Brave Stoke earned an unlikely point at Anfield after holding Liverpool to a goalless draw to secure a famous point.
Stoke earn first point on their travels againt lacklustre Reds
Brave Stoke earned an unlikely point at Anfield after holding lacklustre Liverpool to a goalless draw to secure a famous point.
Liverpool dominated proceedings for the entire 90 minutes, but they could not find a way past a resolute Stoke rearguard.
The home side will point to Steven Gerrard's disallowed goal in the opening two minutes when his free-kick sailed into the net, but his celebrations were cut short after Dirk Kuyt was adjudged to have been in an offside postion even though he did get any contact on the ball.
Liverpool threw everything at Stoke in the closing stages, but they never really troubled Thomas Sorensen as the Potters picked up their first point on the road and their first clean sheet of the season.
Gerrard thought he had scored his 100th club goal after just two minutes when referee Andre Marriner gave a free-kick for a push in the back on Fernando Torres.
The captain's curling free-kick from the left looked to have been missed by everyone-- including Sorensen - as the ball sailed on into the far corner, with Dirk Kuyt throwing himself at it on the far post, without making contact.
Cut short
All Gerrard's colleagues rushed to congratulate their captain but a linesman's flag surprisingly cut short the celebrations.
Stoke responded with a 20-yard shot from Dave Kitson just over, while at the other end Sorensen needed to save smartly from a Robbie Keane first-time effort.
Gerrard kept trying and his next effort, a 20-yard free-kick, saw Sorensen hold comfortably.
Stoke lost Ibrahima Sonko with a leg injury after 21 minutes, to be replaced by Leon Cort, while Mamady Sidibe needed to change his shirt after a gashed eye left him blood-stained.
But despite the constantly flowing attacks Stoke did not panic despite keeping two men up front whenever they could manage.
Sorensen punched away another Xabi Alonso long-range strike and Torres had a drive charged down.
But there was great resilience and organisation about Stoke, with Salif Diao screening the defence where Abdoulaye Faye, Danny Higginbotham and Cort were standing firm against the barrage.
Kuyt fired wide and Gerrard saw another right-footer sail wide, while Alonso clattered another 20-yard shot over the top as the Potters reached the break unscathed.
Six minutes into the second period Robbie Keane almost ended his goal famine. Alvaro Arbeloa and Kuyt combined down the right and when the cross arrived on the six-yard line Kuyt's stabbed effort was well saved by Sorensen.
Liverpool continued to pour forward but frustration was creeping in with too many players trying increasingly erratic long-range efforts.
Kuyt's lay-off saw Torres side-foot over from 10 yards before Ryan Babel replaced Albert Riera after 65 minutes.
Sorensen had to save well from Kuyt, while another curler from the Dutchman just cleared the far post.
Yossi Benayoun then replaced Keane, with Jamie Carragher and Gerrard seeing efforts go close from outside the box.
Gerrard had another effort deflected wide by Richard Cresswell with Stoke now camped in their own final third.
A Gerrard run and Benayoun pass ended with Torres spinning to lash yet another effort into the Kop.
Martin Skrtel was booked for a foul on Ricardo Fuller, but Stoke hung on, throwing bodies in the way of numerous crosses and shots.
| Liverpool |
Team Statistics |
Stoke City |
| 0 |
Goals |
0 |
| 0 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 6 |
Shots on Target |
0 |
| 18 |
Shots off Target |
1 |
| 6 |
Blocked Shots |
1 |
| 19 |
Corners |
3 |
| 8 |
Fouls |
11 |
| 1 |
Offsides |
3 |
| 1 |
Yellow Cards |
1 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 86.5 |
Passing Success |
55.9 |
| 8 |
Tackles |
15 |
| 87.5 |
Tackles Success |
73.3 |
| 76 |
Possession |
24 |
| 69.4 |
Territorial Advantage |
30.6 |
|
