Top of the table... again... for now...

What a match, though for all intents and purposes, the theatrics I could do without. Our boys were clearly the better side from start to finish and for us to have to come back from a 1-0 deficit to begin with, was the biggest joke of all. If Nugent was onside, then so was Kuyt (on his called-back goal, of course)... EASILY. Nothing surprises me from an Evertonian though, as Nugent showed his true scum colors by trying every move in the book to cheat Liverpool of three points. Sorry, son, you lost.

Like it or not, Rafa's tactics worked. Ngog was effective as his speed kept the Pompey back four at bay, scared to leave the Frenchman unmarked for more than a few seconds. Benayoun continued his brilliant form, causing chaos throughout the pitch. The only real disappointment was Babel, who missed a mind-blowing sitter (who the hell uses their right foot on a right to left cross?) and still failed to find the pass when covered by multiple defenders. Somebody is open, somewhere, even if you have to pass it back, it's better than losing possession. In his defense though, he scared the living crap out of the defenders with his threatening pace.

The most effective aspect of Rafa's gameplan? Resting Kuyt, Xabi, and Torres until later in the match. He used his younger and less worn players to wear down the opposition, which made them easy pickings when the more experienced came on.

One thing I found amusing, for two reasons actually, is how hard Crouch played. First, if he had played that hard for us, he'd probably still have a place on our squad and second, he was still pretty much ineffective.

My player of the match goes to Yossi Benayoun. He was effectively everywhere throughout and set-up the match winning goal. As for the rest of the squad, no one played particularly horrible, but I've seen better days from Babel and Mascherano. I would also like to add that Aurelio played particularly well for basically playing out-of-position at central midfield for a majority of the match.

I know I said in my pre-match blog that a goal against us would be embarrassing, but while watching the match I realized that a lot of our 'defensive-minded' players, saw this as more of an opportunity to show their attacking abilities and in that way, it sort of backfired. I wouldn't go as far as to call it 'delusions of grandeur' (except for in maybe Mascherano's case) though. Agger and Aurelio were far from incompetent in what they offered on attack.

Well, two weeks and a day until Man City. Let's hope for a healthy return for all our internationals. Cheers.

The Tinkerman tinkers versus Portsmouth

No Torres, Xabi, Riera, nor Kuyt to start. Strangeways here we come... again. Torres being worn and Xabi being knocked are understandable... somewhat, but the absences of Kuyt and Riera are a bit baffling. Cahill and Arteta as well as a plethora of others played today for Everton?

Anyways, with that said, I like when Benitez gambles, as long as it works, but today's line-up is severely defensive-minded. Five defenders plus Mascherano? Agger has the ability to play midfield as he is good enough on the ball and an adequate passer with the talent to make the occasional great play. Not sure if he's to start there along side Masche though. Dossena and Aurelio on the left should be interesting as both players like going forward. No matter what though, a Pompey goal against will be nothing short of embarrassing.

On the attack side, it's going to be up to Benayoun to lead. Yossi has been playing exceptionable lately though, hopefully that will rub off on Babel and Ngog. I also wouldn't be surprised to see Mascherano or even Carragher uncharacteristically forward. Here's to being back on top by the end of ninety.