Red army holds firm

By Matthew Spiro

For years Italian clubs have been the masters of defending a slender lead, but as Liverpool FC held firm in Turin to earn a goalless draw in the second leg of their quarter-final against Juventus FC, Rafael Benítez's side gave Chelsea a worrying glimpse of what may be in store.

Keynote performance
Having lost all three of their games against Chelsea this season, Benítez now faces the enormous challenge of stifling Mourinho's men on home territory in the first leg of their semi-final at Stamford Bridge. However, their performance at the Stadio delle Alpi has proved that they can be wonderfully obstinate.

Juventus confident
Having already overturned a 1-0 first-leg deficit against Real Madrid CF in the first knockout round, Juventus seemed confident of repeating the feat in the quarter-final, after coming away from Anfield with an away goal in a 2-1 defeat. But a meticulously prepared Liverpool side turned in a masterful defensive display which ultimately reduced Juventus and their gifted array of stars to playing hopeful long balls.

Capello praise
In other parts of Europe, Liverpool's spoiling approach might have prompted complaints from the opposition camp, but Juventus manager Fabio Capello, himself one of Italy's finest tacticians, was the first to congratulate his opposite number. "One must give credit to Benítez," Capello said. "He prepared his side to get a draw and they managed to earn it."

Defensive change
Liverpool have invariably employed a four-man defence under Benítez, but the coach, who won the UEFA Cup with Valencia CF last season, changed the system for the trip to Turin. Djimi Traore was pushed into the centre alongside Sami Hyypiä and Jamie Carragher, while John Arne Riise and Stephen Finnan played as full-backs. "We trained very hard to prepare for this game and we have been repaid," said a delighted Benítez.

Hard working
Liverpool's holding midfield players, Xabi Alonso and Igor Bišcan, worked tirelessly to prevent Pavel Nedved and Alessandro Del Piero from running at their defence, while winger Mauro Camoranesi often found himself up against Riise and Traore.

Ibrahimovic frustrated
Juventus knew that if all else failed, they had a secret weapon in Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The Swedish striker has the ability to create a goal out of nothing, but every time he beat one defender, another covering player was on hand to block his route.

Important miss
The former AFC Ajax forward did break free in the eleventh minute, but fired his shot over. "If Zlatan had scored that chance, it would've been a different game," Capello said. The Bianconeri did not create another chance from open play, however, and Ibrahimovic was forced to take his frustration out on US Lecce four days later by scoring a hat-trick.

'That annoyed us'
Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon admitted that Liverpool's rigour had prevented them from playing their usual game. "Right from the start, it wasn't easy," said Buffon. "They defended very well and that annoyed us. We started playing long balls but that was too easy for them because they're very good in the air." Veteran forward Alessandro Del Piero added: "Liverpool had no intention of taking risks."

Tactical nous
"The gaffer got it spot-on tactically," said Riise after the game. "I was thinking afterwards how it wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be. But that's because of how organised we were." If Liverpool can show a similar stubbornness in London, a trip to Istanbul could be very much on the cards.