EPL ~ Liverpool 1 - 2 Wigan ; Suarez sparks 'cheat' goal row
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Dalglish insists it would take 'a hell of a player' to improve his Liverpool team
Praise: Dalglish's comments show he is proud of his team
Kenny Dalglish believes he faces a huge challenge this summer after insisting it will take 'a hell of a player' to improve the Liverpool squad he has assembled.
The Liverpool manager spent more than £100m last year to revamp the playing staff at Anfield and he will again look to strengthen when the transfer window opens in June.
Finding a striker to partner Luis Suarez is the main priority but, first and foremost, Dalglish has made it clear he will be standing by those who have helped Liverpool win the Carling Cup and reach the FA Cup semi-finals.
Though Charlie Adam, Andy Carroll, Jordan Henderson and Stewart Downing – four of Liverpool’s big buys in 2011 – have come in for criticism, their form has improved in recent weeks and Dalglish is adamant they will continue to flourish.‘These players have done fantastically well and if anyone is going to come in they will have to be a hell of a player to do better than what (this group) has done,’ stressed Dalglish, who said it was 'fantastic news' that Luis Suarez had re-affirmed his commitment to Liverpool.
Calibre: Kenny Dalglish finds it hard to believe he can improve on the likes of Luis Suarez
‘These boys are in pole position and they are sitting there comfortable; not one of them can be disappointed with what they have contributed this season. We are not going to be sharp to get rid of anyone.
‘We have not had any discussions about funds (with Liverpool’s owners). I wouldn't know (how much there is to spend). Someone else is in a position to discuss that with them and then they will come back and say there's the budget.
‘As we have always said whatever John (W Henry) and Tom (Werner) can afford will go on players.
'They have always done that since they came in and they will continue to do it.’
The type of player Liverpool will be in the market for will ultimately be determined by their final league position and Dalglish feels they will need maximum points from their remaining matches – starting tonight at QPR – to make the top four.
‘The top four is still a target,’ said Dalglish. ‘We've got to aim to win our remaining 10 league games, and see where we are.
'The players realise this is a club where every game is important, and you have to think about winning every game.’
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Defiant Dalglish defends Reds despite dismal collapse at Loftus Road
Capitulation: Liverpool surrendered a 2-0 lead
Kenny Dalglish stood defiantly by his players despite watching Liverpool capitulate at Loftus Road on Wednesday night.
Leading 2-0 with just 13 minutes left to play, the Anfield club somehow managed to leave Queens Park Rangers empty-handed after a dramatic comeback.
And a feisty Dalglish refused to criticise his side before storming out of a quickfire post-match press-conference.
He said: 'No one has spoken in the dressing room. I can't explain it, it's not lack of concentration, we give QPR a bit of credit.
'There's not much more to say, I don't have answers to what happened but we have to find answers. For most of the game we were dominant.
'We were creative, thoughtful and professional but they've walked away with three points. We did concentrate, there's no need to find something. Our players didn't get what they deserved.'
The defeat leaves Liverpool eight points off a Champions League spot but Dalglish said: ‘It’s not over until it’s over.’
You have to say, it is a good job that Kenny Dalglish is the manager. Were it any other boss in charge the red half of Merseyside would be calling for his head this morning.
Defiant: Dalglish defended his side
QPR's victory dragged them out of the bottom three and manager Mark Hughes feels it could prove to be the pivotal moment of their season.
He said: ‘This could be a defining moment, so we have to make sure it is. This night is up there with some of the best I’ve had as a manager. We may look back at this and say that was when we turned our season around.
Turning point: Hughes was thrilled with QPR's comeback
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How did Liverpool lost...
And Coates bicycle kick can go into Goal of the season lia0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zj9umu0H5hI&feature=share -
Opps. so is it over now? 1-2 lose to Wigan at home.
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Liverpool 1 Wigan 2
EYES DOWN ... Steven Gerrard cracks in a shot under pressure from Gary CaldwellGARY CALDWELL was the unlikely hero as Wigan piled on the misery for Liverpool.
The Latics defender displayed a striker's touch with a superb second-half winner to give Roberto Martinez's men a boost in their battle against the drop.
But it is Liverpool who are showing relegation form as they slumped to a fifth defeat in six games.
Luis Suarez struck their goal as he cancelled out Shaun Maloney's opener from the spot. But Caldwell's strike left the home fans frustrated once more with just five league wins at Anfield all season.
Liverpool once again struggled to find any fluency early on and Wigan gave them a scare when Victor Moses ghosted past Jose Enrique to fire in a shot that Martin Skrtel did well to block.
The Reds were stunned when Skrtel gave away a penalty as he swung a boot at Jamie Carragher's aimless headed clearance and caught Moses in the face.
PUTTING HIS FOOT IN IT ... Martin Skrtel concedes a penaltyReferee Lee Mason pointed to the spot and, after a couple of minutes' delay for Moses to receive treatment, Maloney tucked his penalty past the goalkeeper's right hand.
Five minutes before half-time Liverpool finally forced Ali Al Habsi into a save when Suarez's 25-yard curling effort was tipped around the post.
Despite returning to the field Moses was replaced by Albert Crusat before the interval.
Another Gerrard shot forced Al Habsi to palm the ball behind but from the corner Jordan Henderson's dipping shot was easily claimed by the goalkeeper.
Henderson, who had incurred the ire of Anfield on a number of occasions, was replaced by Andy Carroll for the second half. But it was Liverpool's two most reliable attacking forces Gerrard and Suarez who combined for the equaliser just two minutes after the restart.
Skrtel's sliding challenge reached Dirk Kuyt on the edge of the penalty area and he bounced a pass back to Suarez who played the ball to Gerrard on the right and continued his run to convert the return with a shot across Al Habsi.
Liverpool should have been ahead in the 53rd minute when Skrtel's downward far-post header bounced over Al Habsi but Suarez, under pressure from Gary Caldwell, inexplicably punched the ball over the line when he was so close to the goal he could have let it hit him and it would still probably have gone in.
The Reds were made to pay in the 63rd minute when Carroll's header defending a free-kick dropped to James McCarthy just outside the area.
His shot deflected off Carragher to Caldwell, who showed composure not usually befitting a centre-back in front of goal to sidestep Carroll and fire past Reina.
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Suarez sparks 'cheat' goal row after handling in Liverpool's defeat to Wigan
High hopes: Suarez rises to bundle the ball home
Unaware: Suarez celebrates as Lee Mason blows his whistle
Baffled: Suarez pleads his innocence
KENNY DALGLISH was left fuming over Luis Suarez's disallowed goal as Liverpool lost 2-1 at home to Wigan.
Referee Lee Mason ruled out the effort when the Uruguayan appeared to use a hand as he jumped with Gary Caldwell.
TV replays showed the official was correct.
Referee Lee Mason booked him instead, ruling out a score that would have put Liverpool 2-1 ahead, after an earlier Suarez goal had cancelled out a spot-kick opener from Shaun Maloney.
But Wigan were able to ease their relegation fears with a dramatic winner from captain Gary Caldwell.
There were boos from some parts of the Anfield crowd towards their own team at the end and home boss Kenny Dalglish said bitterly: ‘If that was hand-ball I must have been watching a different telly.
‘It shouldn’t have been chalked off. I think it hit his shoulder as he tried to play it. And to be booked as well? It wasn’t justified, he was jumping for the ball.’
But Wigan manager Roberto Martinez disagreed. ‘I’ve seen the replay and it’s a clear hand-ball,’ said the Spaniard. ‘We all know Suarez is an artist at getting free-kicks and good situations for himself. Lee Mason was very strong... and he had to be.
‘I have had so many bad decisions this season I’ve always kept my mouth shut and today I will only concentrate and enjoy our victory.’
Dalglish suggested the defeat was ‘the price of success’ in the cups, an analysis which may not please his American bosses, who have said that the lucrative prize of Champions League qualification was their main goal this season.
In their worst run since January 2005, Liverpool have now won just one of their past seven Premier League games and only one of their past five at Anfield. Last month’s Carling Cup winners have picked up just eight points from their past 11 League games.
Humiliated: Liverpool lost at home again
Dalglish blamed burnout for the latest poor home performance. Indeed, Liverpool have won only twice at Anfield in the League this year.
‘If you play Sunday-Wednesday-Saturday it’s going to take its toll,’ claimed Dalglish.
‘Whether that’s the price you have to pay for success or a demanding TV schedule, I don’t know. We’re disappointed because a lot of the final balls in good positions we didn’t deliver. Put that down to tiredness.’
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Hand of God doesn't do wonders. Definitely not in England.
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LiverPoo lost at home to a bottom team.....
fainted.
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Hand of a cheating artist more like it...
He is not fit to be given the meaning to the term "Hand of God"
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playinglikeshit
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there is something seriously wrong with suarez and dalglish.
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they should sack dalglish
I dun like his tatics
he every match gt different players playing
The controversial Uruguayan handled the ball over the line in the 53rd minute and celebrated as though he thought his effort was legitimate.