Carling Cup 2011-2012 Season

Tuesday, 24 January 2012 Carling League Cup
Cardiff 1-0 Crystal Palace (agg 1-1) (Cardiff win 3-1 on penalties)

As you say Brian, I tough one to lose, but Palace have not been great away from home this year.
Cardiff just about edged it during open play but as Palace were down a man for all of extra time that was not really surprising.
For Cardiff goalkeeper to pull off two saves just when the game had been re-evened up by a penalty shoot out must have been a real blow.
Certainly little for Palace fans not to be proud of- One of those semi-finals where the order of the games (Palace at home first) also probably had quite an impact on the final result.

Tonight Cardiff find out who their opponents for Wembley will be. They will be major underdogs whichever side it is...

Wednesday, 25 January 2012 Carling League Cup
Liverpool v Man City, (agg 1-0), SF, L2, 19:45

Wednesday, 25 January 2012 Carling League Cup
Liverpool 2-2 Man City (agg 3-2)

Well just as with the previous day's semi final a cracking, well contested semi final.
One can only hope that the final at Wembley is anything like as good & competitive as the games that got the two finalists there.
The game was 'nip & tuck' all night with Citi twice bringing it back to level terms before a rather doubtful Gerrard penalty & a late strike from Bellamy finally put Pool through.

You have to think that the result matters an awful lot more to Pool than Citi.
The job of Mancini is never going to come or go on winning the Carling Cup. He had his 'minor prize' last year with the FA Cup. This time either the Premier League or the Europa Cup will be the owner's measuring block. If he doesn't win one of those & so they decide to part company winning the CC was never going to be enough to save him.
Rather different for Pool. It is another sign to the fans that King Kenny is turning the side around & challenging for success is just around the corner....Maybe, but I think that their is a huge amount of work to do at the club, still, before that is true.
Citi will challenge for everything again next year & with an even better squad.
Maybe 2 of the current Pool squad would be considered as possible buys by the Manchurians...
That is a huge difference in class.....

BobHelm wrote:

Wednesday, 25 January 2012 Carling League Cup
Liverpool 2-2 Man City (agg 3-2)

before a rather doubtful Gerrard penalty .

You said it Bob!
Whilst I've, so far, only seen the incident/goals briefly on Thai tv (getting up at 0230 hrs I only manage for the Palace), I thought this an awful refereeing decision.
Whilst appreciating there's more, let's call it 'professionalism' , in the game these days and referees are particularly on the look out for players seeking to gain an unfair advantage, my understanding of a free kick/penalty for handball, is that the player is deemed to deliberately put hand to ball. Here, the ball flew off the defender's boot to hand with him prone/committed to his block and how Dowd managed to think he moved his hand intentionally is beyond me.
Is it me? - but there seem to be more free kicks given these days if the ball comes in contact with a hand, but overlooking the intent aspect.

This starts off after the penalty has been given but then goes back at about 0.25 to show couple of views of the incident.

Harsh it is. Sadly the authorities seem to want to take all the tackling & (legally) throwing yourself at the ball out of the game. They are the things that help make English football worth watching (unlike its' Italian equivalent).
To punish a player trying to make a genuine attempt at blocking the ball with his body for handball is not a good decision I think...

At the risk of boring the pants off everyone, seeing the video again, Dowd is clearly suggesting the defender raised his arms to block the shot. But the ball only contacted the arm after a ricochet off the foot. In any case, the arms were not stretched out, raised above the head etc. but, in my opinion, in a natural position for a player throwing himself into a block. It's unrealistic to think a player will keep his arms straight against his body, a little in the same way a player will raise arms when jumping for the ball.
I am fully understanding of the difficult job referees have and mistakes are inevitable. But it would be nice if referees had the freedom to explain their decisions - and say they got it wrong, if necessary.

Pool will go into the match as heavy favourites.
It will be a major surprise if Cardiff pull off a win, but major surprises do happen...
Although maybe not this time, I think that the Pool players probably have just a bit too much knowledge about playing at the 'high end' of the game to freeze on the day...

Well the first competition of the season out of the way & won by Liverpool.
Just.
But the record books will only record that they won it & not that they were extremely fortunate to do so, against opposition from a division lower. Plus they failed to convert two of their five penalties...
The start of a new era under King Kenny???
Maybe...realistically they are still a huge distance behind either Arsenal or Chelsea, who are both struggling this season, let alone the gap between them & someone like Citi...
However a win is a win & the fans have been desperate for some sort of fillip to suggest that the good old days will return.
Hope is good, as long as it does not blind to the efforts & changes that are realistically necessary to reach the dreams.

Pool may have started the journey but it is a long one & many of the players (if not most) of those who start out on it will not make it...

Congratulations to Cardiff for never giving up on a game that most said was a lost cause before a ball was kicked. It will be disappointing to now get back to the daily grind of getting out of the Championship.
There are, just, still in a play off place but that is a mighty hard way to qualify for the Premiership.
To often a defeat in another competition can rub off with a slump in form in the main event. That is something Cardiff must guard against in the coming weeks..