Final thoughts
Well, no surprises in the result, with Liverpool entirely comfortable for large swathes of the game. Jordon Ibe impressed for the visitors, while James Milner again proved a goal threat, and with no injuries picked up (at least not any that were immediately apparent), the trip Down Under can only be classed as a success. United, for their part, were game, but ultimately outclassed by what is a far better squad of players. That’s all for tonight, thanks for joining me.
Full time: Adelaide United 0-2 Liverpool
90+4 min And there goes the whistle! All over in Adelaide and that wraps up a pretty successful tour for Liverpool, who head home with two wins from two on Australia soil, off the back of a win in Thailand.
90+3 min Malik, looking to grab a consolation for Adelaide, gets on the end of a loose ball in the Liverpool box, but he can’t keep his effort down and that should be that.
90 mins Three minutes of added time to be played.
89 min That’s nothing more than Liverpool deserved. And nice for Ings to open his Liverpool account and get that monkey off his back early on. Meanwhile, Dylan Smith is on for Carrusca.
Goal! Adelaide United 0-2 Liverpool (Ings, 88)
88 min There’s the icing on the cake for the tourists! Ings times his run to perfection to latch onto Clyne’s well weighted through pass and he rounds Galekovic before tapping into the back of the net! Great finish, and this time no hint of offside.
85 min Just five minutes left for Adelaide to snatch an equaliser. But it doesn’t look likely, especially with Liverpool playing the ball around with a degree of confidence now.
Tonight’s official attendance is a grand 53,008 which for a “cold” winter’s night is a remarkable number.
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84 min Lazar Markovic replaces Joe Allen and is straight into the action as he intercepts a wayward pass and heads off towards the United goal. He plays the ball to Lallana but his backheel doesn’t really come off and the move breaks down.
81 min More changes to tell you about. Off goes Jeggo and on comes George Mells, the former Southampton trainee who used to polish Adam Lallana’s boots at St Mary’s. Actually, that’s it, just the one, for now.
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79 min Oooh! Ings could, and possibly should, score from the dead ball, whipped into the box by Henderson. The former Burnley man rises to meet it, but he misjudges his header horribly and it flies over the bar!
78 min Ings and Malik come together and Liverpool have a free-kick in a decent position. Meanwhile, Goodwin comes off and former Western Sydney Wanderer La Rocca comes on for his Adelaide debut.
75 min Nothing comes of the corner and Liverpool are able to break upfield but Ibe shows his inexperience by holding onto the ball for too long and when he does eventually release it, the offside flag goes up.
74 min It opens up slightly for Jeggo on the Adelaide right now, and he wins a corner as his attempted cross balloons up and over Mignolet’s bar.
72 min Milner is taken off, his work done for the night. On comes Lucas Leiva, who knows the Adelaide Oval well, having been there at the weekend for the big AFL clash between Port Adelaide and Adelaide Crows. Not a bad game to have witnessed.
71 min Oooh! Elrich goes so close to levelling things up straight away but he’s denied by the post! Mignolet looked well beaten there!
68 min Rodgers uses the break in play after the goal to make a change, bringing on Ings, before plays restarts and Carrusca quickly goes into the book for a late nudge on Henderson.
Goal! Adelaide United 0-1 Liverpool (Milner, 67)
67 min Milner makes it two in two, sliding in to guide the ball past Galekovic to add to the goal he scored on Friday in Brisbane! It’s exactly what you would have expected Origi to do just moments ago; this time Milner shows his team-mate exactly what to do. There’s more than a whiff of offside (a stench would be more apt), but the flag stays down and the goal stands.
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66 min Milner slides a lovely ball across the face of goal into the area so often dubbed ‘the corridor of uncertainty’, but on this occasion it’s absolutely certain that Origi won’t get there.
64 min A rare corner to Adelaide nearly sees Malik reach it, but he doesn’t and to be honest, that’s as good as the hosts can manage at the moment.
63 min Yes, here we go, but it’s only one for the time being. Off goes Djite, who has had little change from Skrtel and Lovren tonight, and on comes Pablo Sanchez.
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61 min Activity on the bench now and we could be approaching mass change o’clock.
60 min We arrive at the hour mark and still the packed house at the Adelaide Oval is waiting for a goal.
59 min Oooh! Ibe tees up Lallana who fires on target only to be frustrated by a great (great in terms of looking good for the cameras) diving punch from Galekovic!
57 min Ibe teases Elrich before letting fly with a low shot that skims across the surface and just wide of the far upright!
56 min It’s Milner who steps up to strike on goal, but it’s a poor attempt by the new signing, straight into the wall.
55 min Jeggo hauls down Ibe and Liverpool have a free-kick in a dangerous position, about 20 yards out, slightly right of centre. Henderson looks like he fancies it...
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53 min Clyne breaks down the Liverpool right and his gallop ends with him crossing into the centre, but there’s a little bit too much on it and the ball sails all the way through without finding a red shirt. Or boot. Or head.
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52 min So, the second half starts in much the same vein as the first – with Liverpool well on top, carving out chances, but unable to convert.
51 min Now it’s Ibe’s turn to direct a header, a brave one given the boots he puts his head amongst, towards goal. But again the connection isn’t great and the chance goes begging.
50 min Great chance for Lovren who has a free header! He’s left totally unmarked but heads with too much downwards trajectory into the ground and the ball bounces back up and over the bar.
49 min Milner bursts forward, dare I say in Gerrard fashion, and his endeavours lead to Origi winning a corner for Liverpool.
48 min Carrusca’s showing off here, with some more great control and another little backheel. The only problem is that there’s no one there to pick it up. Michael Bridges claims it’s because no one else is on his wavelength (clearly set at a higher frequency to mere mortals), but really it was just a poorly placed backheel.
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47 min Moreno is involved immediately and moments later he manages to outmuscle Goodwin as the ball is played over the top of the Liverpool back line. Confident start by the Spaniard, who should feel right at home in Adelaide.
Second half: Adelaide United 0-0 Liverpool
46 min And we’re back under way in Adelaide. Here’s hoping for a goal or two in the second half. Pre-season friendlies aren’t supposed to end goalless. In something of a miracle for a game of this nature, Adelaide are unchanged. For the time being, at least. Liverpool, again making United wait, have sent on Alberto Moreno in place of Gomez.
Half-time: Adelaide United 0-0 Liverpool
45+1 min And there goes the whistle. Time for tea and oranges (*) or whatever it is on offer these days. A decent enough first half, although it ends goalless
(*almost certainly not tea and oranges)
44 min Mignolet, in rather unorthodox fashion, jumps over Cirio to clear with a diving header as the Spaniard looked to unsettle him.
42 min Just a bit of a lull in proceedings at the moment, with the promise of half-time oranges nearing.
40 min Surely a Liverpool goal is only just around the corner? Origi nearly gets on a deflected shot now as the Adelaide defence is undone once more.
38 min From the right, Ibe now picks out Henderson in the middle but the Liverpool captain’s shot is blocked before it has a chance to test Galekovic.
37 min Milner brings the best out of Galekovic as the midfielder lifts his head up, sets his sights from the edge of the box and lets fly. Again the Adelaide keeper is equal to it, pushing the ball away from goal, just incase there was a red shirt following up.
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36 min Gomez lobs a throw-in directly out of play for an Adelaide goal kick, which is something of a waste.
35 min Cirio weaves his way into the Liverpool box before going to ground, looking for a penalty. He’s not going to get one though, and rightly so – any contact was minimal.
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33 min Time for a tweet from Siddharth Upasani, who observes: “Acronyms were in vogue in 13-14 with SAS, etc. Today? Fwds:OIL (Origi, Ibe, Lallana). Midfiled: HAM (Hendo, Allen, Milner).” No matter how hard I try, I can’t think of one for Adelaide.
32 min Cirio turns Gomez inside out before getting down to the byline and centring. Corner to Adelaide! Goodwin takes it, and Mignolet has a moment of panic as the ball swings back in viciously before landing on the top of the net.
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30 min The clock ticks past 30 minutes and it’s still goalless at Adelaide Oval, despite Liverpool having a number of half chances.
28 min Milner is pulled up for an overly enthusiastic challenge on Djite and Adelaide have a free-kick but not in any position that will worry Liverpool’s back line. The visitors are doing a good job of keeping United well contained so far.
27 min Ibe lets fly with an effort from outside the box that has a degree of venom to it, but again Galekovic is equal to it, the United keeper getting down well to make the save – and hold onto the ball.
25 min McGowan hoons off on a rampaging run forward in the style of a typical centre-back, that is, without much skill but with plenty of heart and effort. He plays a one-two with Djite but the move breaks down soon enough and the defender now has a big ask to get back to his usual position before the ball gets there.
23 min James Milner pops up to tell the referee to ensure the game flows freely. The visitors clearly want a decent work out tonight.
20 min Elrich’s touch lets him down on the far side, and possession is gifted back to Liverpool. At about the same time, a welcome email lands. “Sitting up in the Southern stand at the game. YNWA aside its fairly subdued so far, and the majority of support is for the visitors. With United’s yellow kit tonight, it does look a bit like a pool table out there though,” says Wade in Adelaide. Just missing the classic eight ball, with the officials in lurid green shirts tonight.
19 min Origi lets fly with a shot on goal but he’s been pushed a little bit too wide to be able to get any real power on his effort and it’s an easy save for Galekovic to make.
17 min Here come Adelaide now, but their foray into Liverpool’s final third is a brief one, in keeping with the pattern of play so far.
15 min A quarter of an hour gone and Adelaide have barely had a sniff. Liverpool have bossed the opening 15 minutes and can count themselves rather unfortunate not to have opened the scoring.
14 min With this ground being an oval, there’s quite a big space between the pitch and the first row of seats in the stands, but nevertheless the atmosphere that can be generated is impressive to say the least. Tonight seems to be a case in point.
12 min Henderson now very nearly gets on the end of an Ibe scoop over the top of the Adelaide back line but Galekovic is off his line quickly enough to gather the ball.
11 min Isaias gives away a cheap free-kick close to the near touchline as we look at it on the telly, but Liverpool can’t make anything of the decent position.
9 min But Liverpool have certainly settled the quicker and look dangerous. No one typifies that more than Origi, who turns this way and that – and again – before firing over the bar.
7 min Carrusca shows his class by bringing down the ball on his chest before laying it off with a backheel. Audacious!
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6 min Malik appears to grab hold of Ibe’s shirt in the box, but the referee sees nothing untoward and play goes on.
5 min Two half chances fall Liverpool’s way as first Origi fails to make contact on a Gomez cross before some nifty footwork sees Ibe fashion a shooting chance for himself, but his effort is blocked and the ball cannons behind for a corner.
4 min Here come Liverpool now though as Lallana plays a lovely one-two with Origi. The ball finds its way to Ibe out on the far side but Malik makes a key tackle at a crucial moment and the chance comes to nothing. Promising early signs from Liverpool though.
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3 min Origi is pulled up for a trip on Elrich and Adelaide retain possession with a free-kick deep in their own half. Nothing much to report as yet, with both teams just sussing each other out in these early stages.
2 min Adelaide look to build from the back early on, Galekovic getting involved with the ball at his feet.
Kick-off
1 min Peeeep! And Liverpool get things under way!
Here we go then with You’ll Never Walk Alone. Up go the scarfs and the decibel levels raise once we get to the well-known bit. Goose-bump stuff, and we’re allowed to enjoy it as the commentators reverentially remain silent.
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Having kept their hosts waiting for a minute or two, here are Liverpool, lining up in the tunnel in their traditional all red kit. Adelaide are wearing a one-off all-yellow number. Galekovic leads out United, Henderson does likewise for Liverpool to a tremendous reception.
A huge banner with an image of Kenny Dalglish on it is spotted in the Liverpool ‘end’, which appears to encompass most of the stadium. It would be interesting to see what the split is between the two sets of fans inside Adelaide Oval tonight, but I’m afraid I don’t have that kind of information. Apologies.
The teams are still out on the pitch, going through their paces in the form of those neat, one-touch passing games based on piggy-in-the-middle, before heading back into the dressing rooms for their final preparations. Just under 10 minutes until kick-off.
Nathanial Clyne on Australia now: “Australia seems nice. It’s a bit cold and I would have loved to come in summer.”
Adelaide defender Tarek Elrich is currently on the receiving end of some high praise from Bridges on the telly. He’s a Socceroo, but if any Liverpool fans are not entirely aware of who he is, here’s an interview Jack Kerr did with him earlier this year.
Also, this:
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Michael Bridges has just labelled Adelaide the best team in the A-League, which is quite a call considering Archie Thompson’s Melbourne Victory won the league and the grand final last season. They’re certainly one of the most attractive to watch when in full flight.
Of course, it’s a sell out at Adelaide Oval tonight and you get the feeling that organisers could have filled the venue three times over, such is the attraction of Liverpool in Australia. Their last tour to these shores a couple of years back had the 90,000 MCG heaving and the atmosphere then apparently left something of a lasting impression on Steven Gerrard, who was overwhelmed when You’ll Never Walk Alone played. Similar scenes are expected tonight, possibly without the tears.
But before we hear too much from them, here’s Brendan Rodgers, the Liverpool manager.
Asked about Liverpool’s tour so far he says: “It’s been fantastic in every way in terms of football and culturally. We’re looking forward to another good game tonight against another excellent team.”
“In the City of Churches, sport is a religion and we’re on Red alert tonight.” Not quite sure how I feel about that intro on the telly to be honest but anyway, here are Archie Thompson and Michael Bridges, looking dapper in their roles as the Nine Network’s studio guests tonight.
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Kick-off is at 7pm local time in Adelaide, which is 7:30pm in Sydney (where your faithful liveblogger is) and the rest of the Australian east coast, and 10:30am in the UK. That’s 30 minutes away.
Starting XIs
The teams are in, courtesy of every liveblogger’s best friend, Twitter:
Here’s how your Reds are lining up for tonight’s match against Liverpool. #LFCTour #COYR pic.twitter.com/qkSHVf16ul
— Adelaide United FC (@AdelaideUnited) July 20, 2015
Confirmed #LFC team v @AdelaideUnited: Mignolet, Clyne, Skrtel, Lovren, Gomez, Allen, Henderson, Milner, Ibe, Lallana, Origi
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 20, 2015
Preamble
Hello and welcome one and all, wherever you are in the world. With Thailand’s All-Stars and Brisbane Roar dispensed with, Brendan Rodgers and his Liverpool side turn their focus to Adelaide United, the best quasi-Spanish team with a penchant for playing neat tiki-taka-a-like football to be found on Australian shores. Brisbane on Friday put up a fight, forcing Liverpool to come back from one down before claiming a 2-1 win, but Adelaide could well prove a trickier assignment. Josep Gombau’s Reds finished third in the A-League last season and their forward-thinking Iberians Sergio Cirio and Isaias have the know-how to get in behind opposition defences and cause a few headaches. Whether that extends to a Premier League back line remains to be seen, but it’s not beyond the realms of possibility. We shall see.
In case you missed it, Liverpool have agreed to sign Christian Benteke, but the Belgian ace won’t be making his debut tonight, no siree, he’s still back in the UK apparently undergoing a medical while his people thrash out details of a deal with Aston Villa. Not a bad replacement for Raheem Sterling, in terms of a player who is able to change the course of a game, in my opinion but not everyone’s cockahoop with unbridled joy though. Paul Wilson is remaining cautious at best over the striker’s impending arrival at Anfield.
Also ICYMI, totally unrelated to football but nevertheless noteworthy in the world of sport – there’s been a shark attack at a surfing event in South Africa, involving the Australian champ Mick Fanning, who by all accounts was lucky to escape unscathed. Watch this:
Quite incredible really. I’ve been staring at footage of it all day long (thanks to the good people at Fox Sports, one of who’s number actually said earlier in the day that “nothing else matters today”, a view clearly taken on board by the producers who have been showing the footage ad nauseum ever since). Anyway, the attacking intent may not end there (oh, come on), with a decent match-up on offer down in South Australia, at the famous Adelaide Oval.
My name’s Mike Hytner, feel free to hit me up on email or twitter with your thoughts about tonight’s match, Christian Benteke, or indeed shark attacks. I’m pretty open to anything really.
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Mike is on his way and will be at his keyboard shortly, meaning you have just about enough time to recap on events during Liverpool’s opening match of their mini-tour of Australia against Brisbane Roar on Friday night.
