Well I guess Sunderland missed the memo on how great Liverpool is supposed to be this year.
Of course, I got the memo, and this result aside, I do think the Reds are gonna be tough all year, and I fully expect them to be in contention for the Champions League Spots. Unfortunately, King Kenny's side didn't get the start they hoped for this weekend. Not that Sunderland played a wonderful match, but Liverpool failed to put them away, and Sunderland took the only chance they needed to get out of Anfield with a point.
It started out promising enough for the Reds. In the 4th minute, Luis Suarez went down in the box under a bit of a push from Kieran Richardson, who appeared to be the last man. The referee awarded a PK, but instead of sending Richardson off for denying a clear goal scoring opportunity, he issued the defender a yellow. King Kenny was furious, but apparently the referee's thought process was that Suarez was moving away from goal so the incident only merited the yellow. Suarez subsequently skied the PK way over the bar, and the score remained 0-0.
However, neither Suarez nor Liverpool were going to let the miss keep them down long. In the 12th minute, Charlie Adam sent a beautiful free kick into the box, and Suarez headed it past the keeper to make it 1-0 to Liverpool.
The Reds fashioned several more chances prior the to the break. Charlie Adam absolutely nailed a shot from about 30 that just managed to stick to the keeper's glove. Then shortly before the half, Stewart Downing sent a total cracker off the cross bar, and we went to the half at 1-0.
Liverpool had a hard time finding their mojo in the second half though. The fluid passing game fell by the wayside, and Sunderland realized they were still in the match. They got their break almost out of thin air in the 57th minute when Sebastian Larsson found himself on the end of an Elmohamady cross. The Swedish midfielder hit an awesome volley toward the top corner, and Reina had no chance. The goal equalized the match at 1-1.
Down the stretch the match gradually fell apart for both sides. It degenerated into a stop/start match with many fouls and yellows flying all over. In the end, neither team managed anymore great chances, and the match finished at 1-1.
Disappointing for Liverpool, but a great result for Sunderland to start the season.
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