Anigo hails Vélodrome faithful

By Matthew Spiro in Marseille

Olympique de Marseille coach José Anigo dedicated his side's victory against Liverpool FC in the UEFA Cup fourth round to the club's supporters who he said "have been made to suffer far too much" this season. 
 
Marseille fightback
The French club put their miserable domestic form behind them at the Stade Vélodrome, coming from a goal behind to win 2-1 and qualify for a quarter-final against FC Internazionale with a 3-2 aggregate victory. A delighted Anigo said: "This club has had so little to cheer in recent months, more than anything else I'm happy to see the smiles back on the faces of the Marseille people. I like seeing this town singing and dancing like it was tonight and I want to savour this moment."

Heskey strikes first
For the first 37 minutes it looked like the evening would end very differently as Liverpool took complete control. Emile Heskey edged the visitors ahead on 14 minutes and they had several openings to extend their advantage. "Liverpool could have finished the tie off in that period," Anigo admitted.

Bišcan off
But the match swung Marseille's way shortly before the break when Steve Marlet was tugged back by Igor Bišcan as he bore down on goal. The referee dismissed Bišcan for a professional foul and Didier Drogba lashed in the resulting penalty to score his second of the tie. "It completely changed the match," Anigo went on. "Liverpool were better than us in every department before then, but we used our numerical advantage very cleverly in the second half and I am proud of my team."

'Really down'
Defender Abdoulaye Méïté was Marseille's unlikely hero, heading the winner on 58 minutes to leave Liverpool manager Gérard Houllier disconsolate. "I feel really down because we have lost a game that we should not have lost," said Houllier. "If we had been beaten 3-0 or 4-0 then I'd hold my hands up and say 'Well done Marseille'. But we showed that we were the better team in the first half an hour. We had a plan and it was working to perfection - but that all went out the window with the sending off." 
 
Tactical reorganisation
Liverpool switched to a three-man defence following Bišcan's red card, with the outstanding Steven Gerrard moving from central midfield to right wing-back, and Houllier claimed that unsettled his side. "Stevie was having such an influential game and after he moved to the right he had less of an impact. It was a shame but I had to sacrifice him for the sake of the team." 
 
Barthez decisive
The Liverpool boss did, however, praise Marseille goalkeeper Fabien Barthez. "Barthez basically won the tie with his excellent performances - especially the two saves he made in the first leg. If we'd won 2-1 or 3-1 at Anfield we'd have gone through." Marseille wing-back Manuel Dos Santos agreed with Houllier, saying to uefa.com: "It gives us so much confidence to play in front of Fabien. Towards the end tonight, when Liverpool were putting us under pressure, he was a tower of strength." 
 
'Major setback'
Liverpool are set to finish the season without a trophy, but Houllier insisted there was still much to play for. "Tonight is a major setback but it is in the past now," he explained. "We have to forget about it and make sure we keep that fourth place in the Premiership. We have nine games to play and they will be like nine cup finals."