The English Premier League has one early match on Saturday, December 19, 2009 as Portsmouth hosted Liverpool. Both teams have struggled this season and in need of points. Portsmouth is looking to avoid relegation and is last place before the start of the match. Liverpool is out of the top four heading into the match and needs to find their form to retain a UEFA Champions League spot for next season. It was a cold weekend in England with conditions far from ideal. Here’s a recap of the match along with video highlights.
Portsmouth beats Liverpool 2-0 – Video Highlights
Liverpool had most of possession and chances early but failed to take the lead in the first half. On the other end, Portsmouth had less chances but would take the lead in the first half with a great strike from Nadir Belhadj. It came in the 33rd minute and put Liverpool needing at least two goals to get a win at Fratton Park. It would get worse for the reds as Javier Mascherano would get a red card in the 45th minute and Liverpool would be playing the entire second half with 10 men.
Portsmouth took advantage of the man advantage in the second half as they would create chances. Liverpool continued to struggle to turn possession into great chances and Portsmouth would put the match out of reach in the 82nd minute. Frederic Piquionne would score on a shot from a difficult angle to make it 2-0 and almost certainly a Pompey win. Liverpool did not play inspired and after losing Mascherano never seemed able to mount a realistic comeback.
| MATCH INFORMATION | |
| Stadium: | Fratton Park, England |
| Attendance: | 20,534 |
| Match Time: | December 19, 2009, 07:45 ET |
| Official(s): | Lee Mason (Referee) |
| SCORING SUMMARY | |
| Portsmouth | Liverpool |
| Nadir Belhadj (33) | |
| Frederic Piquionne (82) | |
| MATCH STATS | ||
| Portsmouth | Liverpool | |
| Shots (on Goal) | 15(3) | 9(1) |
| Fouls | 8 | 14 |
| Corner Kicks | 8 | 10 |
| Offsides | 1 | 3 |
| Time of Possession | 45% | 55% |
| Yellow Cards | 2 | 3 |
| Red Cards | 0 | 1 |
| Saves | 1 | 1 |
