Expect Benitez to spring one derby day surprise

Expect Benitez to spring one derby day surprise

Mar 23 2006

By Len Capeling, Daily Post

DAVID MOYES always takes derby games deadly seriously, yet seldom does particularly well in them.

Rafael Benitez, a relative newcomer to these unneighbourly altercations, treated his first derby with some contempt and the under-valued Lee Carsley ensured that he lived to regret this disrespect for tradition.

Having got the message, Liverpool's Spanish coach now needs no reminders about the seriousness of this collision of cultures.

Since shoulder-shrugging his way out of Goodison Park last season, Benitez hungers to replicate the stranglehold over Everton that Gerard Houllier enjoyed.

Twin triumphs, the first of them with his team effectively reduced to nine fit players, the second a comfortable 3-1 victory on enemy soil, seem to signal that Benitez seldom makes the same mistake more than once.

His plans for the 203rd episode in this long-running blood and thunder saga are presently unclear due to a heavy schedule of three matches in six days, the latest being Tuesday's FA Cup annihilation of Birmingham City.

Liverpool's heavy load may benefit Everton, who've enjoyed a full week's R&R after thrashing Aston Villa.

Confidence will be high in the Blue camp despite Liverpool's goal rush, which has brought them 15 goals in the last three games.

Everton have put early-season horrors behind them. Then, they looked as poor as it's possible to be.

They still don't score enough, despite a recent Goodison glut, and their goal difference (-10) is the fifth worst in the whole of the division. And that in a year when Premiership standards have slumped yet again.

Away from home in particular, they've managed a mere 10 goals in 15 games, conceding over twice as many in the process.

That doesn't make you think they'll suddenly find salvation on Saturday, even if 4-4-2 is ditched in favour of a more rigid 4-5-1.

Having said that, Everton are nothing if not battlers and they can be awkward opponents, especially when they've got a goal lead to defend.

They're masters at hanging on, and I can see trouble for Liverpool if Moyes's shock troops grab any kind of advantage.

If Everton need further encouragement, they will look to Liverpool's lingering softness in seeing off set-pieces, where zonal marking remains an alien concept.

Even though Liverpool over-ran Newcastle, Shola Ameobi's free header and Jean Alain-Boumsong's near miss showed that a good ball can cause unease.

There is another factor at work here.

Pepe Reina, for all his height, is not the most buttured keeper in the air, though with Everton's Richard Wright just as dubious we may yet have two dodgy keep-ers on display.

Oh for the days of Neville Southall, and, much earlier, to the peerless Ray Clemence.

What else? Well, Tim Cahill's goals against Aston Villa show he's lost little of his predatory instincts coming from deep, and, with Duncan Ferguson likely to be Plan B, Everton will aim to capitalise via the impressive Mikel Arteta.

Elsewhere, Moyes may dwell on granting a return to Andy van der Meyde - unused against Villa - although the solidity of Leon Osman - and his occasional goals - may work in the Billinge--born player's favour.

A recall for Joseph Yobo to give a tad more pace to a slowish back four could be another option, though Alan Stubbs - one of only two Scousers in the Everton side - and David Weir normally form a reliable partnership.

Liverpool's key ploy will be to spreadeagle Everton's back four, as they did devastatingly against Newcastle and Birmingham.

When Chelsea destroyed Everton at Stamford Bridge, Jose Mourinho played two wingers and that was that. Liverpool don't possess a clbuttical wide man, but with Everton asking their flank players to tuck in, this may be exploitable space. Like Everton, Liverpool have suddenly become goal-crazy and Peter Crouch has led the way as both scorer and provider.

His goals return from the last 24 games is a perfectly respectable 12, providing further evidence of why Sven rates him so highly.

Ostensibly a target man, always likely to win the ball in the air, he is working hard at his game.

His opener against Newcastle was buttured and the two buttists he added made it a stroll for Liverpool, who might have scored seven. A scoreline they saved for Steve Bruce's stumblers.

They'd love to score another seven on Saturday, reviving cherished memories of the days when Liverpool's victories over Everton always mbuttively outweighed anything that came in the opposite direction. Unlikely, you would think, given what is certain to be a rush-hour midfield with Phil Neville waving the flag of defiance from a central position Liverpool will attempt to circumvent.

Neville has tasted more triumphs at Anfield than any other Everton player, but all of them, so far, with Manchester United.

He will need to be at his aggressive best, although whether he'll tangle much Liverpool's most influential performer - skipper Steven Gerrard - remains to be seen.

The astute Benitez may opt to use his captain in a free role on the right, while Dietmar Hamann and Xabi Alonso attempt to dominate centrally.

With Harry Kewell on the left, that would allow Liverpool to pull Everton into places they'd prefer not to go.

Liverpool fielded a defensive three at Newcastle, but no clues there because it speedily became a four again at St Andrew's, Steve Finnan resuming his right-back role.

Expect a surprise of some sort, though, because Benitez has never been your average manager.

A return for Robbie Fowler - cup-tied on Tuesday - would bring Liverpool's pure Scouse content to four, as Stephen Warnock vies with John Arne Riise - scorer of a cracking goal at Birmingham - for the left--back berth.

All the walkovers in recent times have gone to Liverpool and home supporters will want another pasting to reinforce the 18-point gap between themselves and their fiercest rivals after Manchester United.

On present form I expect Everton to give a good account of themselves, because they know how to dig in.

For that reason, I suspect Liverpool will need more than one goal to settle nerves and chase second spot for at least another week.

Playing tipster is a no-win occupation when red cards and injuries can instantly transform a game.

Liverpool ought to be firm favourites, but I still wonder whether fatigue will betray them. I trust not.

* PHIL DOWD has the unenviable task of keeping order and getting every decision right at High Noon, and after. I have a feeling that it's his debut appearance in this particular war zone. Let's hope he copes.

Handball horror shows bumbling Dean is no pearl

IT WAS handball and Jose Mourinho - not best pleased - admitted as much.

But it still reflected badly on referee Mike Dean and his hopeless linesman.

When Didier Drogba handled the ball, before bundling it past stranded Fulham keeper Mark Crossley, Dean was in no position to spot the offence.

Nor was the unsighted Paul Norman, who made things worse by changing his muddled mind.

Dean saw no flag and awarded the goal.

Allowing himself to be bullied into reversing his decision by a howling mob of Fulham players hardly reinforces our faith in this so-called elite group of referees.

* RADIO FIVE continues to flounder.

Having failed to get either Bryan Robson or Steve Bruce to condemn Alan Pardew for fielding a seriously weakened side against needy Portsmouth, they continued to pretend that both had been deeply unhappy about the West Ham manager's decision.

Successive summarisers were pestered by an increasingly desperate Eleanor Oldroyd for their take on the subject.

Happily, not one of them rode to her rescue.

* I'VE often wondered why distinguished knee surgeon Richard Steadman hasn't been honoured by the PFA for his service to a legion of our soccer stars.

The latest to seek help from the American specialist is Everton's 17-year-old striker James Vaughan, who sustained a severe knee injury playing for England under-19s.

A year ago, Vaughan's strike against Crystal Palace made him Everton's youngest goalscoerer, a record previously held by golden boy Wayne Rooney.

Steadman is the top man in his field, so if anyone can help Vaughan it is the doc from Denver.

In the meantime, all Merseyside supporters will wish the young man well.