Prem Result and Reaction: Middlesbrough 0 Liverpool 0

November 18th 2006.


Barclays Premiership – Result.

Middlesbrough

0-0

Liverpool
 
(0-0)

  
1 Schwarzer
24 Davies (Huth, 45)
8 Woodgate
12 Pogatetz
33 Taylor
25 Morrison (Maccarone,
77)
7 Boateng (Cattermole,
72)
10 Rochemback
16 Euell
3 Arca
20 Yakubu
TEAMS

 25 Reina
3 Finnan
23 Carragher
5 Agger
6 Riise
16 Pennant
8 Gerrard
14 Alonso
11 Gonzalez (Zenden, 84)
18 Kuyt (Crouch, 79)
17 Bellamy
22 Jones
6 Mendieta

14 Huth

23 Maccarone

27 Cattermole
SUBS

 1 Dudek
4 Hyypia
15 Crouch
29 Paletta
32 Zenden
44%
POSSESSION
 		56%
1
SHOTS ON TARGET
 		10
0
SHOTS OFF TARGET
 		7
2
CORNERS
 		13
15
FOULS
 		3
Manager Gareth Southgate: "I am not going to sit here again and say we played well, but I have got to admire the resilience we showed and the character we showed.

"We were up against a top-class side. I do not care what people say about the way they are playing and the form they have shown. The games they have lost have been at Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United. I saw the game they lost at Bolton and they had about 20 shots and Bolton had about three.

"They are a top quality team and on the day, I have got to be happy with a point, and another clean sheet is important to us. The way the second half went, in particular, we had to soak up a lot of pressure. We had some outstanding defending and magnificent goalkeeping. We didn't play as well as we would have liked but I can't fault the attitude and character of the lads as they have given me everything."

"He (Southgate) was immense. I do not think anybody is in any doubt that he is good enough for that (the England squad). It is just a case of getting a run of games and keeping him on the field, which we are having a fair amount of joy with at the minute."

 
REACTION 

 Manager Rafael Benitez: "I have explained many times, when you are not winning away but you are playing well, you need to analyse why you do not score goals, but you cannot look at the table every day or every weekend.
 
"The team was playing really well and creating a lot of chances. I think we deserved to win. We created enough to win. It's clear we had control and we had a lot of crosses and shots but, at the end of the day, you need to score to win.
 
"If we play like that then out of 100 games we will win 99. You cannot blame the players when they play like that. When you play well and you create a lot of chances and have crosses and corners, you cannot be happy if you do not win. But trying to find positive things, it is a clean sheet for us away, it is not a defeat and we deserved to win.

"We created chances and went forward, and that is all you can do, try to keep going. If you play well and create chances, your time will come and you will start winning.
 
"It is important because you have to score if you want to win. But it is clear we are creating chances and going forward. We started the game playing on the counter-attack, but afterwards, we were attacking, attacking, attacking all the time and we only had one problem with Yakubu."

Ref: L Mason
Att: 31424