While the team's position in the table is probably correct for how they've played all season, it's disappointing to think where they could have been if they hadn't dropped so many points from a winning position.
Walk On
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