Luis Suarez nets again as Liverpool squeeze past Hearts to seal a place in the Europa League group stage. Newcastle also ensure qualification after seeing off Atromitos thanks to a Haris Vuckic goal, West Ham sign Andy Carroll on loan for the season, while Younes Kaboul is out for up to four months after undergoing knee surgery:
Liverpool 1 Hearts 1
Having hinted at his intentions earlier this week, Brendan Rodgers gave Stewart Downing his first start at left-back last night. With just a 1-0 lead from the first-leg, the Liverpool boss named a strong line-up, with the likes of Martin Skrtel and Pepe Reina at the back and Steven Gerrard, Luis Suarez and Joe Allen all starting. Suarez was the saviour for the home side after a howler from Reina saw Heart draw level on aggregate. With less than five minutes left on the clock, the Uruguayan powered through from just after the halfway line to score for the second match running at Anfield – an ominous sign for Arsenal, perhaps, ahead of the Gunners’ visit on Sunday.
Newcastle 1 Atromitos 0
The Magpies also scraped through 2-1 on aggregate after a narrow victory at the Sports Direct Arena last night. Demba Ba played the full 90 minutes as Alan Pardew rolled out a 4-2-3-1 and kept Papiss Cisse on the bench ahead of Villa’s visit on Sunday. Tim Krul, Fabricio Coloccini and Danny Simpson all featured at the back, though Ryan Taylor’s stint at left-back lasted just 10 minutes after he sustained a knee problem. Ironically, it was Taylor’s replacement, Haris Vuckic, who grabbed the only goal of the game, firing home from 20 yards after collecting a throw from Simpson. Reports this morning have already suggested Taylor could have sustained knee ligament damage, after Alan Pardew revealed the situation “does not look good”, while James Perch also picked up a neck problem in the match – a situation that will likely see the Magpies dip into the market for defensive cover later today.
Tottenham have confirmed Younes Kaboul is set to be sidelined for up to four months after undergoing knee surgery. The centre-half failed to feature at home to West Brom last weekend due to the problem, with his absence affording summer signing Jan Vertonghen a chance to make his debut. The Belgian now looks nailed on to maintain his starting berth ahead of a run of fixtures that hands Spurs four home games in the next six, with Steven Caulker battling it out with William Gallas for the other spot in the heart of the back-four. While Caulker is perhaps more suited to Andre Villas-Boas’ high defensive line, Gallas has started the first two and may well continue, though the visit of Norwich this weekend seems the perfect opportunity to hand the former Swansea loan star an opportunity to impress.
West Ham have added to their options up front by acquiring Andy Carroll from Liverpool on a season-long loan. Carroll admitted the Newcastle connection with Sam Allardyce and Kevin Nolan played a major part in his decision, with the forward an ideal frontman for his new manager’s penchant for “playing the percentagesâ€. We can expect plenty of crosses for Carroll to thrive upon, then, which could well be beneficial to Matt Jarvis’ assist potential, with the former Wolves man handed the task of supplying a constant delivery from the left. With Carroll’s knock-downs to thrive upon, Nolan could also see an upturn in potential, though Carlton Cole’s game times looks set to take a significant dip with Carroll set to lead the line regardless of formation. The club also confirmed he has signed in time to be considered for a debut this weekend as Fulham make their way to Upton Park.
