Fiorentina took advantage of a poor first half by Liverpool to record a 2–0 victory in Tuesday’s Champions League action.
Nineteen-year-old striker Stevan Jovetic scored two first-half goals to condemn Liverpool to third place in Group E.
When asked what went wrong in the first half, Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez bluntly said, “Everything.”
“We were watching the game, giving the ball away.”
Liverpool put forth a stronger display in the second half but it was not meant to be. Coming off a 6–1 thrashing of Hull City on Saturday in Premier League action, Liverpool was full of confidence prior to the match.
But the display on the field at the Artemio Franchi stadium in Florence, Italy left Benitez fuming. “We were not the best in any part of the pitch.”
Jovetic took advantage of a huge gap in the center of the Liverpool defense to calmly slide a shot past Pepe Reina and into the Liverpool goal.
Jovetic’s second goal came when he deflected a blistering shot by Juan Vargas past Reina.
Liverpool was denied a penalty shot in the second half when Fernando Torres was brought down in the box but the referee ruled the tackle was fair.
In the other Group E match, Lyon thumped Debrecen 4–0 to take over first place with six points. Fiorentina has three points with a +1 goal differential while Liverpool has three points with a -1 goal differential.
Arsenal’s second goal was scored from an offside position but it counted anyway. In the 86th minute, Cesc Fabregas found Andrei Arshavin with a clever pass. Arshavin then deftly back-flicked the ball past Nikopolidis.
Perhaps justice was served as a 1–0 score line would not have been a fair result based on Arsenal’s domination.
“We played a great first half [with] plenty of chances at that level,” said Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.
Robin van Persie explained in an interview with Sky Sports what Wenger said at halftime. “We should just be patient. Our moment will come.” The Dutch striker also scored the winner against Fulham on Saturday.
With Alkmaar and Liege playing to a 1–1 draw, Arsenal tops Group H with six points. Olympiakos has three points and Alkmaar and Liege have one each.
In other action, defending champion Barcelona beat visiting Dynamo Kiev 2–0 on goals from Lionel Messi and Pedrito. Inter Milan traveled to Russia and drew 1–1 with Rubin Kazan. Seville inflicted a 4–1 loss on Rangers in Glasgow.
Nineteen-year-old striker Stevan Jovetic scored two first-half goals to condemn Liverpool to third place in Group E.
When asked what went wrong in the first half, Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez bluntly said, “Everything.”
“We were watching the game, giving the ball away.”
Liverpool put forth a stronger display in the second half but it was not meant to be. Coming off a 6–1 thrashing of Hull City on Saturday in Premier League action, Liverpool was full of confidence prior to the match.
But the display on the field at the Artemio Franchi stadium in Florence, Italy left Benitez fuming. “We were not the best in any part of the pitch.”
Jovetic took advantage of a huge gap in the center of the Liverpool defense to calmly slide a shot past Pepe Reina and into the Liverpool goal.
Jovetic’s second goal came when he deflected a blistering shot by Juan Vargas past Reina.
Liverpool was denied a penalty shot in the second half when Fernando Torres was brought down in the box but the referee ruled the tackle was fair.
In the other Group E match, Lyon thumped Debrecen 4–0 to take over first place with six points. Fiorentina has three points with a +1 goal differential while Liverpool has three points with a -1 goal differential.
Gunners Dominate
At the Emirates Stadium in London, England, Arsenal thoroughly dominated Olympiakos and won 2–0. Were it not for grey-haired goalkeeper Antonis Nikopolidis, the Gunners could’ve had five or six.
Robin van Persie, playing in a lone-striker role, broke the deadlock in the 78th minute. Substitute Eduardo drove to the goal line and slid a pass to van Persie for the tap-in past Nikopolidis.Arsenal’s second goal was scored from an offside position but it counted anyway. In the 86th minute, Cesc Fabregas found Andrei Arshavin with a clever pass. Arshavin then deftly back-flicked the ball past Nikopolidis.
Perhaps justice was served as a 1–0 score line would not have been a fair result based on Arsenal’s domination.
“We played a great first half [with] plenty of chances at that level,” said Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.
Robin van Persie explained in an interview with Sky Sports what Wenger said at halftime. “We should just be patient. Our moment will come.” The Dutch striker also scored the winner against Fulham on Saturday.
With Alkmaar and Liege playing to a 1–1 draw, Arsenal tops Group H with six points. Olympiakos has three points and Alkmaar and Liege have one each.
In other action, defending champion Barcelona beat visiting Dynamo Kiev 2–0 on goals from Lionel Messi and Pedrito. Inter Milan traveled to Russia and drew 1–1 with Rubin Kazan. Seville inflicted a 4–1 loss on Rangers in Glasgow.
