Tea £1-80
Tea £1-90
Parking at Sheffield £7-25
Bus to Anfield £4
Pasta £3-75
Match ticket £50
Train £15-85
Total £84-55
After my 13th new game/ground this year, we headed back to Anfield for Liverpool's clash with Crystal Palace. Again utilising advance tickets we sat in exactly the same seats on the train as for our previous 2 trips here this season! When we arrived on Merseyside, the wind was picking up now but it was still relatively mild. The most noticeable thing about today was the Main Stand, which is really taking shape, with the roof starting to jut out over the skyline. Palace came here as a decent Premier League outfit, and one of the teams who are performing unexpectedly well this season. They are also Liverpool's bogey team, so today should be an intriguing one.
It didn't disappoint. This was actually the best game I've seen this season, played at a frenetic pace and with some fantastic counter attacking from both sides. Palace were highly organised, and seemed well equipped to withstand the home attacks and break at pace. They took the lead in front of the Kop when Bolasie ruthlessly took advantage of another defensive lapse. Liverpool responded well, and saw the best of the ball in midfield, attacking with real verve through Clyne, Coutinho and Lucas. Lucas in particular looked like he was pulling all the strings in midfield again. They deservedly levelled when Coutinho fired in from close range. Perfect response to going behind. Play got even better in the second half, with the Reds looking fired up by the animated Klopp on the sidelines. Lucas again looked excellent, and at times they kept Palace in their own half. But under Pardew the Eagles are a well organised team, and withstood the spells of pressure admirably. For once there was actually no nervousness around the ground - rather a positive anticipation. So it was massively disappointing when the away side took the lead to make it 2-1. From a set piece Mignolet again flapped and couldn't hold the ball, allowing the Liverpudlian Dann to head in from close range. Liverpool continued to pour forward but to no avail.
Again they were let down by some lazy players - Benteke and Origi the culprits today. This was perhaps the best performance under Klopp thus far but it was his first defeat. Such is the craziness of English football. Based on that second half performance in particular things are looking good for the Anfield side. They just need to score more goals and find a way to handle tougher sides like Palace. Due to our location right on the edge of the Main Stand we got straight onto the bus and were back at Lime Street in plenty of time for the train. My next game here should be Boxing Day. By then we'll know a bit more about this new Klopp Liverpool side.
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