Matchday 19 ~ Derby County vs Liverpool

[Freddy Adu]

Derby County vs Liverpool

Premier League 2007/2008 | Campeonato | Day 19

Derby County Liverpool

Date 2007-12-26 City Derby Stadium Pride Park Referee

[Cristiano Best 07]

I very big mismatch. 4-1 Liverpool.

[Brasil]

Hopefully Liverpoo can pull themselves together and win. But don't count Derby out they can maybe score once.

[Freddy Adu]

Derby v Liverpool

Pride Park
Wednesday, 26 December
Kick-off: 1500 GMT
BBC coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio Five Live & highlights on Match of the Day. Featured game on Score and Final Score.

[Freddy Adu]

Derby skipper Matt Oakley remains a doubt with the groin strain that forced him out of the draw at Newcastle.

Stephen Bywater picked up a shoulder injury and Darren Moore a back problem in the match at St James' Park but both are expected to face Liverpool.

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez is likely to make changes with a tough trip to Manchester City looming next Sunday.

Ryan Babel, Andriy Voronin, Fabio Aurelio, Lucas and Jack Hobbs could all be in line for a starting place.

[Freddy Adu]

Derby (from): Bywater, Mears, Moore, McEveley, Leacock, Barnes, Edworthy, Oakley, Pearson, Lewis, Fagan, Howard, Miller, Teale, Earnshaw, Feilhaber, Holmes, Price.

[Freddy Adu]

Liverpool (from): Reina, Arbeloa, Carragher, Hobbs, Hyypia, Riise, Aurelio, Benayoun, Gerrard, Alonso, Mascherano, Kewell, Babel, Lucas, Sissoko, Crouch, Kuyt, Torres, Voronin, Itandje.

[Freddy Adu]

Derby manager Paul Jewell:
"I am a realist, I know we have got it all to do.

"All I can ask of the players is that they give me everything they have got.

"Day-to-day we are gradually improving and coming around to the way we want to do things because every manager is different and does things differently."

[Freddy Adu]

Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez:
"It is too early to talk about the title or whether we will be in the top four.

"There are a number of sides who are playing well, so you cannot say who are going to be contenders.

"My idea is one game at a time and then see if we are in the top four at the end of the season."

[Freddy Adu]

BIG-MATCH FACTS

Paul Jewell takes his new charges to the city of his birth looking for a first win as Derby manager, having stopped the rot with a first point in seven outings from Sunday's 2-2 draw at Newcastle.

Liverpool look for the victory to take them back into the top four from their 600th Premier League fixture.

Derby have only ever won one Premier League game on Boxing Day; they defeated Newcastle 1-0 at home in 1997.

Liverpool have lost only two of the 13 Premier League matches played on 26 December, but one of the pair was 1-0, away to Blackburn, last year.

Liverpool are unbeaten in seven Premier League matches against Derby, including wins in the last three with an aggregate of 9-0.

[Freddy Adu]

DERBY COUNTY
Highest achievable: 20th
Lowest could fall: 20th

[Freddy Adu]

LIVERPOOL
Highest achievable: 4th
Lowest could fall: 7th

[Freddy Adu]

DERBY COUNTY

Kenny MILLER is Derby's joint top scorer with three Premier League goals.

Goalkeeper Stephen BYWATER is the only remaining player to have been on the field for every minute of every one of Derby's Premier League matches this season.

[Freddy Adu]

If selected:-

Matt OAKLEY will be making his 250th Premier League appearance (Southampton and Derby).

[Freddy Adu]

If on the field from the outset:-

Craig FAGAN will be making his 150th career league start (Bristol City, Colchester, Hull and Derby).

[Freddy Adu]

LIVERPOOL

Fernando TORRES is Liverpool's top scorer with 14 goals, and their leading marksman in the Premier League with eight.

Goalkeeper Jose REINA is the only remaining player to have been on the field for every minute of every one of Liverpool's Premier League matches this season.

[Freddy Adu]

Suspended:-

Peter CROUCH

[Freddy Adu]

HEAD TO HEAD

Liverpool are on course to complete a fourth Premier League double over Derby, having outclassed them with a devastating display of fire-power in the 6-0 thrashing at Anfield in September, a victory that shot the Merseysiders to the top of the table for the first time in five years.

The Reds also did the double when they last met the Rams in 2001-02.

Derby have not enjoyed victory over Liverpool since Jim Smith's side prevailed 3-2 at Pride Park on 13 March 1999 with the aid of a Paulo Wanchope double.

[Freddy Adu]

Home and away
League (inc PL): Derby 32 wins, Liverpool 65, Draws 28
Prem: Derby 3 wins, Liverpool 9, Draws 1

[Freddy Adu]

at Derby only
League (inc PL): Derby 26 wins, Liverpool 23, Draws 13
Prem: Derby 2 wins, Liverpool 4, Draws 0

[Freddy Adu]

THIS SEASON'S REVERSE FIXTURE
Liverpool 6-0 Derby County
1 September 2007 - Ref: Alan Wiley
Liverpool scorers: Alonso 27, Babel 45, Torres 56, Alonso 69, Voronin 76, Torres 78

[Freddy Adu]

REFEREE
Alan Wiley (Burntwood, Staffordshire)

[Freddy Adu]

Liverpool´s Benitez wary of battling Rams


Written by: AFP

	Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez directs his players against Manchester United during their Premiership match at Anfield, Liverpool, north-west England, December 16. Derby County´s underdog status for their Boxing Day match with Liverpool should count for nothing, says Benitez.

LONDON (AFP) - Derby County's underdog status for their Boxing Day match with Liverpool should count for nothing, says Reds' manager Rafael Benitez.

After an easy win over Portsmouth at the weekend and a 6-0 demolition of the Rams at Anfield earlier this season, many will see another Reds success as a mere formality.

But Benitez has already seen such expectations blow apart to his cost once this season - when Liverpool lost 3-1 to unheralded Reading - and he will therefore be urging his players to take nothing for granted.

"Everyone is expecting us to beat Derby, but we have had experience of Reading - so we will have a lot of respect for Derby and will try to win this game," he said.

"When you play away against a team which is battling relegation it is always very difficult."

Benitez knows also that three good performances in the next week will go a long way to lifting the speculation still hanging over him about his future at Anfield.

But he remains happy to continue his controversial rotation policy over the festive period.

"Sometimes you can use the same player; sometimes you use the squad," he explained.

"I like to use the squad, because this is the key if you want to reduce the gap (to the teams at the top) - it is using the right players at the right moment.

"When you play four games in 12 days it is such a short time you can change players and they can understand.

"Sometimes when you play one game a week and you leave six players out of the squad it is more difficult to explain - but this situation is easier."

With Liverpool still facing the damaging prospect of being cut adrift from the 'big three' in the title race, key defender Jamie Carragher has called for the side to keep their nerve.

With the backdrop of continued uncertainty about the club's ownership, finances, Benitez's own future as well as problems with the new ground, Liverpool could be facing a tough new year off the pitch.

But on it, Carragher insists there is still hope.

"It does not really matter who the leaders are, as long as we keep them in sight," he said.

"At the moment it is Arsenal up there, so we just need to make sure we keep hold of them for now. I am sure a time will come this season when they start to find it difficult, especially with all the young players they have in their side.

"There is no secret they are a great side, but I am sure they will be tested at some point. We just have to make sure we are there to capitalise when it happens.

"I am sure that Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea will keep winning - so it is up to us to prove we can stay with them. It would be really exciting if it is a four-horse race with 10 games to go."

Liverpool now play Derby, Manchester City and Wigan in a week, games they dare not lose.

Carragher added: "Christmas is always a crucial time of the season. You can look at this period almost as a separate group of games in that sense.

"From these three games we would always say that seven points would be fine, but nine would be excellent. That would make a massive difference heading into the new year - I hope we can them be a lot close to Arsenal by then."

[Oscar Cardozo]

David Jones has recovered from the groin injury that kept him out of the draw at Newcastle, although the knee injury Claude Davis picked up in the warm-up at St James' Park is likely to keep him out. Rafa Benitez will rest players from the side that hammered Portsmouth, with fit-again Xabi Alonso and Ryan Babel pushing for starts.

[Freddy Adu]

FT Derby County 1 - 2 Liverpool

[Freddy Adu]

FT		Derby County [1 - 2] Liverpool
12'	[0 - 1]		F. Torres
67'	[1 - 1]	J. McEveley
72'		J. McEveley
90'	[1 - 2]		S. Gerrard

[Freddy Adu]

Derby were robbed!
I was rooting for them the whole way.

[Brasil]

HOLY SHIT!!!!!!!!!!!

This coulda been the best Christmas ever if Liverpoo lost, this is sad....Derby fight so hard and tie Liver***** then they win it during injury time, fuck you liverpoo.

[Freddy Adu]

I feel so bad for Derby. I was watching it live and the stupid defender instead of clearing to the sides he taps it way to slow right to a running Gerrard.

[Brasil]

omfg, I'm going to kill that guy ya.