BENDTNER PUNISHES LACKLUSTRE LIVERPOOL
SUNDERLAND, United Kingdom, March 10, 2012 (AFP) – Sunderland striker Nicklas Bendtner clinched a 1-0 win over Liverpool as the Reds crashed to their third consecutive Premier League defeat for the first time since October 2003.
Bendtner got the only goal early in the second half to leave Liverpool stuck in seventh place and continue Sunderland's revival under boss Martin O'neill, who has led the Black Cats to within two points of Kenny Dalglish's team.
The Anfield club's top four hopes look increasingly slender and Dalglish cut a puzzled figure in the technical area as his team looked toothless in attack from start to finish at the Stadium of Light. Much had been made of Liverpool's inefficiencies going forward
and once again they struggled to make inroads towards the Sunderland goal.
It has been their scoring problems – highlighted by just 30 goals in the Premier League this season – that have prevented them from mounting a sustained challenge for a Champions League spot. And it didn't take long for Sunderland to sense they could take advantage. Sunderland had created two decent chances before Liverpool had even thought about breaking in behind the home defence. John O'shea, the hosts' standin skipper in the absence of the suspended Lee Cattermole, flicked a Seb Larsson free-kick from close to half way over goalkeeper Pepe Reina's goal. And when on-loan Arsenal forward Bendtner got in behind Jose Enrique to bring down Phil Bardsley's searching cross-field pass, there was an opportunity to find the early break through.
Bendtner, though, was caught in two minds and his cut back cruised between both Craig Gardner and Fraizer Campbell and Liverpool survived.