Liverpool still under pressure

Liverpool- Manchester City ( 21 Nov 2009)

Liverpool,who started as serious contenders for the Barclays Premier League this season,find themselves lingering at no. 7 in the Premier League table. Manchester City on the other hand spent big bucks this summer in getting top players into their squad but have not reaped the benefits of it 100%. Both teams went into the Saturday's fixture with all guns blazing,the Liverpool boss under tremendous pressure to change things around for Liverpool.

The first half started off well and 'The Reds' looked confident. Steven Gerrard was back in the squad although budding Torres was missing. Liverpool almost scored within the first 4 minutes when Steve Gee's freekick was headed towards goal by Skrtel. But a brilliant save by Shay Given denied Skrtel his first Liverpool goal and also preventing Liverpool from taking a lead early on. Liverpool had the lion's share of the possession and continued to dominate. Liverpool's misfortune continued as Agger was injured during a clash of heads with the City defender and had to be carried away on a stretcher. Babel injured his ankle during a clash with City player Di Jong. Babel was in pain and could not carry on further and was replaced by Yossi Benayoun.

Man City also had a couple of chances to score but failed to produce any quality from the shots. The first real chance they got was when the ball dropped to Barry but he neither powered the shot nor tried to head the ball into the goal, rather heading it towards the Liverpool keeper,who punched the ball away. The second chance came when Man City were on cruise mode and Stephen Ireland let the ball run to Shaun Wright Phillips,who hammered the shot but well away from its target. Both teams failed to break the deadlock and were stranded at 0-0.

Liverpool scored a goal within the first ten minutes of the second half. David Ngog was fouled just outside the penalty box and Steve Gee's free kick was nipped in by Skrtel. Liverpool were 1-0 up and hoped to grab all three points. Man City's boss knew that his tactics were not working at Anfield and substituted Barry for Tevez. Man City, now armed with three strikers were pushing forward to gain an equalizer. Liverpool were forced on their back heels and being 1-0 up they didn't wan to risk going forward. But this strategy of Liverpool proved fatal. Man City was building the pressure and it was just a matter of time before they scored. Two goals,one from Adebayor and the other from Ireland put Man City back on track. A tremendous comeback for a team who were a goal down. 

Liverpool's lack in defending from set pieces has time and again proved costly. 'The Reds' never keep a player protecting the posts when the opposite team takes a corner and this has given the opposition a chance to exploit 'The Red's' weakness.

Liverpool showed great character in getting the second equalizer and it was Benayoun who was at the right place at the right time to slot the ball in. It took Liverpool just 74 seconds to repond with an equalizer. Liverpool showed great chararcter as they always have but the match ended in a draw. Liverpool had a last chance in the final minute to snatch victory when Lucas had a free header from a Gerrard corner kick but didn't capitalize on it. The final score Liverpool 2 Man City 2. Neither team gained any advantage and are still in their respective 7th and 6th places.

Liverpool desperately need to rework their strategy this season. With the Premier League hopes fading away Liverpool needs to ensure that they finish in the top four so that the Champions League spot is not lost next season. Man City and Tottenham Hotspurs are hot on Liverpool's heals for grabbing that 4th spot and Champions League spot.  

Delhi Half Marathon (1 Nov 2009)

The joy of completing a long distance run is unique in its own way and the satisfaction that a runner gets after finishing the run is quite exotic. I am an established amateur half marathon runner and successfully completed my fifth half marathon recently by running the Delhi Half Marathon 2009.

I trained myself on 30 Oct 2009 by doing a 9 mile jog before leaving for Delhi the next day. In the process I stretched a few ligaments on my left knee and was experiencing some pain. I consulted my family doctor and he recommended a couple of pain killers and advised me not to run but seeing my determination and the eagerness to take part he told me to wear a knee cap while running. I had those pain killers the same night and felt a little better. I was determined to run the Delhi Half and there was no looking back at this point.

I packed my stuff the previous night and departed for Delhi the next day (31 Oct 2009) by the morning 7:40 SpiceJet flight. I had company on the same flight, a fellow Chennai runner ( Purushotam) was also taking part in the Delhi Half Marathon. He reserved a seat next to his,messaging me the details of the seat number and asking me to get the same seat. The flight took off on time and I relaxed myself completely during the journey. We landed at the IGI Delhi airport by 10:30 and drove off straight away along with Purushotam's friend (a veteran runner)to the DLF mall, where they were distributing BIB numbers and goodie bags.

All of us collected our stuff and on our way back we met Shankar and Narayan,two more runners from Chennai who had come to take part in the event. I greeted them,wished them luck for the run and left for my cousin sister's place at CR Park. I must tell you that CR Park is one of the posh areas in South Delhi and is predominantly a Bong (Bengali) place. CR Park hosts the biggest and the best 'Durga Puja' every year in Delhi.

I made sure that I took complete care of my leg on Saturday,having those pain killers as advised by my doc and massaging my knee gently. My brother in law,Sarath and my cousin sister both had also registered for the run by my cousin sister backed out in the last minute because of some personal commitments. They have a neighbour whom they called Bhutia and he was also to take part in the run. I had my early dinner and went off to bed early.

The D day finally arrived and we (myself , Sarath and Bhutia) got dropped at the start point by Bhutia's dad. This was even better because we didn't have to scout for an auto in the wee morning hours.We purposefully got off the car one Km ahead of the start line and did some warm up exercises. There was a huge crowd at GATE no. 4,the gate via which we had to get to the start point. By the time I started my run the digital clock was showing a time of 7:34:10. I began my race slow and steady,making sure that I do not stress my left knee too much.

By the time I completed 4 miles the Ethiopians and the Kenyans were on their way back,having completed 14 Km. I was simply stunned by their pace and kept wondering as to how do they maintain the same pace throughout the complete run. These guys are SIMPLY AMAZING! The climate was cold and pleasant,ideal conditions  for running and I did a 5.45 miles at one go before slowing down to a walk. I could do this because I was running with a lot a people and  the motivation to beat my own timing inspired me even more. It was good to see a lot of people take part in the run and the all the more there were more women running the half marathon.

My knee ached at times but my will to complete the race kept me going. My inner mind was constantly reminding me that I can do it and there should be no giving up now. I set myself little time-distance targets and tried to keep up with it but I could not abide by it 100%. I completed my entire run in 2:40:44 hrs and was quite thrilled by my accomplishment. My main goal was to finish the race well within the stipulated time limit and at the same time not straining my knee too much. I thank God for giving me the strength to complete the race.

The race was well organized and there were water stations at every 2 km so there was no paucity of fluids. It seems Sharukh Khan had come for the Great Delhi Run (which is a 7Km run) but I did not get a chance to see him. Shit man! missed the best opportunity to see him. My brother in law completed the race in 2:19:41 hrs. After the race we received our finisher's medal and walked out of the place to get back home. The funny part was we didn't get an auto for almost an hour, we were tired and the sight of seeing autos streaming past us with passengers in it added to our frustration. At last a noble man gave us a lift till Khan market and we got an auto from there. My cousin sister greeted us when we got back home and served us hot 'Peserette Dosas' for breakfast.