17.7.07  PRE-SEASON FRIENDLY
Werder Bremen 2 Liverpool 3 (Liverpool Echo)


THE evening was scripted for a new Liverpool striker to make his first significant statement in a red shirt.

Surprisingly, it was Andriy Voronin who was ambushed by the Swiss media as his new side made their exit from the quaint Stadion Bruhl.

The Ukranian followed his decent performance at Crewe with two goals in another promising Liverpool victory.

But in what promises to be a sign of what’s to follow, his double was overshadowed by the contribution of his higher profile fellow summer signings.

It was the 20 minute cameos of Fernando Torres and Ryan Babel which deserved most attention against Werder Bremen.

Both could, and in Torres’ case should, have signalled their arrivals with debut goals.

Instead, those die-hard Liverpudlians who made the trip contented themselves with glimpses of the talent which is provoking cautious whispers of watershed additions to the squad.

Rafa Benitez will be purring in anticipation at the movement and touch of his young recruits. At the very least, they’ll offer him the kind of ammunition he’s been able to call upon all too rarely since he moved to Merseyside.

Benitez has worked with some clever attackers at Liverpool, and he’s worked with some fast ones. He’s not yet enjoyed the company of a forward who possesses both these assets. For the best part of £30m, he may now have two.

Pre-season is no time for conclusive judgements. The best any of us can hope for is a snippet – a sneak preview of what might follow when the real action begins.

Last night, the trailer arrived 78 minutes into a game which improved as it progressed. Torres eased past his marker with contemptuous ease, and fired in a cross which narrowly evaded Babel, who had made a 50 yard run virtually unnoticed into the opponent’s six yard box.

There was no goal to celebrate, but the direct attacking instincts of the pair can’t fail to stir the imagination.

By then, Liverpool were threatening to score with each attack, but were forced to settle for a slender win which didn’t do justice to their second half dominance.

Earlier, Voronin was in on the act quickly, benefiting from Peter Niemeyer’s sloppy back pass to slot home an easy chance after three minutes.

Equally generous defending from Gabriel Paletta allowed Kevin Schindler to equalise four minutes later, nodding in the rebound after Markus Rosenberg hit the bar.

The defending – or lack of it – promised further goals. It was a surprise when John Arne Riise’s 30 yard thunderbolt in the 14th minute proved the only addition before half-time.

Riise has started both games looking ridiculously fit and re-energised for someone in the middle of pre-season training. Sometimes the prospect of facing competition for your place is just as galvanising as seeing a new defender walk through the door.

Aside from the usual flashes of brilliance from Steven Gerrard and party tricks of Jermaine Pennant, the first half was as dull as to be expected from these training exercises.

Only the ritual and utterly necessary bullying of the arrogantly named Bremen midfielder, Carlos Alberto kept the half spiky.

The warm-up routines of Torres and Babel were the preview to the main attraction, and the side which started the second half significantly increased the entertainment value.

Voronin scored a second and missed a sitter, each time being fed by Xabi Alonso passes which gave him the opportunity for one-on-ones with the keeper.

Dirk Kuyt was denied the chance to celebrate a lethal finish to a splendid move by a linesman’s flag.

If that decision looked dubious, it was incomparable to the farcical scenes at the opposite end when Hugo Almeida was so offside, at one point it looked as though he had crossed the German border.

As both sets of players stopped awaiting a whistle, he was allowed to score. The game was on the verge of restarting before the frantic protests of Benitez and Carragher ensured the officials remembered the laws of the game. Order was restored, tellingly, without a Werder Bremen complaint.

The Germans did claim a consolation five minutes from time when youngster Stephen Darby was unable to prevent Frank Loning’s cross deflect beyond Scott Carson.

Had substitutes Torres and Babel had the final say, however, the distance between the sides would have been far greater.

Tim Wiese denied the record striker with a brave save after he had pushed away a Kuyt drive, but Torres could only blame himself when, on the stroke of full-time, a delicate chip over the advancing keeper landed an inch wide.

His 26 minutes didn’t even represent an opening speech in the case to prove he’s the missing link Liverpool require, but at least his presence in the number nine shirt means the jury can now convene. The persuasive arguments in his favour will be made in more significant times and places than this.

With Yossi Benayoun also featuring for the first time, Benitez will sense his squad is now just a signing and a couple of successful passport applications from taking shape.
 

Liverpool (first half): Carson; Finnan, Hyypia, Paletta, Riise; Pennant, Gerrard, Hobbs, El Zhar; Crouch, Voronin

Liverpool (second half): Carson; Arbeloa, Carragher, Hyypia, Darby; Benayoun, Alonso, Sissoko, El Zhar (Babel 73); Voronin (Torres 64), Kuyt.

Werder Bremen: Wiese, Baumann, Fritz, Rosenberg, Andreason, Alberto, Frings, Borowski, Niemeyer, Schulz, Schindler. Subs - Bischoff, Vranjes, Loning, Pellatz, Almelda, Jensen, Wome

Referee: Daniel Wermelinger
Conditions: Humid
Attendance: 10,180