Ticket: £42
Programme: £3
Half-time tea: £2-40
Petrol (£35 divided by 2): £17-50
Tea at services: £1-95
Car parking (£10 divided by 2): £5
Total: £71-85
For the final game of the year, we made another trek to Anfield for Liverpool against Cardiff. As it was a midday kick-off, and we’d be travelling up to Cumbria for Christmas, we drove this time, parking up right next to Goodison Park for £10. Despite the early start we were fairly glad this was an early kick-off as it meant we would be travelling for at least some of the journey in the light – on what was the shortest day of the year. Amazingly, we did the journey in 2 hours 15 minutes from Sheffield, which has to be a new record.
The game had been foreshadowed not by any events at Anfield, but by the palava at Cardiff, where the owner had threatened Malkay Mackay with the sack. A ridiculous situation as this was the same guy who had got them promoted from the Championship with a minimum of fuss. Liverpool, meanwhile, came into this game knowing that a win would probably place them top at Christmas, which had been almost unheard of in recent years. Things are certainly changing at Anfield, and if they can sustain this form until May, they will definitely be on the up again.
For this game we sat in the Anfield Road Lower stand (block 127), about 3 rows from the back. My girlfriend warned me that we would hardly be able to see anything from what were ‘restricted’ view seats. As usual, she was right, and we struggled (particularly in the first half) to see the action in the near goalmouth. A combination of the crowd standing, and the low roof meant that the view consisted of a narrow panoramic slit!
Thanks to my height, I was able to catch most of the first-half, when we witnessed another Luis Suarez masterclass. I have to confess that I had been a bit sceptical as to his striking credentials, but this season has all but buried those doubts. He was at the centre of everything in the first-half, and opened the scoring with a fine volley which had been created by some excellent one-touch passing on the edge of the box. Then, with Coutinho and Sterling, he split the Cardiff defence to create the second goal for Sterling – Suarez could have had it himself, but unselfishly laid it on a plate for the England midfielder. It got better from there, with the Uruguyan at the centre of everything in attack, scoring the third just before half-time. This was a technically brilliant goal, as he was off balance, and at an awkward angle from the ball, when he struck a superb curling shot into the bottom of the Cardiff net. His 19th in the league this year! Three nil and Cardiff already looked down and out, even if their fans were determined to have a good day out.
The second half opened with Liverpool still looking strong, and they threatened more goals but couldn’t quite create anything else. Cardiff managed a consolation header on around 60 minutes thanks to some confused Liverpool defending, making it 3-1. The away side played well in the second half, creating plenty of space and keeping the ball effectively, without posing a serious threat. The second half petered out to be honest, and though this wasn’t as bad as the Palace game, it was a bit disappointing to see it turn so pedestrian. Maybe this doesn’t matter if you are 3-1 up, and cruising, and maybe they were saving themselves for the Manchester City game on Boxing Day. The highlight of the second half was watching two pigeons on the Anfield pitch, who seemed determined to fight each other as close to the game as possible. That, combined with the strange view and the fine goals of the first half, made this a memorable game. Roll on 2014.
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