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Kuyt sends Reds into Chelsea battle on a high
LIVERPOOL, England (AFP) - Liverpool guaranteed their place in next season's Champions League on an afternoon when their thoughts were clearly on next week's semi-final in this year's competition.
But the Dirk Kuyt double that delivered a 2-0 victory over Wigan at Anfield offers a far more worrying prospect for the losers.
Paul Jewell's team, who themselves entertained thoughts of qualifying for Europe during an impressive debut season in the Premiership last year, were left just three points above the relegation zone as Kuyts goals and results elsewhere, conspired against them.
Wigan shamelessly set out their stall in an effort to collect what would have been a priceless point towards their aim of Premiership safety, five men packing midfield against a Liverpool unit missing Steven Gerrard, rested and placed on the bench by Benitez ahead of Wednesday's first leg with Chelsea.
Even without their most consistent and impressive performer, who missed a Premiership start for the first time in a year, Liverpool were still far too strong and talented for their struggling opponents.
John Arne Riise and Bolo Zenden missed with shots from the edge of the Wigan area as Liverpool patiently probed at the massed Wigan defensive ranks and, with the visitors showing little initiative or ability in attack, the only question remained how long it would take the home side to score.
The answer was half an hour. After Wigan failed to clear Xabi Alonso's driven right-wing cross, Jermaine Pennant drilled the ball back into the area from the left flank and Kuyt leaped above Matt Jackson, taking advantage of poor positioning from goalkeeper John Filan, to head in his 12th goal of the season.
Peter Crouch should have doubled the lead, and put the result beyond all reasonable doubt, in the last minute of the first half as he met Pennant's well-aimed cross with a mis-hit first time volley that flew tamely wide.
And, in the opening moments of the second half, Kuyt's cross picked out Mark Gonzalez's near post run but the Chilean winger failed to control and Emmerson Boyce was able to hack the loose ball to safety.
By that stage, Jewell had brought on Henri Camara as a half-time replacement for Ryan Taylor and gone with a two-man attack but it was hard to see a way back for his team.
Indeed, it took a fine diving save from Filan in the 51st minute to keep out a low, hard 20-yard strike by the increasingly influential Kuyt, the rebound ricocheting to safety, fortunately for the visitors.
Nevertheless, there was the occasional reminder that 1-0 remained a precarious lead. In the 60th minute, Leighton Baines's rampaging run down the left ended with a cross which almost found Camara and required a solid clearance from Sami Hyypia.
Any lingering worries Liverpool might have had were removed in the 68th minute, however, when Kuyt claimed his second. Gonzalez's long ball into the penalty area saw Craig Bellamy and Riise link neatly to create an opening for the alert Kuyt who curled an unerringly accurate finish beyond Filan's dive and into the corner of the net.
Wigan substitute Caleb Folan forced Jose Reina into his first save of the game in the 79th minute, a superb stop that kept out his diving header from Josip Skoko's free-kick, but the remainder of the contest was one-way traffic.
Dutchman Kuyt might have had a hat-trick but Filan snatched his attempted lob at full-stretch, substitute Gerrard sent a shot whistling past the post after fine approach play by Pennant, Gonzalez's well-placed shot appeared to be creeping into the corner of the goal until Filan made another diving save and Kuyt, again, headed straight at the keeper.
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