Brave Boro Suffer Penalty Heartbreak

Liverpool    2        Middlesbrough    2

                    Rossiter  10   Suso  109                          Reach  62   Bamford  120 (Pen)

Liverpool Win 14-13 on Penalties

When you score 13 goals at the Kop End at Anfield, you’d usually expect a greater reward than being shown the exit door out of England’s first cup competition.

There were stories left right and centre, penalties as well for that matter, in Middlesbrough’s third round Capital One Cup tie with Liverpool, from 17 old year Jordan Rossiter scoring on his Liverpool debut to Boro goalkeeper Jamal Blackman, on loan from Chelsea, recovering from a first half hiccup to score in a shootout which the word epic didn’t do justice. It finally finished 14-13



Adam Reach celebrates equaliser

For those who were looking at the record books it didn’t quite beat the most successful consecutive kicks in English football, that came when Brockenhurst beat Andover 15-14 in the Hampshire Senior Cup last year, this however was on a much bigger scale.

Boro, one of the Championship’s in form teams after three wins in a row, had pushed Champions League Liverpool to the very edge. Twice they came from behind; twice they had most of Anfield quaking in their boots the second time when Patrick Bamford converted a penalty in the final minute of extra time.

Yes, Liverpool had rested a few key players, yes, they had one eye on this weekend’s Merseyside derby however this was still a side which bolstered England internationals such as Raheem Sterling, Adam Lallana and Ricky Lambert before they were forced to bring £16 million striker Mario Ballotelli.

That same price tag could probably account for most of the Boro squad and yet it took 29 penalty kicks to finally knock them out, when Albert Adomah placed his penalty wide in a shootout so long that both keepers got a crack, some players even had to go again.

"These are the kind of games where you have to be very proud of your players, your group, your club, everything” Said Boro manager Aitor Karanka after the match, “I think we have shown everybody what kind of club Middlesbrough are. I don't have many words to explain my feelings right now.”

And the Spaniard had every right to be proud of a side which showed six changes for the side that beat Brentford on Saturday. Blackman made his debut in goal while Kike, Lee Tomlin, Adam Reach, Adam Clayton and Daniel Ayala were all recalled.  

They were behind inside ten minutes after a nightmare incident involving Blackman and defender Kenneth Omeruo who both made a mess of a routine clearance. Blackman saved the follow up from Ricky Lambert but the ball then fell at the feet of Rositer whose shot from range bobbled past the foot of the stranded keeper.

The visitors could have folded; Sterling was by far the stand out player with Liverpool dominating possession. However Boro were reluctant to let down their 3,000 traveling fans, they made their support heard and in response their team were strong, well organised and resolute.    

Karanka’s side were dangerous on the break but it was a more traditional free-kick from which they equalised. Leadbitter swung in a teasing ball from the edge of the area, where Adam Reach had timed his run perfectly and flicked the ball beyond Liverpool keeper Simon Mingnolet.

Boro could have stolen the game before extra time when Clayton tested Mingnolet from range, minutes later he hit the post from inside the box. Brendon Rodgers’ response was to introduce the ever-entertaining Ballotelli in place of Lambert.

Liverpool celebrate after winning epic shootout

In the early stages of extra time it was Liverpool who were calling the shots, Blackman was forced into some instinctive saves but couldn’t keep out a left foot effort from substitute Suso who scored with ten minutes remaining after some good build up play from Lallana and Sterling down Liverpool’s left.

The hosts appeared to be home and dry but were denied victory in the last minute of extra time when Kolo Toure chopped down Boro substitute Bamford in the box, the Boro striker on loan from Chelsea converted in a calm fashion.

A classic shoot-out followed, Bamford, who had scored moments earlier, then missed second time around, six successful penalties later man of the match Raheem Sterling had the chance to seal it for the hosts but Blackman saved.

It kept on going until Adomah finally sent one wide, Liverpool through by the skin of their teeth.

 

Player Ratings

Jamal Blackman   6.5- Recovered from an early mistake to make some good saves and catches

George Friend   7.5 – Had the tough job of dealing with Sterling, never stopped working in attack and defence

Daniel Ayala   8.5 – Rock solid at the back, Lambert barley had a sniff

Kenneth Omeruo   7 – Early mistake for the goal but recovered and was impressive the rest of the night

Ryan Fredericks   7.5 - Build on Saturday’s performance despite cramping at the end

Grant Leadbitter   7.5 - Struggled to get to grips with Liverpool midfield in the first half but persisted and got more success

Adam Clayton   8 – Impressive range of passing, disciplined in midfield and started number of Boro attacks 

Albert Adomah   7.5 – Added pace to Boro attack which gave Liverpool’s defence problems 

Adam Reach   8.5 – Worked tirelessly down the left and scored vital equaliser

Lee Tomlin   8 – Played between the lines and profited in role behind the striker

Kike   7.5 – Worked hard upfront as Boro spent large period defending

Subs

Yanick Wilchet   6.5 – Replaced Kike and added fresh legs in the second half

Patrick Bamford   7.5 – Intelligent run to win penalty which he converted calmly    

Jelle Vossen   6.5 – Extra body upfront when Boro were attacking

 My Boro Man Of The Match: Daniel Ayala

Three In A Row

Middlesbrough     4        Brentford     0

                         Leadbitter  35  Adomah  50 

                              Bamford  68  Kike  89

Boro’s ongoing quest for promotion notched up another gear as they recorded their third straight victory in the Championship and climb into the top six.

On an almost perfect afternoon, manager Aitor Karanka watched with delight as his captain Grant Leadbitter scored another 30 yard screamer and striker Partrick Bamford opened his Boro account in an emphatic 4-0 victory over Brentford.  The only downside came seven minutes from time when Dean Whitehead received a harsh looking red card for a challenge on Alan Judge.

Albert Adomah celebrates his first goal of the season

Nevertheless Karanka can proudly look back on a very fine team performance which demonstrated the vast competition for places in a very healthy looking squad. New right back Ryan Fredericks, on loan from Tottenham, didn’t look an inch out of place; Emilo Nsue now appears a useful Championship player, while last season’s player of the season Albert Adomah is finally re-finding his form.

Add into the equation Jelle Vossen who made his home debut and Kike, who came off the bench to score his fourth goal of the season, then you’re left with a rich Boro following now re-engrossed with the very idea of promotion.   

Boro’s strong away contingent can now travel to Liverpool for a Capital One cup tie on Tuesday night with seemingly nothing to lose; an upset there would surely send optimism through the roof.

Following back to back away wins at Huddersfield and Cardiff, Karanka’s side were welcomed by a buoyant Riverside crowd who were fully expecting three points against a Brentford side who were promoted from League One last season.

The Boro manager made five changes from the side which started at Cardiff on Tuesday night; one was enforced following Damia Abella’s long term injury, which allowed Fredericks to make his Boro debut at right back.

Elsewhere Dean Whitehead replaced Adam Clayton who dropped to the bench and Nsue came in for Adam Reach on the left side of midfield. Upfront Kike also had to play the role of substitute as Bamford received his chance, in defence Ben Gibson started in place of Dani Ayala who was suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season.

In truth Boro dominated from start to finish but for 35 minutes there was touch of doubt that it could be one of those days. The hosts played some attractive football in the opening half hour but didn’t pose a serious test to David Button in the Brentford goal.

With less than a minute played Bamford fired over the cross bar, a few minutes later Vossen’s header was straight at Button. In contrast the visitors offered very little going forward and it appeared only a matter of time before Boro took the lead, however when Nsue and Adomah passed up further opportunities the deadlock continued.

In the end it took something special to open the scoring, and who else, but Boro’s Mr Reliable and captain Grant Leadbitter. He received possession about 30 yards from goal and with space to shoot the Boro skipper unleashed another one of his long range firecrackers which flew past Button high into the keeper’s top right corner.

That set the tone for a joyous afternoon for the home fans who leapt off their seats and remained in good spirits throughout the 90 minutes.

Momentum could have swung after the break but Boro quickly made sure it didn’t. Five minutes after the re-start Vossen threaded a nicely weighted ball through to Nsue, his low cross was the ideal invitation for Adomah to burst into the penalty area and tuck away his first goal of the season from close range.

It was like the shackles had been blown off, from then on Boro played with confidence and at times arrogance like all the top teams do. The icing on the cake would have been a goal for either Vossen or Bamford, on 57 minutes the latter came close when Adomah’s cross from the left was only inches away from Bamford’s outstretched leg.

But it wasn’t long before the striker was celebrating his first ever Boro goal, a short corner to Nsue, whose crossing was impressive all game, was delivered into the area where Bamford’s glancing header nestled into the net off the far post with just over 20 minutes to go.

Nsue deserved a goal for his contribution and nearly claimed one a few minutes later, but Button was able to tip his shot from the edge of the area over the bar. With 71 minutes gone Clayton was introduced as Leadbitter was withdrawn and received a standing ovation for another immaculate performance.

Brentford did have the occasional chance but couldn’t find a passage back into the game, when the score was still 2-0 Andre Gray wriggled through the Boro defence however keeper Dimi Konstantopulos made an instinctive save from close range. On the hour mark a deflected shot from Jota Peleteiro forced another save from the Greek keeper but that was about as good as it got for the visitors.  

The only sour note for Karanka came on 83 minutes when Whitehead was dismissed after lunging in for a challenge with Judge, the Boro midfielder was late yet it came as a huge shock when referee Jeremy Simpson unveiled a straight red card.

Even with ten men Boro added a fourth when substitute Kike sealed a great all round performance, his delicate chip from inside the area sailed over Button to seal Boro’s third victory on the bounce.

 

Player Ratings

Dimi Konstantopulos   8- Not much action but made important saves when he had to  

George Friend   8- Joined in with attacks at times, defended very well

Ben Gibson   7- Dealt with little threat posed by the opposition’s attack

Kenneth Omeruo   7- Cleared the danger without any nonsense, solid game

Ryan Fredericks   9- Consistently won the ball in deep areas and drove forward, outstanding debut  

Dean Whitehead   7- Provided good protection in front of the back four, unfortunate to get sent off at the end

Grant Leadbitter   9- Controlled the midfield, won the ball well, great range of passing and another wonder goal

Emilo Nsue   8.5- Constantly found space on the left, crossing was excellent, by far best Boro performance to date   

Albert Adomah   8- Looks back to player from last season, ran at defenders in dangerous areas

Jelle Vossen   7- Good linked up with midfield, couldn’t top it off with a goal

Patrick Bamford   7- Scored his first goal for the club should give him confidence

Subs

Adam Clayton   6.5- Impressed for a 20 minute spell, passing opened up Brentford defence

Kike   7- Added forth goal of the season after coming on as a second half sub

Adam Reach – Came on for the last 5 minutes not enough time to give a fair rating

My Boro Man Of The Match : Grant Leadbitter

US Open Day 15 - Cilic Reigns In New York

Turn the clock back twelve months and Marin Cilic wasn’t even a part of the 2013 US Open, a nine month ban after testing positive for a banned supplement left his career in serious doubt.  

One year on and the Croatian’s story of the event suggest he was innocent, the fact that the Court of Arbitration for Sport reduced the ban from nine months to four also implied the punishment was a little harsh.



It was the first major final for both men

But not even the Croatian himself could have imaged the euphoria which would follow the devastating storm, the latest Grand Slam Champion in an era many have described as the best ever, the stuff of dreams doesn’t describe it. 

He outplayed Japan’s Kei Nishikori in a historic major final, the first one since 2005 which didn’t include Nadal, Federer or Djokovic. After his remarkable dismissal of Federer in the semi-final the great Swiss had described Cilic’s game as “Old school tennis, big first serve, big forehand, and finish at the net” A deadly combination when executed well.

Some will even say that Cilic’s ban helped him; in the time he was away he clearly added more firepower onto his already effective serve while the asset of coach, former Wimbledon Champion, Goran Ivanišević has also injected some belief back into his game.

In the end it was a step too far for Nishikori who couldn’t repeat his heroic semi-final victory over Djokovic, which also came fresh off the back of two five setters. Cilic was merciless in securing a 6-3 6-3 6-3 victory and his first major title in 1 hour and 54 minutes to become the first Croatian since Ivanišević to triumph at the highest level.     

It was a match where no-one quite knew what to expect, both in their first major final, ultimately it would come down to who could handle the occasion better.

After straight set wins over Tomas Berdych and Federer, Cilic’s confidence was sky high and it was the Croatian who made the better start, breaking Nishikori in the sixth game. The single break was enough due to Cilic’s immaculate serve, he took the opening set in 33 minutes.

In the second set the momentum didn’t chance and for the majority of the match it appeared that Nishikori was clinging on for dear life. Cilic showed a greater variety of shots from the baseline and as he seized a 5-2 second set lead, despite then losing serve for the first time he had little trouble in closing it out.

The energy was visibly being drained from Nisikori’s robust tank. Anything short Cilic pounced on it and for a man at 6 ft 6 the Croatian moved well, returned well and soaked up his opponents pressure, before dishing it out with greater effect. There were a few signs of nerves but not enough to deny Cilic his first major at the age of 25, a further suggestion that the reign of tennis’s “big four” could be nearing its end. 

US Open Day 14 - Williams Powers To 18th Major

Serena Williams claimed her place in tennis’s illustrious history books, as she joined Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert with 18 Grand Slam titles.

The top seeded American powered her way to third straight US Open, in a fortnight where she never came close to dropping a set, let alone a match. She went into the final with her good friend and rival Caroline Wozniacki as the heavy favourite, 1 hour and 15 minutes later she had once again emerged the victor in typical Williams fashion.     

Williams wins her third US Open in a row

Just like the six players before her Wozniacki was simply blown away by Williams’ lethal attack, the American’s hammering forehand and thundering serve helped tear down the Dane’s so often stern defence in a ruthless 6-3 6-3 victory.

Every second serve that dropped short, Williams punished it. Every extended rally which appeared to be materialising into a trademark Wozniacki point, the world number one quickly extinguished it. In the end it was one of those days when it didn’t matter who was on the other side of the net.

The pair had gone the distance in recent matches in Cincinnati and Montreal but in truth Wozniacki never really looked like repeating those occasions in a match which many pundits described as “on Serena’s racquet”. After saving a break point with an ace in the opening game Williams broke the Dane’s serve straight away, even at that early stage Wozniacki’s task appeared a vast one.

In an uncharacteristic Williams service game Wozniacki broke straight back and the pattern of breaking serve continued as the next three games went against the server. It was then that the American seized control; she hauled herself to a 5-2 lead, the set soon followed, and she stormed into a position she has only lost from once in her US Open history.   

Despite the Dane’s efforts that statistic never looked like changing as Williams broke serve once again in the first game of the second set, from then on her own reliable serve did the rest.

Williams wasn’t broken in the remainder of the match as Wozniacki had no answer to the gulf in power between the two players, the Dane couldn’t impose her physical and demanding game on the world number one, every time she tried the ball was swept away for another winner from the top seed.

To her credit Wozniacki held her own serve with greater ease in the second set however the American remained in full control and served out the match to seal her sixth title in New York. The only record which seems left to surpass is Steffi Graf’s 22 major titles, with Williams still at the head of the game it may not be beyond her.     

US Open Day 10 - Djokovic Outlasts Murray In New York

There was no fairy tale ending or dream comeback for Andy Murray at this year’s US Open, that’s just the way men’s tennis is at this moment in time.

In a pulsating quarter-final he came up against a world number one who doesn’t know the meaning of the word quit or the definition of free point, as is always the case at any of the four Grand Slams Novak Djokovic will take some stopping.



Djokovic reaches another Grand Slam semi-final

The task to stay with the relentless Serb over five sets is something few have accomplished; Murray may have managed it here in 2012, on this occasion the Brit’s body appeared well and truly spent mid-way through the third set.

That was largely down to sheer brutality of the first two sets which alone stretched beyond the two hour mark. At time their defences appeared bullet proof, at times the intense rallies seemed like they would never stop, of course factors like that will inevitably take their toll and unfortunately for Murray his body seemed to resist first as Djokovic triumphed 7-6(1) 6-7(1) 6-2 6-4.

It was a match which had more twists and turns than a formula one race circuit, breaks of serve were a regular occurrence and both showed why they are currently labelled as two of the best returners in the men’s game.

From the first point Murray made his aggressive intentions clear, off a Djokovic second serve the Brit cracked one of his trademark backhand returns firmly into open court, a few points later he had claimed the first break of the match.

However his lead didn’t last long as Djokovic came storming back, an immediate response from the Serb saw him race into a 4-1 lead while saving further break points on his own serve along the way.

But one of the features of this match was the way that Murray quickly reeled his opponent back in after falling behind. From the baseline his groundstrokes, especially his forehand, were blistering; they had to be to puncture Djokovic’s impeccable defence. With the match beginning to boil the Brit levelled at 4-4, a deciding tie break was a fitting way to finish a breath taking set.

Yet when the pressure was really on, Murray suddenly lost his touch, a double fault when trailing 1-0 in the breaker made his job a whole lot tougher and Djokovic made him pay storming clear and taking it 7-1.

The second set followed a similar pattern Djokovic broke early, Murray responded, the Serb broke again, Murray was equal to it once more. Another tie break followed and this time it was Djokovic who faulted as Murray dominated with the same 7-1 score line.   

Then yet again the pendulum swung as Murray’s movement gradually deteriorated, Djokovic survived the early Murray resistance at the start of the third before claiming the decisive break when leading 5-4 in the fourth, in the end the Serb remained the last man standing and will now face Kei Nishikori in the last four.   

 

US Open Day 9 - Monfils Keeps French Hopes Alive

Gael Monfils is one of the many French tennis players attempting to following in the footsteps of national hero Yannick Noah and become his country’s first male Grand Slam singles champion for over 20 years

Monfils celebrates his fourth round win  

At 28 Monfils remains the only one of the thirteen male French players who started this year’s US Open just over a week ago, the highest number of representatives along with Spain. Now he will prepare for a quarter-final with the great Roger Federer with a chance to define his intermittent career.

The most impressive thing about Monfils’ fourth round victory over this year’s breakthrough act Grigor Dimitrov wasn’t his astonishing speed or his sensational shot making instead it the way he kept a lid on his fiery emotions which have a tendency to explode at any given moment.  

It was a defining win for Monfils and following his quarter-final showing at the French Open it means that he has reached the last eight of two slams in the same year for the first time in his career. The Frenchman edged three tight sets in a close encounter but was ultimately more consistent at the key moments of the match which he came through 7-5 7-6(6) 7-5 in 2 hours and 24 minutes. 

For Dimitrov it was something of an anti-climax to what has been an excellent 2014 break through, especially in the slams. However on this occasion the 23 year old Bulgarian was unable to reproduce the same quality which saw him make an incredible run to the Wimbledon semi-final, as too many errors at the crucial stages denied him a dream last eight clash against Federer.

The first set was dominated by both players serves, the first and only break point fell the way of the Frenchman in the eleventh game with the pair locked at 5-5, he confidently took it before serving out the set.

Monfils broke the Dimitrov serve again at the start of the second set but when the Bulgarian quickly struck back the Frenchman came close to collapsing into an almighty meltdown. He quarrelled with umpire Jack Garner over a point he felt should have been stopped when a piece of litter blew onto court.

However Dimitrov couldn’t close in on the advantage which had been presented to him and despite leading 6-4 with two set points in the tie break, crucial mistakes cost him and Monfils snuck in to steal the set and take a commanding lead.

Dimitrov may have looked the fresher of the two, with Monfils appearing to gasp for air on numerous occasions. However the Frenchman’s serve remained resolute and at 6-5 in the third set he pounced again to knockout the 7^th seed Bulgarian and advance to the last eight.

That’s where he’ll meet the 2^nd seed Federer after the Swiss beat Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4 6-3 6-2, Tomas Berdych and Marin Cilic also progressed. In the women’s draw Caroline Wozniacki set up a semi-final with Shuai Peng after both won in straight sets.

   

US Open Day 8 - Murray Slays Tsonga To Set Up Djokovic Duel

After cramping on day one Andy Murray described this fortnight’s US Open as a “bonus”.  Seven days on and three impressive wins later the Brit finds himself only three matches away from hitting the ultimate jackpot.



Andy Murray roars into the last eight

Murray admitted that he could have been on the plane home following his narrow first round victory over Robin Hasse, fast-forward a week and the British number one now has a chance to dismantle world number one Novak Djokovic in a quarter final where the Serb has it all to lose.

Murray’s confidence since that opening match wobble has evidently grown as the rounds have progressed, his latest victory over the talented Frenchman Jo-Wilfred Tsonga the most impressive by far.

A straight sets 7-5 7-5 6-4 victory was in some ways the ideal result for Murray against an opponent who beat him in Toronto a few weeks earlier, this time though the Brit progressed to the last eight tested but unharmed .

The first set was arguably the best set of tennis Murray had played since his back surgery last September. He held serve with relative ease while regularly putting pressure on some lengthy Tsonga service games as the Frenchman fended off five break points.

Murray pounced at the perfect moment claiming the first break of the match in the eleventh game. On set point he jumped onto a weak Tsonga second serve with a telling backhand which set up a routine volley into the open court which the Brit dispatched with little fuss.

Tsonga’s ability hadn’t been in doubt and at the start of the second set he showed exactly why, he took advantage of a small lapse from Murray on serve to convert his first break point of the match.

However a feature of this match was the way Murray recovered when he fell behind. At 4-2 down in the set he quickly flicked through the gears to retrieve the break, as Tsonga’s frustration showed signs of boiling over.

For the second time Murray broke his opponent when leading 6-5 and from that point on his path to the last eight appeared to unveil in front of him. However it wasn’t all that simple and another small hiccup allowed Tsonga back in, surely a similar mistake against Djokovic would be less forgiving. 

But on this occasion Murray’s sheer resolve was enough to prevail, at times his retrieving was phenomenal as Tsonga’s menacing serve and huge forehand were regularly neutralised.

Once again Murray broke back after falling behind and when leading 5-4 he struck the decisive blow. Two double faults from Tsonga immediately left the Frenchman on the back foot before Murray seized his opportunity to complete his victory in 2 hours 35 minutes.

Djokovic’s route to the quarter final was equally convincing as he defeated German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-1 7-5 6-4. Elsewhere Kei Nisikori beat Milos Raonic in a five set epic while in the women’s draw top seed Serena Williams beat Kaia Kanepi 6-3 6-3.

US Open Week One Review - Women's Draw Left Open As Sharapova Crashes Out

It’s not unusual for wind, rain and the occasional thunder storm to cause havoc with the scheduling at the US Open; however the sight of Maria Sharapova leaving a Grand Slam before the second week has begun, is not something the tennis world has become accustomed to.

Wozniacki reaches her first major quarter-final since 2012 

The fifth seeded Russian stepped onto the court for her fourth round match with former world number one Caroline Wozniacki as one of the favourites for this year’s unpredictable women’s competition, a gruelling 2 hours 37 minutes later she left as the latest casualty in what has now become a wide open bottom half of the draw.

However this wasn’t simply a bad day at the office or heart breaking injury which prevented Sharapova from claiming her first title in New York since 2005. For the most part it was down to the sheer determination from a rejuvenated Wozniacki who seemed to retrieve ball after endless ball in a gripping contest.  

On paper this was the stand out match of the day on the Arthur Ashe Stadium and it certainly lived up to its billing. Wozniacki hadn’t reached a quarter final of a major since the 2012 Australian Open, however after a sweltering start from the 10^th seed an upset looked more than a possibility.

The Dane took the match to Sharapova and, for the most part, came out on top to clinch the first set. However Sharapova isn’t a five time Grand Slam champion for nothing and as Wozniacki retreated behind the baseline the Russian’s pinpoint power and accuracy helped to level the match.

At that point it appeared like normal service had been resumed and the scene was set for Sharapova to produce one of her memorable and steely comebacks.

But Wozniacki had other ideas and spured on by the Arthur Ashe crowd the Dane showed just why she was a former world number one, taking the decider by 6 games to 2 to stun the much-loved Russian whose bid for a second US Open was put on hold for another year.

Wozniacki is now the highest ranked player in the bottom half of the draw following ninth seed Jelena Jankovic’s defeat to Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic. The Dane will now play Italian Sara Errani in the last eight after she beat Mirjana Lucic-Baroni 6-3 2-6 6-0.

In the men’s draw Roger Federer recovered from a set down in a rain interrupted third round against Marcel Granollers, with the Swiss finally advancing 4-6 6-1 6-1 6-1.

The shock of the round came in the shape of Frenchman Gilles Simon beating 4^th seed David Ferrer in four sets, that sets up a fourth round match with Croatian Marin Cilic who defeated Kevin Anderson. There were also wins for Tomas Berdych, Grigor Dimitrov, Gael Monfils and Dominic Thiem who all progressed to the fourth round.