2009–10 Liverpool F.C. season

English football club season February 2015 September 2020 Liverpool 2009–10 Rafael Benítez Tom Hicks and George Gillett (until 16 April 2010)Martin Broughton (from 16 April 2010) Chairmen Anfield Premier League 7th FA Cup Third round League Cup Fourth round UEFA Champions League Group stage UEFA Europa League Semi-finals Fernando Torres (18) Fernando Torres (22) 44,375 (v. Chelsea, Premier League, 1 May 2010) 31,063 (v. Reading, FA Cup, 13 January 2010) 41,962 _rmcf1112t _liverpoolfc 0810h _rmcf1112t _adidaswhite _3_stripes_white FF0000 FF0000 FF0000 FF0000 FF0000 _liverpoolfc_0910_a _liverpoolfc_0910_a _liverpoolfc_0910_a _liverpoolfc_0910_a _liverpoolfc_0910_a 000000 000000 000000 000000 _liverpoolfc_0910_t _liverpoolfc_0910_t _liverpoolfc_0910_t _liverpoolfc_0910_t _3_stripes_red ffffff ffffff ffffff ffffff ffffff 2008–09 2010–11 The 2009–10 season was Liverpool's 118th season since their foundation, and their 48th consecutive year in the top flight. They were sponsored for an eighteenth and final season by Carlsberg. Rafael Benítez was the club's manager, this being his sixth and final season in charge. Having finished second in the previous league campaign, Liverpool qualified automatically for the 2009–10 UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time since the 2002–03 season. This season Liverpool made major moves in the transfer market, selling players such as Xabi Alonso and the ageing Sami Hyypiä, while signing Alberto Aquilani from Roma and Glen Johnson from Portsmouth. After a season of poor results and inconsistent play, as well as injuries to main striker Fernando Torres, Liverpool finished 7th in the Premier League, their lowest finish in 11 years, and failed to progress beyond round 4 of either domestic cup. They were eliminated from the League Cup at the hands of Arsenal in the Fourth round in a 2–1 defeat at the Emirates Stadium on 26 October. They were then knocked out of the FA Cup on 13 January. After a 1–1 draw with Championship team Reading at the Madejski Stadium in the Third round, Liverpool lost the replay at Anfield 2–1 after extra time. In addition to a poor domestic campaign, Liverpool failed to qualify for the knockout stage of the UEFA Champions League, finishing third in their group and entering the UEFA Europa League Round of 32; Liverpool were knocked out in the semi-finals by eventual winners Atlético Madrid. They lost the first leg at the Vicente Calderón Stadium 1–0, and despite forcing extra time in the second leg, and then going on to win 2–1, they were eliminated on the away goals rule. A week after the end of the Premier League season, Liverpool announced they had terminated Rafael Benítez's contract by mutual consent. Pre-season Liverpool confirmed that long-serving centre-back Sami Hyypiä would be leaving the club after 10 years to join German club Bayer Leverkusen.SAMI AGREES BAYER LEVERKUSEN MOVE https://web.archive.org/web/20150205024226/http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/sami-agrees-bayer-leverkusen-move 5 February 2015 Paul Eaton, 4 May 2009, Retrieved on 17 May 2009 Liverpool also confirmed that José Segura, the ex-Olympiacos manager, would be joining the club as Academy technical manager, starting on 1 June.https://archive.today/20140806223834/http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/segura-joins-liverpool SEGURA JOINS LIVERPOOL Paul Hassall, 16 May 2009, Retrieved 17 May 2009 Liverpool announced their pre-season programme on 6 May 2009, including a tour of Asia and a friendly against Espanyol, as part of a clause of the deal that brought Albert Riera to the club. Liverpool started their pre-season campaign against St. Gallen in Switzerland on 15 July, which ended 0–0, a game in which Rafael Benítez gave playing time to most of his players. Glen Johnson made his debut for Liverpool and earned himself the Fans Man of the Match award from Liverpool F.C. TV. They played their second encounter with Rapid Wien at the Ernst Happel Stadium on 19 July, which Liverpool lost 1–0 from a goal from midfielder Steffen Hofmann. The Asian tour began with a match against Thailand on 22 July, which ended 1–1, with Liverpool's early goal coming from Ryan Babel and the Thai's from substitute Sutee Suksomkit. This was followed by a trip to Kallang to play Singapore, a game which Liverpool won 5–0 with goals from Andriy Voronin, Albert Riera, two by Krisztián Németh and Fernando Torres. They then played Espanyol on 2 August, where they suffered a heavy 3–0 defeat thanks to two goals from Ben Sahar and one from Luis García. They then enjoyed their first win of the campaign, against Lyn Oslo on 5 August, winning won 2–0 with goals from Voronin and David Ngog. They ended the pre-season with a 1–2 loss against Atlético Madrid on 8 August at Anfield. Goals from Sergio Agüero and Diego Forlán put the Spaniards 0–2 up until Lucas pulled one back late on for the Reds. Team kit The team kit for the 2009–10 season was produced by Adidas. The home kit remained the same as the previous season. The away kit was black with gold trim. The third kit changed in August 2009 to a new white kit. It was announced that longtime sponsor Carlsberg would be leaving the club after 18 years to be replaced by British bank Standard Chartered, who commenced a four-year £80 million deal with the club in May 2010.Ian Ferris New Liverpool shirt sponsors revealed http://www.tribalfootball.com/new-liverpool-shirt-sponsors-revealed-313291 Tribal Football 12 September 2009 12 September 2009 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20090916055836/http://www.tribalfootball.com/new-liverpool-shirt-sponsors-revealed-313291 16 September 2009 Liverpool seal £80m shirt sponsorship deal with Standard Chartered https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/sep/12/liverpool-sponsorship-standard-chartered The Guardian 12 September 2009 12 September 2009 London Technical staff NameRoleESP Rafael BenítezManagerENG Sammy LeeAssistant managerARG Mauricio PellegrinoFirst team coachENG Dave McDonoughHead of Technical AnalysisSCO Kenny DalglishAcademy Development Officer/Club AmbassadorESP José SeguraAcademy Technical ManagerESP Paco de MiguelFitness CoachESP Eduardo Parra Garcíahttps://archive.today/20140806223831/http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/reds-reveal-two-new-backroom-boys REDS REVEAL TWO NEW BACKROOM BOYS Liverpoolfc.tv, 2 July 2009, Retrieved on 1 August 2014Fitness coachESP Xavi ValeroGoalkeeping coachENG John McMahonReserve Team ManagerESP Gonzalo RodríguezReserve Team Fitness coachNED John AchterbergReserve Team Goalkeeping Coach NameRoleESP Eduardo MaciaChief scoutENG Mike McGlynnAssistant Chief scoutENG Mark WallerClub doctorENG Rob PriceSenior physiotherapistENG Chris MorganPhysiotherapistENG Matt KonopinskiPhysiotherapistESP Iván OrtegaSports TherapistESP Félix Fernández LedesmaAssistant Sports TherapistENG Paul SmallMasseurENG Graham CarterKit Manager First-team squad No. Name Nationality Position Date of birth (age) Signed From Goalkeepers 1 Diego Cavalieri Brazil GK yes 2009 07 01 1982 12 1 Palmeiras 25 Pepe Reina Spain GK yes 2009 07 01 1982 8 31 Villarreal Defenders 2 Glen Johnson England RB yes 2009 07 01 1984 8 23 Portsmouth 5 Daniel Agger Denmark CB yes 2009 07 01 1984 12 12 Brøndby 12 Fábio Aurélio Brazil LB yes 2009 07 01 1979 9 24 Valencia 16 Sotirios Kyrgiakos Greece CB yes 2009 07 01 1979 7 23 AEK Athens 22 Emiliano Insúa Argentina LB yes 2009 07 01 1989 1 7 Boca Juniors 23 Jamie Carragher England CB yes 2009 07 01 1978 1 28 The Academy 27 Philipp Degen Switzerland RB yes 2009 07 01 1983 2 15 Borussia Dortmund 34 Martin Kelly England RB/CB yes 2009 07 01 1990 4 27 The Academy 37 Martin Škrtel Slovakia CB yes 2009 07 01 1984 12 15 Zenit Saint Petersburg 40 Daniel Ayala Spain CB yes 2009 07 01 1990 11 7 Sevilla Midfielders 4 Alberto Aquilani Italy CM yes 2009 07 01 1984 7 7 Roma 8 Steven Gerrard England CM/AM yes 2009 07 01 1980 5 30 The Academy 11 Albert Riera Spain LW yes 2009 07 01 1982 4 15 Espanyol 15 Yossi Benayoun Israel RW yes 2009 07 01 1980 5 5 West Ham United 17 Maxi Rodríguez Argentina RW/LW yes 2009 07 01 1981 1 2 Atlético Madrid 19 Ryan Babel Netherlands LW yes 2009 07 01 1986 12 19 Ajax 20 Javier Mascherano Argentina DM yes 2009 07 01 1984 6 8 West Ham United 21 Lucas Brazil DM/CM yes 2009 07 01 1987 1 9 Grêmio 28 Damien Plessis France DM yes 2009 07 01 1988 3 5 Lyon 31 Nabil El Zhar Morocco RW yes 2009 07 01 1986 8 27 Saint-Étienne Strikers 9 Fernando Torres Spain ST yes 2009 07 01 1984 3 20 Atlético Madrid 18 Dirk Kuyt Holland FW yes 2009 07 01 1980 7 22 Feyenoord 24 David Ngog France ST yes 2009 07 01 1989 4 1 Paris Saint-Germain 39 Nathan Eccleston England ST yes 2009 07 01 1990 12 30 The Academy 47 Dani Pacheco Spain ST yes 2009 07 01 1991 01 5 The Academy As of 9 May 2010. Liverpool 2009/2010 player appearances http://www.soccerbase.com/teams/team.sd?team_id=1563&teamTabs=stats&season_id=139 Soccerbase 1 August 2014 Liverpool squad 2009/2010 http://www.espnfc.com/club/liverpool/364/squad?season=2009 ESPNFC 1 August 2014 Squad statistics UEFA Champions League Premier League FA Cup Football League Cup UEFA Europa League Diego Cavalieri BRA 1 GK 4 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 y Glen Johnson ENG 2 DF 33 3 0 25 3 0 0 1 0 6 0 Alberto Aquilani ITA 4 MF 13 2 0 18 1 2 0 1 0 3 1 y Daniel Agger DEN 5 DF 36 4 0 23 0 1 0 0 0 8 1 Steven Gerrard ENG 8 MF 47 5 0 33 9 2 1 1 0 8 2 y Fernando Torres ESP 9 ST 29 4 0 22 18 2 0 0 0 4 4 Albert Riera ESP 11 MF 12 1 0 12 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 y Fábio Aurélio BRA 12 DF 13 5 0 14 0 1 0 1 0 2 0 Yossi Benayoun ISR 15 MF 29 6 2 30 6 2 0 1 0 6 1 y Sotirios Kyrgiakos GRE 16 DF 18 1 0 14 1 0 0 2 0 4 0 Maxi Rodríguez Joined in January ARG 17 MF 14 0 0 17 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 y Dirk Kuyt NED 18 ST 51 6 1 37 9 2 0 1 0 7 1 Ryan Babel NED 19 MF 16 3 1 25 4 1 0 2 0 7 1 y Javier Mascherano ARG 20 MF 44 5 0 34 0 0 0 1 0 8 1 Lucas Leiva BRA 21 MF 46 5 0 35 0 2 0 0 0 8 1 y Emiliano Insúa ARG 22 DF 43 6 0 31 0 2 0 1 1 4 0 Jamie Carragher ENG 23 DF 53 5 0 37 0 2 0 1 0 8 0 y David Ngog FRA 24 ST 18 3 1 24 5 2 0 2 1 6 1 Pepe Reina ESP 25 GK 52 5 0 38 0 1 0 0 0 8 0 y Philipp Degen CHE 27 DF 6 0 0 7 0 1 0 2 0 1 Damien Plessis FRA 28 MF 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 y Nabil El Zhar MAR 31 MF 1 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 Martin Kelly ENG 34 DF 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 y Martin Škrtel SVK 37 DF 23 4 0 19 1 2 0 2 0 2 Nathan Eccleston ENG 39 ST 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 y Daniel Ayala ESP 40 DF 2 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Dani Pacheco ESP 47 ST 0 1 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 y Jack Robinson ENG 49 DF 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 |- |colspan="17"|Players sold or loaned out after the start of the season: Andriy Voronin UKR 10 FW 3 3 0 8 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 y Jay Spearing ENG 26 MF 3 0 0 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 Stephen Darby ENG 32 DF 2 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 y Andrea Dossena ITA 38 DF 3 2 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 |} Reserve squad Updated 23 March 2010http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/team/squad/ Liverpoolfc.tv 2009-08-21 First Team Players And Staff https://web.archive.org/web/20100523064146/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/team/first-team 23 May 2010 live Squad Numbers refer to players' first team squad number (for season 2009–10), where applicable. Reserve and youth games are 1–11. See Liverpool F.C. Reserves and Academy ENG MF Jay Spearing 26 HUN FW Krisztián Németh 29 FRA GK Charles Itandje 30 ENG DF Stephen Darby 32 ENG DF Martin Kelly 34 ENG DF Steve Irwin 36 ENG DF Robbie Threlfall 38 ENG FW Nathan Eccleston 39 ESP DF Daniel Ayala 40 DEN GK Martin Hansen 41 HUN GK Péter Gulácsi 42 AUS GK Dean Bouzanis 43 ENG GK David Martin 44 SWE MF Alex Kačaniklić 45 ENG MF David Amoo 46 ESP FW Daniel Pacheco 47 ARG MF Gerardo Bruna 48 ENG DF Jack Robinson 49 IRL GK Christopher Oldfield — ESP DF Emmanuel Mendy — FRA DF Chris Mavinga — ESP DF Mikel San José — ESP MF Francisco Durán — ISL MF Guðlaugur Victor Pálsson — HUN MF Zsolt Pölöskei — on loan from MTK Hungaria NED MF Vincent Weijl — NED FW Jordy Brouwer — FIN FW Lauri Dalla Valle — DEN FW Nikola Sarić — HUN FW András Simon — Transfers In First Team ENG Transfer Alberto Aquilani MF 4 ITA y 1984 7 7 2009 8 6 Roma ITA S 2014 €22,100,000 BBC ENG Transfer Glen Johnson RB 2 ENG y 1984 8 23 2009 6 29 Portsmouth ENG S 2013 £17.5M BBC ENG Transfer Sotirios Kyrgiakos DF 16 GRE y 1979 7 23 2009 8 21 AEK Athens GRE S 2011 £2M + Németh loan liverpoolfc.com ENG Transfer Maxi Rodríguez MF 17 ARG y 1981 1 2 2010 1 13 Atlético Madrid ESP W 2013 Free liverpoolfc.com 13 January 2010 September 2010 Reserves and Academy ENG Transfer Tyrell Belford GK ENG y 1994 05 01 2009 09 15 Coventry City ENG S U Compensation Coventry Telegraph Iceland Transfer Kristján Emilsson MF ISL y 1993 04 26 2009 12 10 FH ISL S U Undisclosed Liverpool F.C. Official site ENG Transfer Aaron King MF ENG y 1992 12 18 2009 6 23 Rushden & Diamonds ENG S U U Rushden & Diamonds Official website ENG Transfer Nicolas Kohlert MF DEN y 1993 1 21 2009 10 05 Esbjerg fB DNK S 2012 U Goal.com ENG Transfer Maloney DF IRE y 1993 06 09 2009 7 01 St Josephs Boys AFC S U U ENG Transfer Chris Mavinga LB FRA y 1991 5 26 2009 7 11 Paris Saint-Germain FRA S U U Liverpool F.C. Official site ENG Transfer David Moli ENG y Luton Town ENG S U Compensation Luton Town F.C. ENG Transfer Michael Ngoo FW ENG y 1992 10 23 2009 9 11 Southend United ENG S U £250,000 Liverpool F.C. Official site ENG Transfer Stephen Sama DF GER y 1993 3 5 2009 7 24 Borussia Dortmund GER S 2012 Compensation Liverpool F.C. Official site ENG Transfer Toni Silva MF POR y 1993 09 15 2009 09 15 Benfica POR S U Compensation Liverpool F.C. ENG Transfer Jakub Sokolík DF CZE y 1993 8 28 2009 8 28 Baník Ostrava CZE S U U Sky Sports ENG Transfer Jamie Stephens GK ENG y 1993 8 25 2010 4 5 Swindon Town ENG S U U Liverpool F.C. 10 December 2009 September 2010 Out First Team ESP Xabi Alonso Transfer y ESP 14 CM 1981 11 27 2009 08 05 Real Madrid ESP S £30,000,000 liverpoolfc.com ESP Álvaro Arbeloa Transfer y ESP 17 DF 1983 01 17 2009 06 29 Real Madrid ESP S £3,500,000 https://archive.today/20130723144601/http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/liverpool-agree-arbeloa-transfer liverpoolfc.com SCO Ryan Flynn Transfer y SCO 35 MF 1988 09 04 2009 09 14 Falkirk SCO S U liverpoolfc.com ENG Sami Hyypiä Contract ended y FIN 4 CB 1973 10 07 2009 06 29 Bayer Leverkusen DEU S Free liverpoolfc.com ENG Sebastián Leto Transfer n ARG 33 LM 1986 08 30 2009 06 29 Panathinaikos GRE S £3,000,000 liverpoolfc.com ENG Craig Lindfield Released y ENG 38 FW 1988 09 07 2009 06 29 Macclesfield Town ENG S Free liverpoolfc.com ENG Jermaine Pennant Contract ended y ENG 16 RM 1983 01 13 2009 06 29 Zaragoza ESP S Free Guardian ITA Andrea Dossena Transfer y ITA 38 DF 1981 09 11 2010 01 08 Napoli ITA W €4,250,000 liverpoolfc.com RUS Andriy Voronin Transfer n UKR 10 FW 1979 07 21 2010 01 10 Dynamo Moscow RUS W €2,000,000 https://archive.today/20130629171740/http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/voronin-move-completed liverpoolfc.com 10 January 2010 September 2010 Reserves and Academy ENG Paul Anderson Transfer y ENG RW 1988 07 23 2009 06 29 Nottingham Forest ENG S £250,000 Liverpool Official Site GHA Godwin Antwi Contract ended y GHA DF 1988 06 07 2009 07 30 Vejle BK DNK S Free Liverpool Official Site SWE Astrit Ajdarević Contract ended y SWE MF 1990 11 17 2009 06 29 Leicester City ENG S Free BBC GER Christopher Buchtmann Transfer y GER DF 1992 04 25 2010 02 01 Fulham ENG W £100,000 Liverpool Official Site ENG Ryan Crowther Contract ended y ENG MF 1988 09 17 2009 08 18 S Free Liverpool Official Site ENG Adam Dawson Released y ENG MF 1992 10 05 2009 09 01 Bury ENG S Free Bury Times ENG Hakan Duyan Released y ENG GK 1991 09 08 2009 09 08 Shrewsbury Town ENG S Free BBC BRA Vitor Flora Transfer y BRA MF 1990 02 21 2010 04 06 Goiás BRA W U Liverpool Official Site ENG Adam Hammill Transfer y ENG MF 1988 01 25 2009 08 10 Barnsley ENG S Undisclosed Liverpool Official Site ENG Jack Hobbs Transfer y ENG CB 1988 08 18 2009 06 29 Leicester City ENG S £400,000 Liverpool Official Site PAR Ronald Huth Contract ended y PAR DF 1989 10 30 2009 06 29 Vicenza ITA S Free Liverpool Official Site ENG Joe Kennedy Youth contract ended y ENG DF 1990 11 24 2009 06 29 S Free Liverpool Official Site SCO Gary Mackay-Steven Contract ended y SCO MF 1988 09 07 2009 06 29 S Free Liverpool Official Site IRE Shane O'Connor Contract ended y IRE DF 1990 04 14 2009 06 29 Ipswich Town ENG S Free Liverpool Official Site ENG Ray Putterill Released y ENG MF 1989 02 03 2009 09 08 Halewood Town ENG S Free ESP Miki Roqué Contract ended y ESP DF 1988 07 08 2009 06 29 Real Betis ESP S Free Liverpool Official Site 5 February 2010 September 2010 Loaned in #PosPlayerFromStartEnd MFHUN Zsolt Pölöskei HUN MTK Hungária 01-07-2009 30-06-2010http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/team/squad/poloskei/ Player profile: Zsolt Pölöskei Liverpool F.C. 2009-07-10 https://web.archive.org/web/20090723233230/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/team/squad/poloskei/ 23 July 2009 live FWHUN Krisztián Adorján HUN MTK Hungária 01-08-2009 30-06-2010http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/team/youth/adorjan/ https://web.archive.org/web/20091126013433/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/team/youth/adorjan 2009-11-26 Player profile: Krisztián Adorján Liverpool F.C. 2009-09-10 FWHUN Patrik Poór HUN MTK Hungária 01-08-2009 30-06-2010 Loaned out #PosPlayerToStartEnd26 MFENG Jay Spearing ENG Leicester City 23-03-2010 30-05-2010http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/midfielder-deal-done Midfielder deal done Liverpool F.C. 2010-03-23 https://web.archive.org/web/20100325224611/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/midfielder-deal-done 25 March 2010 live29 FWHUN Krisztián Németh GRE AEK Athens 21-08-2009 30-06-2010http://www.sport-fm.gr/article/191177 ΑΕΚ: "Έκλεισε" το παιδί- θαύμα της Λίβερπουλ!ΑΕΚ: "Έκλεισε" το παιδί- θαύμα της Λίβερπουλ! sport-fm.gr 2009-08-2230 GKFRA Charles Itandje GRE Kavala 31-08-2009 30-06-2010http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/reds-confirm-loan-deal Reds confirm loan deal Paul Eaton 31 August 2009 Liverpool F.C. 2014-08-02 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20140808052940/http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/reds-confirm-loan-deal 8 August 2014 32 DFENG Stephen Darby ENG Swindon Town 12-03-2010 31-05-2010 Hunter Steve Duo on the move http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/duo-on-the-move Liverpool F.C. 13 March 2010 2010-03-13 https://web.archive.org/web/20100314154609/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/duo-on-the-move 14 March 2010 live35 MFSCO Ryan Flynn SCO Falkirk 10-07-2009 14-09-2009http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N164993090710-1029.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20090916085219/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N164993090710-1029.htm 16 September 2009 Midfielder seals loan move Liverpool F.C. 2009-07-1038 DFENG Robbie Threlfall ENG Northampton Town 21-08-2009 19-09-2009http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N165522090821-1609.htm Defender seals loan switch Liverpool F.C. 2009-08-20 https://web.archive.org/web/20091003192259/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N165522090821-1609.htm 3 October 2009 live38 DFENG Robbie Threlfall ENG Bradford City 22-02-2010 22-03-2010http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/defender-on-the-move Defender on the move Liverpool F.C. 2010-02-22 https://web.archive.org/web/20100224094924/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/defender-on-the-move 24 February 2010 live38 DFENG Robbie Threlfall ENG Bradford City 22-03-2010 30-05-2010http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/defender-extends-loan-1 Defender extends loan Liverpool F.C. 2010-03-22 https://web.archive.org/web/20100325190523/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/defender-extends-loan-1 25 March 2010 live39 MFENG Nathan Eccleston ENG Huddersfield Town 28-01-2010 08-05-2010http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/striker-extends-loan Striker extends loan Liverpool F.C. 1 February 2010 2010-02-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20100204181253/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/striker-extends-loan 4 February 2010 dead42 GKHUN Péter Gulácsi ENG Tranmere Rovers 16-04-2010 23-04-2010Hunter Steve Stopper on the move http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/stopper-on-the-move Liverpool F.C. 16 April 2010 2010-04-18 https://web.archive.org/web/20100419140316/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/stopper-on-the-move 19 April 2010 dead 42 GKHUN Péter Gulácsi ENG Tranmere Rovers 23-04-2010 30-04-2010Rovers Extend Keeper Loan http://www.tranmererovers.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10365~2032899,00.html Tranmere Rovers FC 23 April 2010 2010-04-30 https://web.archive.org/web/20100427032224/http://www.tranmererovers.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0%2C%2C10365~2032899%2C00.html 27 April 2010 dead 42 GKHUN Péter Gulácsi ENG Tranmere Rovers 01-05-2010 08-05-2010Gulacsi Loan Extended http://www.tranmererovers.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10365~2039670,00.html Tranmere Rovers FC 1 May 2010 2010-05-02 https://web.archive.org/web/20100503140114/http://www.tranmererovers.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0%2C%2C10365~2039670%2C00.html 3 May 2010 dead 43 GKAUS Dean Bouzanis ENG Accrington Stanley 26-11-2009 02-01-2010 Carroll James Youngster agrees loan switch http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N166607091126-1629.htm Liverpool F.C. 26 November 2009 2009-11-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20091129120514/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N166607091126-1629.htm 29 November 2009 live43 GKAUS Dean Bouzanis ENG Accrington Stanley 03-01-2010 30-01-2010 Hunter Steve Stopper extends loan http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/stopper-extends-loan-1 Liverpool F.C. 5 January 2010 2010-01-05 https://web.archive.org/web/20100108123629/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/stopper-extends-loan-1 8 January 2010 live43 GKAUS Dean Bouzanis ENG Accrington Stanley 01-02-2010 30-05-2010 Hunter Steve Duo extend loan deals http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/duo-extend-loan-deals Liverpool F.C. 1 February 2010 2010-02-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20100204181216/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/duo-extend-loan-deals 4 February 2010 live44 GKENG David Martin ENG Tranmere Rovers 16-10-2009 16-11-2009 Hunter Steve Goalkeeper crosses the Mersey http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N166098091016-1206.htm Liverpool F.C. 16 October 2009 2009-10-16 https://web.archive.org/web/20091019090947/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N166098091016-1206.htm 19 October 2009 live44 GKENG David Martin ENG Leeds United 26-11-2009 28-12-2009 Carroll James 'Keeper seals loan move http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N166606091126-1607.htm Liverpool F.C. 26 November 2009 2009-11-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20091129120505/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N166606091126-1607.htm 29 November 2009 live44 GKENG David Martin ENG Leeds United 29-12-2009 30-01-2010 Hunter Steve Stopper extends loan http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/stopper-extends-loan Liverpool F.C. 24 December 2009 2010-01-09 https://web.archive.org/web/20100127065207/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/stopper-extends-loan 27 January 2010 live44 GKENG David Martin ENG Leeds United 01-02-2010 10-02-201044 GKENG David Martin ENG Derby County 12-03-2010 10-04-201045 MFESP Mikel San José ESP Athletic Bilbao 15-08-2009 30-06-2010http://www.athletic-club.net/web/main.asp?a=0&b=1&c=1&d=1000&berria=8455&idi=1 Mikel San José, cedido al Athletic Club Athletico Bilbao 2009-08-15 https://web.archive.org/web/20090817231145/http://www.athletic-club.net/web/main.asp?a=0&b=1&c=1&d=1000&berria=8455&idi=1 17 August 2009 dead GKBUL Nikolay Mihaylov NED Twente 01-07-2008 30-06-2010http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/liverpool-fc/liverpool-fc-news/2010/02/04/liverpool-fc-sell-nikolay-mihaylov-to-fc-twente-for-1-5million-92534-25766236/ Liverpool F.C. sell Nikolay Mihaylov to FC Twente for £1.5million Liverpool Daily Post 2010-02-04 https://web.archive.org/web/20100208215546/http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/liverpool-fc/liverpool-fc-news/2010/02/04/liverpool-fc-sell-nikolay-mihaylov-to-fc-twente-for-1-5million-92534-25766236/ 8 February 2010 live FWHUN András Simon ESP Córdoba 21-08-2009 30-06-2010http://work.workcrm.com/clientesexternos/76e25814ae22ad63d695c525ce525cc2/secciones/76e25814ae22ad63d695c525ce525cc21/plantillas/noticia_ampliada.php?id=3482&s= András Simon, del Liverpool, undécima incorporación del Córdoba Club de Fútbol Córdoba CF 2014-08-02 28 January 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160128030548/http://work.workcrm.com/clientesexternos/76e25814ae22ad63d695c525ce525cc2/secciones/76e25814ae22ad63d695c525ce525cc21/plantillas/noticia_ampliada.php?id=3482&s= dead MFNED Vincent Weijl NED Helmond Sport 30-01-2010 30-06-2010http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/midfielder-leaves-on-loan Midfielder leaves on loan Liverpool F.C. 2010-01-30 https://web.archive.org/web/20100202133355/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/midfielder-leaves-on-loan 2 February 2010 dead Match results Pre-season FriendliesKick OffOpponentsH / AResultScorersRefereeAttendanceReport2009-07-15 20:00SUI St. GallenA 0–0 –SUI Cyril Zimmermann20,000MR2009-07-19 19:15AUT Rapid WienA 0–1 –AUT Gerhard Grubelnik50,000MR2009-07-22 20:00THA ThailandA1–1Babel 6'55,000 MR2009-07-26 20:00SIN SingaporeA 5–0Voronin 45', Riera 54', Németh 73', 83', Torres 80'SIN Abdul Malik Bashir55,000 MR2009-08-02 21:00ESP EspanyolA 0–3-40,000 MR2009-08-05 19:00NOR Lyn OsloA 2–0Voronin 44', Ngog 59' MR2009-08-08 15:00ESP Atlético MadridH 1–2Lucas 82'ENG Phil Dowd44,102 MR Premier League August The fixtures for the 2009–10 Premier League season were announced on 17 June, with Liverpool being handed an away fixture to Tottenham Hotspur.Man Utd start against Birmingham https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8102556.stm BBC Sport 17 June 2009 17 June 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20090620112014/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/8102556.stm 20 June 2009 live Spurs took the lead a minute before half time when left back Benoît Assou-Ekotto scored from 30 yards, after Tom Huddlestone's free kick had been blocked. Liverpool showed more urgency after half time, and were awarded a penalty on 55 minutes when Glen Johnson's run was ended by keeper Heurelho Gomes' challenge. Steven Gerrard converted the penalty to equalise for Liverpool. However, Tottenham regained the lead on 64 minutes when Cameroonian centre-half Sébastien Bassong headed home a Luka Modrić free kick. Liverpool seemed unable to respond, and fashioned few chances. They had a penalty appeal turned down on 84 minutes when Andriy Voronin seemed to be tripped by Assou-Ekotto in the box, but Spurs hung on for a 2–1 win.http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/match/season/2009-2010/aug/753/finalwhistle.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20090921015810/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/match/season/2009-2010/aug/753/finalwhistle.htm 21 September 2009 REDS SLUMP TO OPENING DAY DEFEAT Liverpool F.C. 2009-09-01Phil McNulty Tottenham 2–1 Liverpool https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8198253.stm BBC Sport 16 August 2009 1 September 2009 Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez later criticised referee Phil Dowd for his failure to award Liverpool a penalty, and was later charged with improper conduct by the FA.Benitez fumes at penalty denials https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8204373.stm BBC Sport 17 June 2009 1 September 2009 Manager Benitez handed FA charge https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/8232355.stm BBC Sport 17 June 2009 1 September 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20091015112305/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/8232355.stm 15 October 2009 live Liverpool's first home match was against Stoke City four days later. Liverpool took the lead after five minutes when Fernando Torres swept home Steven Gerrard's cross. The lead was doubled moments before half time when Glen Johnson acrobatically finished after Dirk Kuyt's header had been blocked off the line. Good work from Gerrard on the right saw Kuyt make it 3–0 five minutes from time, before Frenchman David Ngog headed a fourth in stoppage time.http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/match/season/2009-2010/aug/754/finalwhistle.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20091126013917/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/match/season/2009-2010/aug/754/finalwhistle.htm 26 November 2009 JOHNSON NETS IN 4–0 DEMOLITION Liverpool F.C. 2009-09-01Saj Chowdhury Liverpool 4–0 Stoke https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/8202421.stm BBC Sport 16 August 2009 1 September 2009 Liverpool suffered their first home league defeat since a 0–1 loss to Manchester United on 16 December 2007 against Aston Villa the following Monday. The away side took the lead when Lucas inadvertently headed into his own net from an Ashley Young cross on 33 minutes. Villa doubled their lead in first half injury time when Curtis Davies headed home from a corner. Liverpool did manage to pull one back through Fernando Torres, but Gerrard's poorly timed tackle on Nigel Reo-Coker led to a penalty, which Ashley Young converted to consign Liverpool to a 3–1 defeat.http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/match/season/2009-2010/aug/755/finalwhistle.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20091129064516/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/match/season/2009-2010/aug/755/finalwhistle.htm 29 November 2009 REDS CRASH TO ANFIELD DEFEAT Liverpool F.C. 2009-09-01Phil McNulty Liverpool 1–3 Aston Villa https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8209624.stm BBC Sport 16 August 2009 1 September 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20091002072729/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/8209624.stm 2 October 2009 live Manager Rafael Benítez criticised his senior players for the defeat and demanded a better performance for the next match, away at Bolton Wanderers.Gerrard below par, says Benitez https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/8227473.stm BBC Sport 17 June 2009 1 September 2009 At the Reebok Stadium, Liverpool had to twice come back from behind against Bolton. They took the lead on 33 minutes when poor marking from a corner saw Kevin Davies bundle the ball home from close range. Glen Johnson equalised four minutes before the break when a Liverpool corner was not properly cleared, and he stroked home left-footed from twenty yards. Bolton regained the lead two minutes after the break when Davies headed down Jussi Jääskeläinen's long punt for Tamir Cohen to smash home. The turning point of the game was Sean Davis' sending off on 53 minutes for a second bookable offence. Liverpool equalised just a few minutes later when Fernando Torres finished tidily following good work from Dirk Kuyt. Liverpool continued to press and finally got the winner on 83 minutes, when Torres' knockdown from a Glen Johnson was met by a shot from Gerrard, who had earlier hit the bar.Ian Hughes Bolton 2–3 Liverpool https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8222679.stm BBC Sport 16 August 2009 1 September 2009 Gerrard later felt he "owed" the performance after poor performances in the defeats to 'Spurs and Villa.http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N165626090831-0901.htm STEVIE: I OWED A PERFORMANCE Liverpool F.C. 2009-09-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20091003202059/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N165626090831-0901.htm 3 October 2009 livehttp://www.liverpoolfc.tv/match/season/2009-2010/aug/756/finalwhistle.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20091126133853/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/match/season/2009-2010/aug/756/finalwhistle.htm 26 November 2009 GERRARD THE HERO AS REDS TRIUMPH Liverpool F.C. 2009-09-12 September Liverpool's next match came after the international break, where they faced newly promoted Burnley at home. Despite comments made prior to the match by goalkeeper Pepe Reina that the league title was 'not a realistic ambition this season',League title unrealistic – Reina https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/8252030.stm BBC Sport 12 September 2009 12 September 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20090912101234/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/8252030.stm 12 September 2009 live Liverpool comfortably dispatched the East Lancashire club 4–0 to go up to fourth in the table, thanks to an inspired performance from Yossi Benayoun, who scored a hat-trick.https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/sep/12/premier-league-liverpool-burnley Yossi Benayoun overwhelms Burnley with third Liverpool hat-trick Sachin Nakrani The Guardian 12 September 2009 3 August 2014 Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez later praised Benayoun's work ethic, and stated that he was an 'example to the rest of the squad'Jimmy Rice RAFA: YOSSI IS AN EXAMPLE TO OTHERS http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N165746090912-1756.htm Liverpool F.C. 12 September 2009 12 September 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20090915172525/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/drilldown/N165746090912-1756.htm 15 September 2009 liveMandeep Sanghera Liverpool 4–0 Burnley https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8248946.stm BBC Sport 12 September 2009 12 September 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20160113024837/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/8248946.stm 13 January 2016 live Michael Shields, attended this match as a special guest, his first since Istanbul, just three days after being released from prison.Nick Iliev Liverpool batter Burnley as Michael Shields is given the royal treatment http://www.sofiaecho.com/2009/09/12/783502_liverpool-batter-burnley-as-michael-shields-is-given-the-royal-treatment The Sofia Echo 12 September 2009 12 September 2009 Liverpool travelled to the Boleyn Ground the following week, a ground that they won 3–0 at the previous season. They looked to be heading for a similar result when Fernando Torres' goal put the visitors 1–0 up after thirteen minutes. However, Jamie Carragher brought young striker Zavon Hines down on the half-hour, and Alessandro Diamanti converted the spot kick, which he appeared to touch twice. However, Dirk Kuyt put Liverpool back in front four minutes before the break, when he got a slight touch on a Steven Gerrard header. West Ham then equalised on half time through Carlton Cole after poor defending from a corner kick. The second half was approached slightly more cautiously by the home side, and substitute Ryan Babel made the desired impact when his ball was headed home by Torres. Liverpool held on for the remaining 15 minutes for their second consecutive 3–2 away win.Mark Ashenden West Ham 2–3 Liverpool https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8256614.stm BBC Sport 19 September 2009 20 September 2009 Benítez praised Torres for his role in the win; Torres had stated earlier that week that he felt he was not playing to standard.Benitez lavishes praise on Torres https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/8265130.stm BBC Sport 19 September 2009 19 September 2009 Jimmy Rice TORRES: MY DEBUT SEASON IS HISTORY http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/archivedirs/news/2009/sep/18/N165815090918-0953.htm https://archive.today/20120804222802/http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/archivedirs/news/2009/sep/18/N165815090918-0953.htm dead 4 August 2012 Liverpoolfc.tv Liverpool F.C. 17 September 2009 20 September 2009 http://www.lfcreds.com/reds/index.php/topic,3266.msg452521.html?PHPSESSID=s73qv5sbkbfortif7frejprj37#msg452521 Reprint of aforementioned article on messageboard LFC Reds 18 September 2009 2 August 2014 The club's last Premier League match of the month came at home on 26 September, against Hull City. Liverpool took the lead after Fernando Torres slotted past Boaz Myhill. Hull then equalised four minutes later, when defensive frailties were pounced upon by Geovanni. Liverpool retook the lead when Torres rounded Myhill, and the Spaniard completed his hat-trick with a solo effort on 47 minutes. Steven Gerrard made the game safe when his cross accidentally sailed in on the hour. Substitute Ryan Babel then came off the bench to tap in a fifth and he inadvertently deflected Albert Riera's shot in injury time to make it 6–1.http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/article6851387.ece https://web.archive.org/web/20100530192410/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/article6851387.ece 2010-05-30 Fernando Torres shows class for Liverpool with majestic hat-trick 26 September 2009 The Times 2009-09-27 London Tony Barrett October Liverpool lost their first big four game 2–0 to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The match was level until Nicolas Anelka guided the ball over Pepe Reina on the hour mark. With Liverpool pouring forward in search of an equaliser, Liverpool were left stretched at the back. With Chelsea attempting to kill time in the corner, Didier Drogba outmuscled Emiliano Insúa and squared back for Florent Malouda to double Chelsea's lead in added time.https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/oct/04/chelsea-liverpool-anelka-match-report Chelsea 2 Liverpool 0 4 October 2009 The Guardian 2009-12-01 London Kevin McCarra Liverpool lost their next match to Sunderland 1–0. The solitary, controversial goal was scored by Darren Bent. Andy Reid picked out Bent in the box and he directed it straight to Reina. However, a beach ball thrown onto the field by a spectator deflected the ball into the net.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/6358909/Sunderland-1-Liverpool-0-match-report.html Sunderland 1 Liverpool 0: match report 18 October 2009 The Telegraph 2009-12-01 London Duncan White https://web.archive.org/web/20091020112041/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/6358909/Sunderland-1-Liverpool-0-match-report.html 20 October 2009 dead Liverpool were not able to react to the shock goal, and Sunderland held on for the win.http://soccernet-assets.espn.go.com/report?id=269901&cc=5739 https://web.archive.org/web/20091020171447/http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=269901&cc=5901 20 October 2009 Sunderland 1 Liverpool 0 18 October 2009 ESPN 2009-12-01 On 25 October, Liverpool prepared to face off with Manchester United. Manager Rafa Benítez was under pressure following four straight defeats, but he was calm as he spoke to the press.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/6408251/Liverpool-v-Manchester-United-match-preview.html Liverpool v Manchester United: match preview 23 October 2009 The Telegraph 2009-12-01 London John Ley https://web.archive.org/web/20091027072901/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/6408251/Liverpool-v-Manchester-United-match-preview.html 27 October 2009 dead Fábio Aurélio had a chance when his header was saved by Edwin van der Sar. Liverpool sustained their pressure throughout the second half. They finally took the lead on 65 minutes when Fernando Torres outmuscled Rio Ferdinand and fired his shot into the top corner of the net.http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=270061&cc=5739 Liverpool 2 – 0 Manchester United 25 October 2009 ESPN 2009-12-02 https://web.archive.org/web/20091028164203/http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=270061&cc=5739 28 October 2009 dead United finally reacted after the goal, but were not able to fashion any clear cut chances. Antonio Valencia hit the crossbar, but that was the closest the visitors came to an equaliser.McNulty Phil Liverpool 2-0 Manchester United https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8316379.stm 22 September 2020 BBC Sport 25 October 2009 Their plight was not helped by Nemanja Vidić's sending off for a second bookable offence on 90 minutes.http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-fc/liverpool-fc-news/2009/10/25/liverpool-2-man-utd-0-100252-25011816/ Liverpool 2 Manchester United 0 25 October 2009 Liverpool Echo 2009-12-02 Javier Mascherano was also sent off for two bookings on 95 minutes, when he tackled van der Sar. David Ngog finally secured the three points for Liverpool when he broke away and slotted past van der Sar to secure victory, Liverpool's third consecutive victory over their rivals.https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/oct/25/liverpool-manchester-united Liverpool 2 Manchester United 0 25 October 2009 The Guardian 2009-12-02 London Kevin McCarra https://web.archive.org/web/20091028005027/http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/oct/25/liverpool-manchester-united 28 October 2009 live Liverpool's final match of the month came away to Fulham. Liverpool fell behind after 24 minutes when Bobby Zamora tapped home. Liverpool equalised three minutes before half time, when Fernando Torres finished from 20 yards. After the break, Fulham started to put Liverpool under pressure, and when Torres was taken off on the hour, they lost their main attacking threat. Fulham retook the lead on 73 minutes, when another breakaway resulted in Erik Nevland finishing off a Paul Konchesky cross.Sanghera Mandeep Fulham 3-1 Liverpool https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8330334.stm 22 September 2020 BBC Sport 31 October 2009 Liverpool were left chasing the game at this point, and they lost two men in three minutes; Philipp Degen was sent off for a tackle on Zamora, and Jamie Carragher was later sent off for a professional foul. This was Liverpool's fifth defeat in 11 matches, and it left them 9 points behind Chelsea at the top.http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/liverpool/article6897926.ece https://web.archive.org/web/20100530211129/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/liverpool/article6897926.ece 2010-05-30 Exuberant Fulham expose limitations of Liverpool 1 November 2009 The Times 2009-12-02 London John Aizlewood November Liverpool's first match of the month was home to Birmingham City. Liverpool took the lead on 13 minutes, when David Ngog finished off after several saves from Joe Hart. Birmingham fought back, however, and equalised on 26 minutes, when a harmless free kick resulted in Christian Benítez heading home. Birmingham took the lead in the third minute of first half stoppage time, when Cameron Jerome netted from 35 yards. Liverpool brought on Steven Gerrard at the break, and he converted Liverpool's equaliser on 71 minutes, from the penalty spot, after Ngog had adjudged to be fouled by Lee Carsley. TV replays showed that Ngog had dived.https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/nov/10/premier-league-liverpool-birmingham-city David Ngog's 'embarrassing case of cheating' gets Liverpool a draw 10 November 2009 The Guardian 2009-12-02 London Andy Hunter https://web.archive.org/web/20091113055038/http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/nov/10/premier-league-liverpool-birmingham-city 13 November 2009 live Liverpool could not find the winner, but this would have been harsh on Birmingham, who had defended well throughout.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/6516313/Liverpool-2-Birmingham-City-2-match-report.html Liverpool 2 Birmingham City 2: match report 9 November 2009 The Telegraph 2009-12-02 London Henry Winter https://web.archive.org/web/20091112014816/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/6516313/Liverpool-2-Birmingham-City-2-match-report.html 12 November 2009 dead Liverpool's next match after the international break was another home game, this time to Manchester City. Liverpool took the lead five minutes into the second half when Martin Škrtel got the vital touch from a Gerrard free kick. City got back into the game on 69 minutes; poor marking from Craig Bellamy's corner left Emmanuel Adebayor with a free header from six yards. City then silenced Anfield when they took the lead on 76 minutes; Shaun Wright-Phillips turned Sotirios Kyrgiakos and crossed for Stephen Ireland to finish from close range. However, City could not hold on to their lead, and Yossi Benayoun was left to tap home just 72 seconds after Ireland's goal.http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=269889&cc=5739 Benayoun pegs back City 21 November 2009 ESPN 2009-12-02 https://web.archive.org/web/20091127231318/http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=269889&cc=5739 27 November 2009 dead Liverpool headed into the Merseyside derby having exited the Champions League, and with just one win in 10. Everton were also in poor form, though they started the brighter of the two teams.http://www.goal.com/en/news/9/england/2009/11/27/1651588/premier-league-preview-everton-liverpool Premier League Preview: Everton – Liverpool 27 November 2009 Goal.com 2009-12-02 https://web.archive.org/web/20091130030955/http://www.goal.com/en/news/9/england/2009/11/27/1651588/premier-league-preview-everton-liverpool 30 November 2009 live Liverpool were content to soak up the pressure, and took the lead on 12 minutes, when Javier Mascherano's 30-yard shot was deflected in by Joseph Yobo. Everton's Jo had two goals ruled out for offside, and though Everton had the possession, they could not convert this into goals. Everton were left chasing the game late into the second half, and Yobo's defensive error allowed Gerrard to tee up Albert Riera, whose powerful shot Tim Howard could not hold, allowing Dirk Kuyt to tap in with ten minutes remaining. Liverpool had further chances to add to their goal tally, but 2–0 flattered Liverpool, who had taken their chances, and defended well.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/6683894/Everton-0-Liverpool-2-match-report.html Everton 0 Liverpool 2: match report 29 November 2009 The Telegraph 2009-12-02 London Mark Ogden https://web.archive.org/web/20091202050834/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/liverpool/6683894/Everton-0-Liverpool-2-match-report.html 2 December 2009 dead December On a high after the derby win, The Reds travelled to Ewood Park as they faced Blackburn Rovers in what was Steven Gerrard's 500th game for Liverpool. Rovers manager Sam Allardyce has a good record against Liverpool, and he managed to contain the Reds in a goalless draw. Chances were few and far between, with the best chance falling to the young Frenchman David Ngog late on; his scuffed shot hit the bar. Liverpool's next game was at home to Arsenal. The home side started well, dominating Arsenal in the early stages. Their pressure paid off four minutes before the break when Dirk Kuyt tapped home from close range. Cesc Fàbregas later revealed that manager Arsène Wenger had given his players the hairdryer treatment at half time, making it clear in no uncertain terms that they had played awfully in the first period.http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/sport/4792523.Wenger_blast_inspires_Arsenal_to_Liverpool_victory/ Wenger blast inspires Arsenal to Liverpool victory Watford Observer 14 December 2009 4 August 2014 Arsenal returned invigoured after the second half, and put Liverpool under a period of intense pressure in the opening exchanges of the second half. Arsenal equalised when Samir Nasri's cross was inadvertently deflected into his own net by Glen Johnson. Buoyed by the goal, Arsenal pushed on and took the lead five minutes later through a goal from Andrey Arshavin which gave Reina no chance at his near post. Arsenal held on for their first win at Anfield since October 2003. Liverpool managed to regain the winning touch with a 2–1 win over Wigan Athletic at Anfield three days later. The away side gave a good account of themselves, and aside from David Ngog's early goal, matched Liverpool for spells. Liverpool wrapped up the win 11 minutes from time with Fernando Torres' 11th goal of the season. Wigan got a late consolation through Charles N'Zogbia, which was more than deserved. Liverpool travelled to Fratton Park to face bottom of the table Portsmouth in what was seen as an easy game. Liverpool manager Rafa Benítez had made an eyebrow-raising team selection upon his team's visit the previous season,https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/7877134.stm Benitez stands by team selection BBC Sport 8 February 2009 4 August 2014 and he also raised questions about his selection as he picked out-of-favour Andrea Dossena on the left.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8414887.stm Portsmouth 2 – 0 Liverpool Mandeep Sanghera BBC Sport 19 December 2009 4 August 2014 Daniel Agger's close-range header was the visitors' best chance of the half, but it was Portsmouth who took the lead six minutes from the end, Algerian Nadir Belhadj rifling in a shot from what seemed an impossible angle. Javier Mascherano was sent off in first-half injury time after a two-footed lunge on Tal Ben Haim. The away side pressured for an equaliser in the second half, with Asmir Begović pulling off a stupendous save from Steven Gerrard's heavily deflected shot. The home side sealed the win with seven minutes to go when Frédéric Piquionne volleyed home from 10 yards by sealing Portsmouth's first victory over Liverpool since April 2007. Many fans called for Benítez's exit after the game, despite his 'guarantee' of a fourth-place finish.https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/dec/20/liverpool-rafael-benitez-portsmouth Rafael Benítez: 'Perfect' referee cost Liverpool victory at Portsmouth Anna Kessel The Observer 20 December 2009 4 August 2014 The boxing day fixture saw Liverpool host Wolves. An even first half saw Kevin Doyle miss the away side's best chance as he headed over from six yards, but Stephen Ward's controversial red card early in the second half proved a turning point. Steven Gerrard powered in a header just after the hour, and Yossi Benayoun added a second deflected shot eight minutes later. Liverpool's last match of the decade was a crunch match for 4th place with Aston Villa at Villa Park. The game turned out to be rather poor, with both teams cancelling each other out. Villa missed good chances through Gabriel Agbonlahor and John Carew, but with the game heading for a draw, Fernando Torres slotted past Brad Friedel in the third minute of stoppage time to give Liverpool a vital three points. January Liverpool's first Premier League match of the calendar year pitted them against Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium, just days after they had been knocked out of the FA Cup by Championship side Reading at Anfield. The away side were weakened by injuries, but still put in a creditable performance. Lucas appeared to be tripped by Danny Higginbotham in the penalty area on 26 minutes, but referee Lee Mason booked the Brazilian for diving. Stoke were content to sit back and let Liverpool have possession, and the away side lacked a cutting edge that would have killed the game. They did take the lead on 57 minutes, with Greek defender Sotirios Kyrgiakos knocking in after Thomas Sørensen had dropped Fábio Aurélio's free kick. Stoke put Liverpool under heavy pressure in the last quarter of an hour, and made the breakthrough when Robert Huth scrambled home. Dirk Kuyt missed a golden opportunity to win the game in the sixth minute of injury time, but his header hit the post. Liverpool faced another important showdown with Tottenham at Anfield. Spurs manager Harry Redknapp felt that his side could get a result at Anfield, with Liverpool missing key players and in poor form. Liverpool, however, started strongly, taking the lead in the sixth minute through Dirk Kuyt's 6th-minute strike. Tottenham were off-par, and despite the ruling out of Jermain Defoe's goal, failed to test Reina. The home side earned a penalty in injury-time when substitutes Maxi Rodríguez and David Ngog combined, with the latter being tripped in the box. Kuyt was made to re-take his penalty, but still sent Heurelho Gomes the wrong way to secure Liverpool's third win in four. Despite their impressive form, Liverpool were disappointing once more, as they failed to break down Wolves at Molineux. Albert Riera's early effort was comfortably saved by Marcus Hahnemann, but the away side failed to create any clear-cut chances, and the best opportunities in a drab game fell to Wolves' Kevin Doyle, whose goalbound shot was cleared by Emiliano Insúa. Liverpool's next game was at home to Bolton. They failed to impress, but still managed to grind out a 2–0 win, with Dirk Kuyt grabbing his third goal in as many games as he toe-poked in from close range. Emiliano Insúa's long-range strike was deflected into his own net by Kevin Davies for the second. David Ngog should have added a late third, but missed a sitter, hitting the crossbar from five yards out with the goal gaping. Rafael Benítez praised The Reds' defence, as they kept a third consecutive clean sheet, and a fifth in the last six games. February Liverpool prepared to renew rivalries with Everton on 6 February at Anfield. The Toffees were in scintillating form, earning impressive draws at The Emirates and at Stamford Bridge in their nine-game unbeaten run. The game turned out to be more of a physical battle than a football match, with Jamie Carragher's tackle on Steven Pienaar within the first 10 seconds setting the precedent. Sotirios Kyrgiakos was sent off on 34 minutes for a lunge on Marouane Fellaini, but the away side failed to capitalise on his absence, particularly in the air. The best chance of the half fell to Everton's Tim Cahill, but his close range header went just over. Liverpool took the lead 10 minutes into the second half, Dirk Kuyt heading in from close range from Steven Gerrard's corner. The home side then had to defend as Everton pinned them back for periods. Liverpool threatened on the break, but could not find a second. Everton disappointed, and despite the introduction of Yakubu and Victor Anichebe, could not create a clear opening. Liverpool held on to complete a second double over Everton in three seasons. Liverpool's second game of February was away to title contenders Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. Liverpool lost the game 1–0 thanks to Abou Diaby's header. Liverpool's penultimate game of February was away to also top 4 challengers Manchester City at Eastlands. The game finished 0–0. Liverpool players Fernando Torres & Yossi Benayoun both made cameo appearances on their return from injuries, but neither could swing the game in Liverpool's fortunes. Liverpool's third and final game of February was against to Blackburn Rovers at Anfield. Liverpool had captain Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres on the same scoresheet for only the third time in the Barclays Premier League this season. Steven Gerrard scored after 20 minutes and Fernando Torres netted 2 minutes before half time after Rovers had equalised from the penalty spot after Jamie Carragher's foul in the box. March Liverpool opened March with a 1–0 loss to Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium. Dirk Kuyt gifted the goal to Wigan, attempting to pass it back to Pepe Reina, but Hugo Rodallega skipped past Javier Mascherano and chipped the ball over the oncoming Reina to ultimately win the game for the Latics ten minutes before half-time. Glen Johnson came on as a substitute for Liverpool on his return from injury. Liverpool's second game of March was at home to near relegated Portsmouth. Portsmouth were in the hunt to do the 'double' over Liverpool after their morale-boosting 2–0 victory back in December. Fernando Torres opened the scoring for Liverpool with his 14th goal of the season after 28 minutes. Ryan Babel doubled Liverpool's advantage on the half-hour mark. Italian Alberto Aquilani scored his first goal in English football to make it 3–0 on 32 minutes. Fernando Torres scored his second of the night and Liverpool's fourth on 77 minutes. Portsmouth grabbed a sole consolation in the last minute thanks to Nadir Belhadj, but Liverpool ran out comfortable winners. Liverpool's third game of March saw them renew rivalries with old foes Manchester United at Old Trafford. Liverpool took the lead after just five minutes after Dirk Kuyt released captain Steven Gerrard, who fed in Fernando Torres. Torres shot with excellent power which left United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar with no chance.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8570837.stm Man Utd 2 – 1 Liverpool Phil McNulty BBC Sport 21 March 2010 4 August 2014 Controversy flared when Liverpool's Argentinian midfielder Javier Mascherano appeared to have fouled Antonio Valencia in the penalty box. TV replays clearly showed that the foul was outside of the box.http://backpagefootball.com/manchester-united-2-1-liverpool/4078/ Manchester United 2 – 1 Liverpool Eamonn Power Back Page Football 21 March 2010 4 August 2014 Wayne Rooney took the penalty and scored the rebound after Pepe Reina's save. United continued to pour forward in numbers, and finally got the goal their play deserved,https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/manchester-united/7493225/Manchester-United-2-Liverpool-1-match-report.html Manchester United 2 Liverpool 1: match report Henry Winter The Daily Telegraph 22 March 2010 4 August 2014 when veteran winger Ryan Giggs crossed. The ball missed everyone apart from Ji Sung Park, who scored despite the close attention from the Liverpool right back Glen Johnson. The 2–1 win for United was Sir Alex Ferguson's 100th home Barclays Premier League win. Liverpool wrapped up March with an impressive 3–0 win over Sunderland at Anfield. Liverpool took the lead with only 6 minutes on the clock. Great workhttps://www.theguardian.com/football/2010/mar/28/liverpool-sunderland-premier-league Fernando Torres's touches of genius reignite the Liverpool challenge Andy Hunter The Guardian 28 March 2010 4 August 2014https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/liverpool/7532484/Liverpool-3-Sunderland-0-match-report.html Liverpool 3 Sunderland 0: match report Rory Smith The Daily Telegraph 29 March 2010 4 August 2014https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/8583759.stm Liverpool 3 – 0 Sunderland Stuart Roach BBC Sport 28 March 2010 4 August 2014 from in-form Spaniard Fernando Torres on the left resulted in him cutting inside two defenders before a high, curling shot flew into the top right-hand corner. Liverpool cruised into a 2–0 lead when a corner broke loose to right back Glen Johnson, who skipped past a Sunderland defender before unleashing a left-foot strike that took a deflection. Sunderland rarely exerted any pressure to force Liverpool into defensive play in the second half, which meant Liverpool could counter-attack without worrying about numbers at the back. During one of these counterattacks, Liverpool scored their third and final goal, with Johnson fooling everyone by releasing the ball through to Fernando Torres. Torres scored into an empty net to give Liverpool three goals and three points. April Liverpool started off their top 4 battle run in with a 1–1 draw against Birmingham City at St Andrew's. Liverpool took the lead just two minutes into the second half, when a corner on the left side on the edge of the 18-yard box fell short to Steven Gerrard, who curled an effort past City goalkeeper Joe Hart. Birmingham equalised near the end of the game to deal Liverpool's top four ambitions another blow. Liverpool's second game of April was a drab home game against Europa League-contending Fulham at Anfield. Liverpool were without striker Fernando Torres for this game because he was in Spain seeing a specialist about his recent knee injury. Mark Schwarzer was Fulham's hero, shutting out Liverpool all day long with a string of superb saves to keep Fulham's Europa League dream alive. Liverpool were now three points off the top four, having played a game more than Tottenham and Manchester City. Liverpool's third game of April was a Monday night fixture to relegation threatened West Ham United at Anfield. Liverpool took three points from this game, but needed to beat Chelsea to keep their hope of a Champions League place alive. Steven Gerrard's back-pass allowed Chelsea to score, and after that, Chelsea pressed home their advantage. The loss for Liverpool meant they failed to qualify for the Champions League. Liverpool ended their campaign with a 0–0 draw at the KC Stadium against Hull City, in which youngster Jack Robinson made his debut for the reds. League table LIV Results summary 13 3 3 43 15 5 6 8 18 20 Games against Top Six 2 1 3 8 9 1 1 4 3 7 Results by round table b Round Ground A/H/H/A/H/A/H/A/A/H/A/H/H/A/A/H/H/A/H/A/A/H/A/H/H/A/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/H/A/H/A Result L/W/L/W/W/W/W/L/L/W/L/D/D/W/D/L/W/L/W/W/D/W/D/W/W/L/D/W/L/W/L/W/D/D/W/W/L/D Position 12/4/10/7/4/3/3/5/8/5/5/7/7/5/7/7/6/8/7/7/7/6/5/5/4/5/6/6/6/5/6/6/6/6/7/7/7/7 Home Away green2 Win yellow2 Draw red2 Loss 1st 2nd 3rd red1 24 April 2010 Matches August 2009 Matches 1 16 August 2009 16:00 Tottenham Hotspur 2–1 MR Liverpool Assou-Ekotto 44 Bassong 59 Gerrard 56 pen. London White Hart Lane 35,935 Phil Dowd L 2 19 August 2009 20:00 Liverpool 4–0 MR Stoke City Torres 5 Johnson 45 Kuyt 78 Ngog 90+4 Liverpool Anfield 44,318 Peter Walton W 3 24 August 2009 20:00 Liverpool 1–3 MR Aston Villa Torres 72 Lucas 34 o.g. C. Davies 45+2 A. Young 75 Liverpool Anfield 43,667 Martin Atkinson L 4 29 August 2009 15:00 Bolton Wanderers 2–3 MR Liverpool K. Davies 33 Cohen 47 Johnson 41 Torres 56 Gerrard 83 Bolton Reebok Stadium 23,284 Alan Wiley W 5 12 September 2009 15:00 Liverpool 4–0 MR Burnley Benayoun 27 61 82 Kuyt 41 Liverpool Anfield 43,817 Lee Mason W 6 19 September 2009 17:15 West Ham United 2–3 MR Liverpool Diamanti 29 C. Cole 45 Torres 20 75 Kuyt 41 London Boleyn Ground 34,658 Andre Marriner W 7 26 September 2009 15:00 Liverpool 6–1 MR Hull City Torres 11 28 47 Gerrard 61 Babel 88 90 Geovanni 15 Liverpool Anfield 44,392 Peter Walton W 8 4 October 2009 16:00 Chelsea 2–0 MR Liverpool Anelka 60 Malouda 90 London Stamford Bridge 41,732 Martin Atkinson L 9 17 October 2009 15:00 Sunderland 1–0 MR Liverpool Bent 5 Sunderland Stadium of Light 47,327 Mike Jones L 10 25 October 2009 14:00 Liverpool 2–0 MR Manchester United Torres 65 Mascherano 2 72 90+5Carragher 87Ngog 90+6 Evra 15Berbatov 37Vidić 2 75 90 Liverpool Anfield 44,188 Andre Marriner W 11 31 October 2009 15:00 Fulham 3–1 MR Liverpool Zamora 24 Nevland 73 Dempsey 87 Torres 42 London Craven Cottage 25,700 Lee Mason L 12 9 November 2009 20:00 Liverpool 2–2 MR Birmingham City Ngog 13 Gerrard 71 pen. Benítez 26 Jerome 47 Liverpool Anfield 42,560 Peter Walton D 13 21 November 2009 12:45 Liverpool 2–2 MR Manchester City Carragher 17 Škrtel 50 Leiva 63 Benayoun 77 Adebayor 69 Ireland 76 Liverpool Anfield 44,164 Phil Dowd D 14 29 November 2009 13:30 Everton 0–2 MR Liverpool Heitinga 84 Yobo 12 o.g. Kuyt 80 Liverpool Goodison Park 39,652 Alan Wiley W 15 5 December 2009 16:00 Blackburn Rovers 0–0 MR Liverpool Blackburn Ewood Park 29,660 Martin Atkinson D 16 13 December 2009 16:00 Liverpool 1–2 MR Arsenal Kuyt 41 Johnson 50 o.g. Arshavin 58 Liverpool Anfield 43,853 Howard Webb L 17 16 December 2009 16:00 Liverpool 2–1 MR Wigan Athletic Ngog 9 Torres 79 N'Zogbia 90 Liverpool Anfield 41,116 Phil Dowd W 18 19 December 2009 12:45 Portsmouth 2–0 MR Liverpool Belhadj 33 Piquionne 82 Portsmouth Fratton Park 20,534 Lee Mason L 19 26 December 2009 17:30 Liverpool 2–0 MR Wolverhampton Wanderers Gerrard 62 Benayoun 70 Liverpool Anfield 41,936 Andre Marriner W 20 29 December 2009 19:45 Aston Villa 0–1 MR Liverpool Torres 90+3 Birmingham Villa Park 42,788 Lee Probert W 21 16 January 2010 12:45 Stoke City 1–1 MR Liverpool Huth 90 Kyrgiakos 57 Stoke-on-Trent Britannia Stadium 27,247 Lee Mason D 22 20 January 2010 20:00 Liverpool 2–0 MR Tottenham Hotspur Kuyt 6 90+2 pen. Liverpool Anfield 42,016 Howard Webb W 23 26 January 2010 19:45 Wolverhampton Wanderers 0–0 MR Liverpool Wolverhampton Molineux 28,763 Peter Walton D 24 30 January 2010 15:00 Liverpool 2–0 MR Bolton Wanderers Kuyt 37 K. Davies 70 o.g. Liverpool Anfield 43,413 Steve Bennett W 25 6 February 2010 12:45 Liverpool 1–0 MR Everton Kuyt 21, 55Carragher 30Kyrgiakos 0 34Gerrard 85 Pienaar 2 29 90+6Heitinga 56Anichebe 85 Liverpool Anfield 44,216 Martin Atkinson W 26 10 February 2010 19:45 Arsenal 1–0 MR Liverpool Clichy 40Bendtner 64Diaby 72Fàbregas 90+5 Rodríguez 41Degen 62 London Emirates Stadium 60,045 Howard Webb L 27 21 February 2010 15:00 Manchester City 0–0 MR Liverpool Barry 54 Mascherano 31Gerrard 45+1Babel 63Benayoun 67Kuyt 76Torres 90+3 Manchester City of Manchester Stadium 47,203 Peter Walton D 28 28 February 2010 15:00 Liverpool 2–1 MR Blackburn Rovers Gerrard 20 Torres 44 Andrews 40 pen. Liverpool Anfield 42,795 Alan Wiley W 29 8 March 2010 20:00 Wigan Athletic 1–0 MR Liverpool Rodallega 35 Wigan DW Stadium 17,427 Andre Marriner L 30 15 March 2010 20:00 Liverpool 4–1 MR Portsmouth Torres 26 77 Babel 28 Aquilani 32 Belhadj 88 Liverpool Anfield 40,316 Stuart Attwell W 31 21 March 2010 13:30 Manchester United 2–1 MR Liverpool Rooney 11', 12 Park 60Valencia 61Vidić 73 Torres 5, 25Mascherano 11Carragher 45+2 Manchester Old Trafford 75,216 Howard Webb L 32 28 March 2010 16:00 Liverpool 3–0 MR Sunderland Torres 3 60 Johnson 32 Liverpool Anfield 43,121 Phil Dowd W 33 3 April 2010 15:00 Birmingham City 1–1 MR Liverpool Ridgewell 56 Gerrard 47 Birmingham St Andrew's 27,909 Martin Atkinson D 34 11 April 2010 15:00 Liverpool 0–0 MR Fulham Liverpool Anfield 42,331 Andre Marriner D 35 19 April 2010 20:00 Liverpool 3–0 MR West Ham United Benayoun 19 Ngog 29 Green 59 o.g. Liverpool Anfield 37,697 Peter Walton W 36 24 April 2010 15:00 Burnley 0–4 MR Liverpool Gerrard 54 59 Rodríguez 74 Babel 90 Burnley Turf Moor 21,553 Phil Dowd W 37 2 May 2010 15:00 Liverpool 0–2 MR Chelsea Drogba 33 Lampard 54 Liverpool Anfield 44,375 Alan Wiley L 38 9 May 2010 15:00 Hull City 0–0 MR Liverpool Kingston-upon-Hull KC Stadium 25,030 Andre Marriner D UEFA Champions League 2009–10 UEFA Champions League The draw for the group stage of the UEFA Champions League was made on 27 August 2009 in Monaco. As Liverpool were seeded in Pot 1, this meant that they could not be drawn with teams from the same pot, such as Barcelona, Milan or Bayern Munich. However, they faced the possibility of being drawn in the same group as Real Madrid, Internazionale or Juventus.Group-stage rivals ready for draw https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/01dc-0e72b1b619f8-8d0363b15101-1000--group-stage-rivals-ready-for-draw/ UEFA Union of European Football Associations 27 August 2009 3 August 2014 Liverpool were drawn into Group E with 7-times Ligue 1 champions Lyon, Hungarian champions and Champions League debutants Debrecen and Italian side Fiorentina. Their first match was at home to Debrecen, on 16 September.Inter lie in wait for holders Barça https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/01dc-0e72b7785177-e910520eb78d-1000--inter-lie-in-wait-for-holders-barca/ UEFA Union of European Football Associations 27 August 2009 3 August 2014 https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/8223263.stm British clubs avoid Euro giants 27 August 2009 2009-09-01 BBC Sport Liverpool's managing director Christian Purslow said that the club was "pretty happy" with the draw. Liverpool's first game was at Anfield, where they faced Debreceni. The Hungarian champions had chances to score in the first half. However, in the last minute of the first half, Fernando Torres' shot was parried by Vukašin Poleksić; however, Dirk Kuyt was on hand to score the opener. In the second half, Liverpool only briefly threatened to score, while the visitors never really had a sustained period of pressure. Rafa Benítez was frustrated by his team's failure to take the many chances they created throughout the match, and was relieved just to get the three points.Phil McNulty Liverpool 1 – 0 Debrecen https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8254451.stm BBC Sport 16 September 2009 19 September 2009 Missed chances frustrate Benitez https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/l/liverpool/8260144.stm BBC Sport 16 September 2009 19 September 2009 Liverpool's next group game was away to Fiorentina. Liverpool were two goals down in the first half after Montenegrin player Stevan Jovetić scored a brace. The Reds raised their game after half time, but ultimately were not able to finish off the chances that they created.Mandeep Sanghera Fiorentina 2 – 0 Liverpool https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/8278645.stm BBC Sport 29 September 2009 3 October 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20091003011850/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/8278645.stm 3 October 2009 live Rafa Benítez was irate after the match, vowing that Liverpool will "'never again' be as bad as they were during the first half."Angry Benitez demands improvement https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8281897.stm BBC Sport 30 September 2009 3 October 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20091003000648/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/8281897.stm 3 October 2009 live Fábio Aurélio, who had played under Benítez for the last nine years, at Valencia and Liverpool, said that he had never seen Benítez so angry as he was at half-time at Stadio Artemio Franchi.Andrew Slevison Benitez went berserk during loss to Fiorentina – Liverpool's Aurelio http://www.tribalfootball.com/benitez-went-berserk-during-loss-fiorentina-%E2%80%93-liverpool%E2%80%99s-aurelio-351121 Tribal Football 1 October 2009 3 October 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20091004154033/http://www.tribalfootball.com/benitez-went-berserk-during-loss-fiorentina-%E2%80%93-liverpool%E2%80%99s-aurelio-351121 4 October 2009 dead Liverpool suffered a second consecutive defeat, at home to Lyon. Although the home side took the lead after 41 minutes through Yossi Benayoun, they struggled to maintain the lead, and the visitors scored an equaliser on 72 minutes through Maxime Gonalons.https://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/oct/20/champions-league-liverpool-lyon1 Liverpool 1 – 2 Lyon 20 October 2009 The Guardian 2009-12-01 London Kevin McCarra https://web.archive.org/web/20091023024255/http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/oct/20/champions-league-liverpool-lyon1 23 October 2009 live César Delgado scored the winner for Lyon from close range in the first minute of injury time.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8314194.stm Liverpool 1 – 2 Lyon 20 October 2009 BBC Sport 2009-12-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20091105065813/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8314194.stm 5 November 2009 live Liverpool's next group game was away at group leaders Lyon. Although Liverpool were missing several first team players through injury, they managed to create several chances, the best of which was spurned by Andriy Voronin. Liverpool dominated the game without ever really posing a potent threat to the host's goal. Substitute Ryan Babel finally opened the scoring for Liverpool with seven minutes to go, with a "stunning" strike from long range.Sanghera Mandeep Lyon 1-1 Liverpool https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8338788.stm 23 September 2020 BBC Sport 4 November 2009 It looked as if Liverpool were going to hang on to the three points, and keep their hopes alive, but in the 90th minute, Liverpool failed to clear a high ball, and Lisandro López guided the ball past Pepe Reina to inflict Liverpool's worst run in 22 years.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8338788.stm Lyon 1 – 1 Liverpool 4 November 2009 BBC Sport 2009-12-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20091107224115/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8338788.stm 7 November 2009 live This left Liverpool relying on Lyon to defeat Fiorentina at the Stadio Artemio Franchi in their next group game to stay in the competition.http://soccernet.espn.go.com/preview?id=283199&cc=5739 https://web.archive.org/web/20110604143640/http://soccernet.espn.go.com/preview?id=283199&cc=5739 4 June 2011 Debrecen v Liverpool: Preview 23 November 2009 ESPN 2009-12-01 With Rafa Benitez's men needing nothing less than three points to keep their Champions League hopes alive, they got off to the perfect start inside three minutes. Fábio Aurélio swung over a ball from the right, Jamie Carragher headed it back across goal and David Ngog reacted quickest to poke it in from a few yards out.http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2009/1124/liverpool_debrecen.html Debrecen 0–1 Liverpool 24 November 2009 RTÉ Sport 2009-12-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20091127003740/http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2009/1124/liverpool_debrecen.html 27 November 2009 live Liverpool did all they could to keep their Champions League hopes alive, but in the end it just wasn't enough. A solitary goal gave the Reds all three points on the night against Debrecen but thanks to Fiorentina's win in Lyon, the 2005 champions were eliminated from the competition at the group stages for the very first time under boss Rafael Benítez.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/8372942.stm Debrecen 0 – 1 Liverpool 24 November 2009 BBC Sport 2009-12-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20091128162207/http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/8372942.stm 28 November 2009 live Alberto Aquilani made a cameo appearance with seconds to spare but the game finished 1–0.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/liverpool/6645047/Debrecen-0-Liverpool-1-match-report.html Debrecen 0 Liverpool 1: match report 24 November 2009 The Telegraph 2009-12-01 London After the win in Hungary, Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez said, "We did our part and we did our part well. Obviously we cannot control the other game, but this win will give us confidence." Liverpool ended their failed Champions League campaign in defeat as they were beaten 2–1 by Fiorentina which inflicted Liverpool's second successive home defeat in this European competition and also they had the worst points tally in their European history. Group stage 2009–10 UEFA Champions League group stage#Group E +Group ETeam Pld Played W Won D Drawn L Lost GF Goals for GA Goals against GD Goal difference Pts PointsITA Fiorentina6501147+715FRA Lyon6411123+913ENG Liverpool621357−27HUN Debrecen6006519−140 1 16 September 2009 19:45 Liverpool ENG 1–0 https://archive.today/20130105101937/http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/fixturesresults/round=2000028/match=2000364/report=rp.html Report HUN Debrecen Kuyt 45+1 Anfield Liverpool, England 41,591 Pedro Proença (Portugal) W 2 29 September 2009 19:45 Fiorentina ITA 2–0 https://archive.today/20130105013023/http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/fixturesresults/round=2000028/match=2000388/report=rp.html Report ENG Liverpool Jovetić 28 37 Stadio Artemio Franchi Florence, Italy 33,426 Felix Brych (Germany) L 3 20 October 2009 19:45 Liverpool ENG 1–2 https://archive.today/20130105043539/http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/fixturesresults/round=2000028/match=2000405/report=rp.html Report FRA Lyon Benayoun 41 Gonalons 72Delgado 90+1 Anfield Liverpool, England 41,562 Alberto Undiano Mallenco (Spain) L 4 4 November 2009 20:45 Lyon FRA 1–1 https://archive.today/20130105042243/http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/fixturesresults/round=2000028/match=2000413/report=rp.html Report ENG Liverpool López 90 Babel 83 Stade de Gerland Lyon, France 39,180 Frank De Bleeckere (Belgium) D 5 24 November 2009 20:45 Debrecen HUN 0–1 https://archive.today/20130105191752/http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/fixturesresults/round=2000028/match=2000436/index.html Report ENG Liverpool Ngog 4 Ferenc Puskás Stadium Budapest, Hungary 41,500 Björn Kuipers (Netherlands) W 6 9 December 2009 19:45 Liverpool ENG 1–2 https://archive.today/20130105022909/http://en.archive.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/fixturesresults/round=2000028/match=2000444/report=rp.html Report ITA Fiorentina Benayoun 43 Jorgensen 63Gilardino 90+2 Anfield Liverpool, England Damir Skomina (Slovenia) L UEFA Europa League Being unable to finish higher than third in the 2009–10 Champions League group stage, Liverpool appeared in the Europa League for the first time since the 2003–04 season. Liverpool were drawn to play Romanian side Unirea Urziceni, playing the first leg at Anfield. The dates for the two legs were 18 February 2010 for the first leg and 25 February 2010 for the second leg. Liverpool made 3 changes for the first leg, with Fábio Aurélio coming in for Emiliano Insúa, Jamie Carragher being drafted back into the squad to replace Sotirios Kyrgiakos, and Dirk Kuyt being placed on the right-wing, with David Ngog the lone striker. Liverpool started brightly, with Steven Gerrard having a shot kept out by the Unirea keeper after 60 seconds and Fábio Aurélio placing a free-kick wide after three minutes. Liverpool continued to press throughout the rest of the first half and for all but ten minutes of the second-half. Unirea were proving to be strong in defence, but in the 81st minute, Liverpool finally scored, substitute Ryan Babel crossing into the path of fellow substitute Daniel Pacheco, who produced a downward header into David Ngog, and he headed into an empty net. This meant Liverpool would take a slender 1–0 lead to Romania. In the second leg, Liverpool cruised through to the last 16, winning the tie 3–1 and winning on aggregate 4–1. The game did not start brightly for Liverpool, conceding on 18 minutes after failing to clear their lines. Liverpool equalised on the half-hour mark, Javier Mascherano with a powerful low shot into the bottom left hand corner. From there on in, Liverpool scored two more goals courtesy of Ryan Babel and Steven Gerrard goals to send Liverpool into the last 16. Liverpool faced tough opposition for the last 16, being handed two legged ties with Lille. Liverpool did not play well on the night, and it was no surprise that they conceded in the 85th minute after an Eden Hazard free kick was swung deep into the penalty area and went over Jamie Carragher's and Pepe Reina's heads and into the back of the net. In the second leg, Liverpool cruised past Lille, with the home side completely dominating the first-half. Liverpool opened the scoring in only the eighth minute of the game, with Brazilian Lucas being hauled down in the penalty area after an impressive run from just inside the visitors' half. Captain Steven Gerrard calmy slotted home the penalty in the bottom left hand corner. Back in form striker Fernando Torres doubled Liverpool's lead on the night in the 49th minute with a delicate chip over Lille 'keeper Landreau. Liverpool secured their place in the last eight when Fernando Torres scored his second of the night and his fourth in two games. The draw for the quarter-finals pitted Liverpool against 31-time Portuguese champions Benfica. The first leg was played on 1 April at the Estádio da Luz. The return leg was held on 8 April at Anfield. Liverpool started off the first leg well enough to score after eight minutes. Steven Gerrard earned a free kick right on the edge of the penalty area and rolled it into the path of Danish international Daniel Agger. Agger produced a cheeky back heel from 9 yards out that slightly deflected of a Benfica defender and into the bottom left hand corner to leave the 'keeper Júlio César stranded. Benfica were now pressing for periods which forced Liverpool into defensive play. On 31 minutes, Fernando Torres was fouled by Luisão on the far byline. Ryan Babel appeared to have put his hand over Luisão's mouth after calling Torres a "diving f****** disgrace." Luisão was originally sent off for his part in the matter, but then it was Babel who was sent off for putting his hand over Luisão's mouth. Both players missed the return leg at Anfield on 8 April. From there on in, Benfica started to really play, with the visitors rarely threatening on the break. Benfica were awarded a penalty when Jamie Carragher accidentally handballed on the far byline and the striker Óscar Cardozo tucked the penalty away in the bottom right hand corner. Benfica were then awarded a second penalty when a Liverpool defender hauled down Cardozo just inside the penalty area. Cardozo was again the penalty taker and scored straight down the middle. Liverpool have a vital away goal going into the second leg back at Anfield next week. Any doubts that Liverpool were heading out of Europe's top two European competitions in the same season were soon washed away with an outstanding performance at Anfield. Liverpool took the lead after 27 minutes after a corner by Steven Gerrard was headed into the bottom right hand corner by Dirk Kuyt for his 11th goal of the season. Celebrations soon turned to anguish when the linesman ruled out Kuyt's header as he appeared to be in an offside position. The referee rightly gave the goal as you cannot be offside from a corner. Liverpool doubled their lead just 7 minutes later when Steven Gerrard fed in Brazilian Lucas, who smartly rounded Júlio César and finished from seven yards out for his fifth goal in a Liverpool shirt. Liverpool continued to dominate matters in the second half too, with lethal Spaniard Fernando Torres netting 14 minutes into the second half. First leg hero Cardozo netted a comeback goal for Benfica to set up a nail bitting finale. However, Fernando Torres netted his second of the night and his 22nd in all competitions for the reds this season eight minutes from time. The goal came in similar fashion to the one he scored against Sunderland on 28 March. Liverpool were drawn with Atlético Madrid over two legs in the semi-finals. The first leg was at the Vicente Calderón Stadium in Madrid on 22 April and the second leg was at Anfield on 29 April. Coincidentally, Atlético Madrid is both Fernando Torres' and Maxi Rodríguez's old club, thus both cannot play the rest of the competition, with Torres sidelined for the rest of the season with a knee injury and Rodríguez already played for Atlético earlier on in the season in the UEFA Champions League. In the first leg, Atlético finished with a narrow 1–0 lead, and at Anfield in the second leg, Liverpool beat Atletico 2–1 after extra-time. But due to Atlético's away goal at Anfield, they progressed to the final. Round of 32 18 February 2010 20:05 (GMT) Leg 1 Liverpool ENG 1–0 MR ROM Unirea Urziceni Ngog 81 Anfield Liverpool 40,450 Eric Braamhaar (Netherlands)NED W 25 February 2010 18:00 (GMT) Leg 2 Unirea Urziceni ROM 1–3 1–4 MR ENG Liverpool Fernandes 18 Mascherano 30 Babel 41 Gerrard 57 Stadionul Steaua Bucharest 25,000 Stefan Johannesson SWE W Round of 16 11 March 2010 18:00 (GMT) Leg 1 Lille FRA 1–0 MR ENG Liverpool Hazard 85 Stadium Nord Lille Métropole Lille 18.000 Alan LarsenDEN L 18 March 2010 20:05 (GMT) Leg 2 Liverpool ENG 3–0 3–1 MR FRA Lille Gerrard 9 pen.Torres 49 90 Anfield Liverpool 38,139 Nicola Rizzoli ITA W Quarter-final 1 April 2010 20:05 GMT Leg 1 Benfica POR 2–1 MR ENG Liverpool Luisão 30David Luiz 37Cardozo 59 pen. 79 pen. Agger 9Babel 0 31Insúa 45Reina 74Carragher 79 Estádio da Luz Lisbon 62,629 Jonas Eriksson SWE L 8 April 2010 20:05 GMT Leg 2 Liverpool ENG 4–1 5–3 MR POR Benfica Kuyt 27Lucas 34Torres 59 82Benayoun 75 Cardozo 70Aimar 84 Anfield Liverpool 42,377 Björn Kuipers NED W Semi-final 22 April 2010 20:05 GMT Leg 1 Atlético Madrid ESP 1–0 MR ENG Liverpool Forlán 9 Vicente Calderón Stadium Madrid 50,000 Laurent Duhamel FRA L 29 April 2010 20:05 GMT Leg 2 Liverpool ENG 2–1 yes #FCC 2–2a MR ESP Atlético Madrid Aquilani 44, Benayoun 95 Forlán 102 Anfield Liverpool 42,040 Terje Hauge NOR W League Cup The draw for the 3rd round was made on 29 August 2009. Liverpool were drawn away to Leeds United.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/league_cup/8228255.stm Liverpool face Leeds in cup clash BBC Sport 2009-08-29 29 August 2009http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/leeds-cup-date-set LEEDS CUP DATE SET Liverpool F.C. 2014-08-03 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20140808053309/http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/leeds-cup-date-set 8 August 2014 The League One side raised their game for the occasion, and Elland Road saw a bumper 38,168 crowd. Leeds more than matched Liverpool throughout the first half, and had a Luciano Becchio effort ruled out for offside; however, Liverpool showed their defensive mettle. They scored the game's only goal on 66 minutes, when Javier Mascherano's cross-cum-shot was trapped excellently by David Ngog, who turned and finished expertly past goalkeeper Shane Higgs.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/liverpool/6219591/Leeds-United-0-Liverpool-1-match-report.html Leeds United 0 Liverpool 1: match report 22 September 2009 The Telegraph 2014-08-03 London Liverpool received a tricky away fixture to Arsenal for the fourth round.http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/reds-face-arsenal-in-carling-cup REDS FACE ARSENAL IN CARLING CUP Liverpool F.C. 2014-08-03 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20140808123457/http://www.liverpoolfc.com/news/latest-news/reds-face-arsenal-in-carling-cup 8 August 2014 The Reds fielded a weakened side, but still managed to match Arsenal's youngsters. Philipp Degen had an early chance on 14 minutes, which he failed to put away. Arsenal punished this five minutes later. Andriy Voronin failed to clear, and was dispossessed by Mérida, who turned and smacked the ball from 25 yards, which flew past Diego Cavalieri. Liverpool's Emiliano Insúa levelled the scores with an even better strike on 26 minutes. The ball ricocheted off David Ngog, and the ball sat up for the young Argentinean to smash a dipping shot over Łukasz Fabiański. Both teams were evenly matched for the rest of the first half. Five minutes into the second half, Nicklas Bendtner put Arsenal back into the lead, when he guided the ball into the roof of the net from close range. Liverpool failed to rouse themselves to react, and despite the introduction of Alberto Aquilani with 15 minutes to go, the visitors could not find the equaliser, and thus were eliminated from the competition.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leaguecup/6454539/Arsenal-2-Liverpool-1-match-report.html Arsenal 2 Liverpool 1: match report 29 October 2009 The Telegraph 2009-12-01 London Jeremy Wilson https://web.archive.org/web/20091031043201/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leaguecup/6454539/Arsenal-2-Liverpool-1-match-report.html 31 October 2009 dead This was the fifth consecutive year that Liverpool had been knocked out at this stage in the capital, and completed a North London double over the Merseyside clubs, following Tottenham Hotspur's 2–0 victory over Everton the previous night. 22 September 2009 19:45 BST Third round Leeds United 0–1 Report Liverpool Ngog 66 Elland Road Leeds 38,168 Alan Wiley W 28 October 2009 Fourth round Arsenal 2–1 Report Liverpool Mérida 19 Bendtner 50 Insúa 26 Emirates Stadium London 60,004 Alan Wiley L FA Cup Liverpool were given a bye to the third round of the FA Cup, where they were drawn away to Championship strugglers Reading. Liverpool drew the tie at the Madejski Stadium 1–1, with Steven Gerrard saving Liverpool's blushes with an equalising goal. The subsequent replay at Anfield did not go to plan; Liverpool lost 2–1 in extra time. 2 January 2010 17:15 Third round Reading 1–1 Report Liverpool Church 24 Gerrard 36 Madejski Stadium Reading 23,656 Martin Atkinson D 13 January 2010 20:00 Third Round RP Liverpool 1 – 2 Report Reading Bertrand 45+1 o.g. Sigurðsson 90+4 pen.Long 100 Anfield Liverpool 31,063 Phil Dowd L References External links Official Site 2009–10 Season LFC History 2009–10 Season Liverpool F.C. season 2009–10 at ESPN 2009-10 Category:2009–10 Premier League by team Liverpool F.C. Liverpool F.C.