Lille against Liverpool

El Zahr - lesser spotted these days - dinks in a ball. Nothing doing as Lille get it away.

A scramble aplenty in the Lille area. Neither Gerrard or Torres can get on the end of it and Torres looked to make a claim for a penalty that was as bad as Lille's earlier silliness. Desperation taking hold?

El Zahr on for Kuyt - who's had an anonymous game.

Gerrard loses the ball on the edge of the area. Balmont dinks it to Pierre Aubameyang and he crashes a shot off the outside of the post. Close, very close.

But Lille go on the attack and now Carragher has to head away for a throw.

Liverpool suddenly need to step this up. An away goal at Anfield and it could be curtains.

1-0 to Lille. A nightmare ball to deal with from Reina. The curse of zonal marking? No-one took responsibility at all.

Free-kick chance for Lille. The ball is pinged in by Hazard and it drifts past everybody, past Reina and into the net.

Ludovic Obraniak vacates the scene for Lille. Toure on.

Hazard tries to win a penalty. Carragher came across him and it was a pathetic attempt. Nothing given.

The Liverpool fans will be looking forward to their bevvy. This has not been a game to remember.

Lucas fouled. Liverpool take their time. No sense of hurry or urgency. Lucas overhits it. Zzzz.

Balmont runs it out and shows a heavy touch for once.

Free-kick to Lille. Carragher again equal to the crossed ball and it is cleared.

Gerrard's long ball to Torres is well off-beam. Poor in fact. No blaming the pitch there.

Riera hits the wall. Twice. Woeful stuff from him. He must hope Del Bosque was not watching.

Torres fouled. Free-kick chance. Gerrard to take again.

New Lille sub - Pierre Aubameyang on for Frau.

Action! Dumont's shot hit Reina in the face and he had to recover his bearings and composure to claim the ball.

Ok, I'm going to say it: 75 minutes gone and it's still awful...

Balmont tackles Gerrard. Obraniak's ball in is stopped by Carragher and Gerrard has it back. Torres is lurking but the ball has not found him.

Riera has had a stop-start season and could do with a good showing. He has ambitions of South Africa after all.

Some chances to be made. Riera on for Babel for Liverpool. Dumont on for Lille for Cabaye, whose recent effort can't save him from the hook.

Cabaye tries from distance. That was well hit but it flies over. Reina did not look particularly comfortable there.

Balmont - man of the match because he's worked so far - tries his best to force a chance for the home team. The lack of their Ivorian striker Gervinho has been telling.

Now Liverpool try to quieten the Lille fans. But the ball is put out of play as Insua lets it run too far. The thrills continue...

Carragher does well to chase back and play it back to Reina. This has been a game lacking in smooth play and that was a rare example.

Gerrard now for Torres. The striker thinks he was fouled and delivers a mouthful. He is booked. Silly boy.

Balmont seizes on some lax defending and makes it to the by-line. Carragher's knee nearly diverts the ball goalward. A let-off.

Lovely shot from Frau. Reina punched it away in odd fashion.

Liverpool will want an away goal you fancy. 0-0 is decent but a knife-edge position to find yourself in.

Free-kick pumped in and Carragher heads away.

Obraniak fouled by Torres. The Spaniard claims he didn't foul. He was very angry indeed...

Liverpool have a corner. Gerrard takes. Landreau punches and Lille break. Insua commits a foul and then disputes the decision. Booked for dissent. Lille fans' dander is up.

Torres is outnumbered as he attempts to make something out of very little. Liverpool fans belt out the "Fields of Anfield Road". Now, I don't know about you, but there seemed to be very few fields around those parts last time I looked.

Babel then has a fine chance that Landreau is equal to. Good save from the Lille keeper and nice cut-in from the Dutchman.

Gerrard makes an attempt to claim for a penalty. It was, quite simply, laughable. Johnson went down and only Stevie thought it worthy of asking the ref. He's getting a reputation for this type of thing.

Torres is offside from a hopeful hoof. Cabaye on the charge and looked to fall. But he was not going to get anything from that despite Carragher's hand coming out.

Mavuba's surge is eventually thwarted but then Carragher is caught kicking a nine-iron-style shot up into the air. And it drifts out. Where's there's blame there's a claim and "Carra" will apportion that to the pitch.

Torres stopped in his tracks after a neat juggling session. Neither team doing much to retain possession. This is no classic.

Obraniak gets to the by-line and Carragher is forced to clear with some element of hurriedness.

Kuyt's flick leads to a Lucas attempt. A snap shot, it drifts wide. Enterprising play from him though.

The ball is in the net but Hazard was offside. A section of the crowd was up in celebration. But no dice for them. On second thoughts, that was onside. Let-off for Liverpool...

Balmont's lofted ball was hit with not enough purchase and Reina came out to claim.

Johnson tackled and Lille are attacking. Obraniak's pass was intercepted by an unwitting Carragher.

A quiet crowd in northern France. A quiet game too.

Free-kick comes to naught when Hazard is judged to be pushing.

Torres on a weaving run but his ball to Gerrard is blocked. Lille attack. Insua commits a foul and it's a free-kick.

Game starts with a long hoof from Liverpool. Babel seizes on it but his shot is blocked. A start that signals intent? Maybe.

A guitar solo version of "Amazing Grace" pumps out at Lille as the second half is due to get back underway.

And that's the last action of a half that has hardly excited but is promising for Liverpool in that they have weathered a French storm.

Edge of the area. Cabaye hits it with plenty of swing but not enough dip. That's a goal-kick.

Free-kick to Lille. Mascherano with a foul from behind on Frau.

Great run from Hazard. Lovely combination of pace and skill but his shot is not hit with the required speed. Reina saves with comfort. That lifted the home fans.

A poor touch in truth. Blame the pitch.

Mascherano stopped Cabaye's burst and Liverpool break. Johnson's ball in and Torres fails to get on the end of it.

Decent area for a free-kick. Gerrard to take. He fires one in. Good save from Landreau and Johnson plays in a fine pass. Torres' header saved again but then Babel commits a foul. The French keeper did rather well there.

Torres sets off like a greyhound. Off he goes and Lille have to foul him to stop him.

Obraniak's ball cleared by Carragher. Balmont seizes on it and heads down the wing. But it's cleared.

Lucas, yes, Lucas. He's playing and he fouls Balmont.

That's cleared by Johnson. Insua clears at the second phase. Lille with plenty of the ball but lacking in guile.

There is a game on. Honest. Agger fouls Balmont. Time for Lille to get the ball pumped in.

Nope, he's back up. Looks like he strained an abdominal injury. He'll be back.

Babel tackled and falls to the ground. Boos ring out as he writhes. Looks like a muscle injury as he got caugh in the turf. Three weeks out - I am trying to play the doctor - others do it.

Johnson forearm smashes Frau. Then Babel commits a foul. Not much else happening. I await that turning over a curse.

Long cross into the box. Just Frau there and it's cleared. Lille need another forward if they are to threaten at all.

Reina has a chance to smash a kick long. But Lille get it back and Cabaye sets off and Frau fires over.

Carragher heads away. Johnson then concedes a throw.

Babel and Torres run into each other and stumble on the surface. This is a surface that does not allow much for their dainty footwork.

Emerson and Balmont link. Long ball from Beria and nothing comes from it.

Torres goes down like a sack of spuds. He took a boot to the face from Emerson. An accident and the game restarts after his face is wiped.

But then Agger clears. Ideas running out for an initially enterprising Lille.

Lille now choose to retain some calm and play keep-ball. Mavuba fouled by Masherano after a pirouette.

Does this signal a revival? Perhaps so. Nerves from Lille before Insua is wasteful.

Torres the target of a long hoof. He gives up rather too easily. But then Torres gets the ball and gives it Babel. He's through on goal and Landreau saves when he should have been beaten. Best chance of the game.

Gerrard penalised. He looked bemused but no v-sign this time.

Free-kick drifts into the area and Reina claims. He then release Torres with a long smash downfield. But Liverpool lose it. Poor fare so far.

Lille lack a striker as Frau is being treated for a bang to the head. He soom returns.

Benitez is writing in his notebook. "Could do better"? "Creating chances?" "Controlling the game"?

Agger's long pass is nodded down by Gerrard. Glen Johnson overlaps and then crosses the ball. But the ref said he'd run it out and Liverpool cannot profit. The extra officials called into rare play then.

Cabaye's ball had Reina chasing as Mavuba threatened. Liverpool now choose to slow it down.

Liverpool have weathered the storm themselves but are yet to do much apart from that Torres burst.

Beria burst wide on a ball from Balmont. But he let it run out. Beaten by the shonky pitch, one imagines.

Boomed in by Ludovic Obraniak and flicked on. Silly punch by Reina who got somewhat lucky.

Free-kick to Lille...

Torres slips over on the pitch. A worry for Liverpool? No, he's back up. Babel meanwhile is dogged in chasing down Beria.

This is a difficult assignment so far for Liverpool.

Torres awakes from his slumber. A typical burst and Babel can go but a corner is all Liverpool get. That's cleared with some ease.

Lille off again. Crossed ball from Balmont that Reina claims. The French team break in numbers but are yet to hit their centre-forward. Gervinho is absent for them.

Gerrard loses the ball - not his night so far. He then waves his arms in anger after Babel gives away a cheap free-kick. They've been warned about all that finger-pointing.

Second-best so far. But then Lille are hurried by some harrying. Frau smashes away.

Wondeful run by Hazard. Insua left for dead and the ball across the goal was a decent one. No-one took the gamble to get on the end and that was a let-off for Liverpool.

Break on? No, Babel loses it and it's Lille who can charge. Liverpool all over the show and Cabaye's shot is blocked by a team-mate. Then, a cross drifts over before Insua can breathe enough to clear.

Ludovic Obraniak baulked by Carragher but only a throw given. Then Balmont on the burst and Lille continue to pressure.

Maybe now they can attack. No, Kuyt's ball to Babel balloons out wide on the left.

Frau again on the wing, ball played in but Carragher is alert to the danger. Lille are up for this. Are Liverpool? Difficult to say - they have barely touched it.

Johnson, back after that lay-off, quells mounting danger and Liverpool vainly attempt an attack. Gerrard loses the flight of the ball and it's back with Lille.

Keep-ball session from the French. Frau and Cabaye link and Agger has to hoof clear as Lille threaten. A slow start from Liverpool. We've said that before.

Masherano penalised for a foul and Lille play back to their keeper.

Liverpool need to clear. Taken short by Balmont and Lille fail to get the ball into the danger zone. A waste.

Torres attempts a wriggle through but Lille break away at pace. A corner is forced too.

And out for a throw. But Liverpool soon cede possession and Cabaye hits a shot that Reina saves. The ball took a funny turn and it seems that was because it has deflated. New balls please!

And Lille get us on the go. And immediately hoof the ball long.

Liverpool in all white - booze advertising is banned in France.

Destination Hamburg? Let's see for Liverpool...

There's some rather natty waving of some flags in what looks like a rather small stadium. Lille played their Champions League games in Paris in the days when they beat Manchester United but these municipal grounds in Le Hexagone always generate a boisterous old noise.

Lille are free-scoring in the French league and this is a pitch that Rafa Benitez has already used as a means to get his excuse in early.

So, Rafael Benitez makes yet another attempt to salvage his team's season. He's gone full bore with his selection - his next game in England is vs Portsmouth on Monday so he has time to play with. That's live on ESPN of course....

Join us at 18.00 GMT to see if Liverpool can turn around their recent performances with an away trip to the impressive Lille in the Europa League.

Riera hits the wall. Twice. Woeful stuff from him. He must hope Del Bosque was not watching.

Torres fouled. Free-kick chance. Gerrard to take again.

New Lille sub - Pierre Aubameyang on for Frau.

Action! Dumont's shot hit Reina in the face and he had to recover his bearings and composure to claim the ball.

Ok, I'm going to say it: 75 minutes gone and it's still awful...

Balmont tackles Gerrard. Obraniak's ball in is stopped by Carragher and Gerrard has it back. Torres is lurking but the ball has not found him.

Riera has had a stop-start season and could do with a good showing. He has ambitions of South Africa after all.

Some chances to be made. Riera on for Babel for Liverpool. Dumont on for Lille for Cabaye, whose recent effort can't save him from the hook.

Cabaye tries from distance. That was well hit but it flies over. Reina did not look particularly comfortable there.

Balmont - man of the match because he's worked so far - tries his best to force a chance for the home team. The lack of their Ivorian striker Gervinho has been telling.

Now Liverpool try to quieten the Lille fans. But the ball is put out of play as Insua lets it run too far. The thrills continue...

Carragher does well to chase back and play it back to Reina. This has been a game lacking in smooth play and that was a rare example.

Gerrard now for Torres. The striker thinks he was fouled and delivers a mouthful. He is booked. Silly boy.

Balmont seizes on some lax defending and makes it to the by-line. Carragher's knee nearly diverts the ball goalward. A let-off.

Lovely shot from Frau. Reina punched it away in odd fashion.

Liverpool will want an away goal you fancy. 0-0 is decent but a knife-edge position to find yourself in.

Free-kick pumped in and Carragher heads away.

Obraniak fouled by Torres. The Spaniard claims he didn't foul. He was very angry indeed...

Liverpool have a corner. Gerrard takes. Landreau punches and Lille break. Insua commits a foul and then disputes the decision. Booked for dissent. Lille fans' dander is up.

Torres is outnumbered as he attempts to make something out of very little. Liverpool fans belt out the "Fields of Anfield Road". Now, I don't know about you, but there seemed to be very few fields around those parts last time I looked.

Babel then has a fine chance that Landreau is equal to. Good save from the Lille keeper and nice cut-in from the Dutchman.

Gerrard makes an attempt to claim for a penalty. It was, quite simply, laughable. Johnson went down and only Stevie thought it worthy of asking the ref. He's getting a reputation for this type of thing.

Torres is offside from a hopeful hoof. Cabaye on the charge and looked to fall. But he was not going to get anything from that despite Carragher's hand coming out.

Mavuba's surge is eventually thwarted but then Carragher is caught kicking a nine-iron-style shot up into the air. And it drifts out. Where's there's blame there's a claim and "Carra" will apportion that to the pitch.

Torres stopped in his tracks after a neat juggling session. Neither team doing much to retain possession. This is no classic.

Obraniak gets to the by-line and Carragher is forced to clear with some element of hurriedness.

Kuyt's flick leads to a Lucas attempt. A snap shot, it drifts wide. Enterprising play from him though.

The ball is in the net but Hazard was offside. A section of the crowd was up in celebration. But no dice for them. On second thoughts, that was onside. Let-off for Liverpool...

Balmont's lofted ball was hit with not enough purchase and Reina came out to claim.

Johnson tackled and Lille are attacking. Obraniak's pass was intercepted by an unwitting Carragher.

A quiet crowd in northern France. A quiet game too.

Free-kick comes to naught when Hazard is judged to be pushing.

Torres on a weaving run but his ball to Gerrard is blocked. Lille attack. Insua commits a foul and it's a free-kick.

Game starts with a long hoof from Liverpool. Babel seizes on it but his shot is blocked. A start that signals intent? Maybe.

A guitar solo version of "Amazing Grace" pumps out at Lille as the second half is due to get back underway.

And that's the last action of a half that has hardly excited but is promising for Liverpool in that they have weathered a French storm.

Edge of the area. Cabaye hits it with plenty of swing but not enough dip. That's a goal-kick.

Free-kick to Lille. Mascherano with a foul from behind on Frau.

Great run from Hazard. Lovely combination of pace and skill but his shot is not hit with the required speed. Reina saves with comfort. That lifted the home fans.

A poor touch in truth. Blame the pitch.

Mascherano stopped Cabaye's burst and Liverpool break. Johnson's ball in and Torres fails to get on the end of it.

Decent area for a free-kick. Gerrard to take. He fires one in. Good save from Landreau and Johnson plays in a fine pass. Torres' header saved again but then Babel commits a foul. The French keeper did rather well there.

Torres sets off like a greyhound. Off he goes and Lille have to foul him to stop him.

Obraniak's ball cleared by Carragher. Balmont seizes on it and heads down the wing. But it's cleared.

Lucas, yes, Lucas. He's playing and he fouls Balmont.

That's cleared by Johnson. Insua clears at the second phase. Lille with plenty of the ball but lacking in guile.

There is a game on. Honest. Agger fouls Balmont. Time for Lille to get the ball pumped in.

Nope, he's back up. Looks like he strained an abdominal injury. He'll be back.

Babel tackled and falls to the ground. Boos ring out as he writhes. Looks like a muscle injury as he got caugh in the turf. Three weeks out - I am trying to play the doctor - others do it.

Johnson forearm smashes Frau. Then Babel commits a foul. Not much else happening. I await that turning over a curse.

Long cross into the box. Just Frau there and it's cleared. Lille need another forward if they are to threaten at all.

Reina has a chance to smash a kick long. But Lille get it back and Cabaye sets off and Frau fires over.

Carragher heads away. Johnson then concedes a throw.

Babel and Torres run into each other and stumble on the surface. This is a surface that does not allow much for their dainty footwork.

Emerson and Balmont link. Long ball from Beria and nothing comes from it.

Torres goes down like a sack of spuds. He took a boot to the face from Emerson. An accident and the game restarts after his face is wiped.

But then Agger clears. Ideas running out for an initially enterprising Lille.

Lille now choose to retain some calm and play keep-ball. Mavuba fouled by Masherano after a pirouette.

Does this signal a revival? Perhaps so. Nerves from Lille before Insua is wasteful.

Torres the target of a long hoof. He gives up rather too easily. But then Torres gets the ball and gives it Babel. He's through on goal and Landreau saves when he should have been beaten. Best chance of the game.

Gerrard penalised. He looked bemused but no v-sign this time.

Free-kick drifts into the area and Reina claims. He then release Torres with a long smash downfield. But Liverpool lose it. Poor fare so far.

Lille lack a striker as Frau is being treated for a bang to the head. He soom returns.

Benitez is writing in his notebook. "Could do better"? "Creating chances?" "Controlling the game"?

Agger's long pass is nodded down by Gerrard. Glen Johnson overlaps and then crosses the ball. But the ref said he'd run it out and Liverpool cannot profit. The extra officials called into rare play then.

Cabaye's ball had Reina chasing as Mavuba threatened. Liverpool now choose to slow it down.

Liverpool have weathered the storm themselves but are yet to do much apart from that Torres burst.

Beria burst wide on a ball from Balmont. But he let it run out. Beaten by the shonky pitch, one imagines.

Boomed in by Ludovic Obraniak and flicked on. Silly punch by Reina who got somewhat lucky.

Free-kick to Lille...

Torres slips over on the pitch. A worry for Liverpool? No, he's back up. Babel meanwhile is dogged in chasing down Beria.

This is a difficult assignment so far for Liverpool.

Torres awakes from his slumber. A typical burst and Babel can go but a corner is all Liverpool get. That's cleared with some ease.

Lille off again. Crossed ball from Balmont that Reina claims. The French team break in numbers but are yet to hit their centre-forward. Gervinho is absent for them.

Gerrard loses the ball - not his night so far. He then waves his arms in anger after Babel gives away a cheap free-kick. They've been warned about all that finger-pointing.

Second-best so far. But then Lille are hurried by some harrying. Frau smashes away.

Wondeful run by Hazard. Insua left for dead and the ball across the goal was a decent one. No-one took the gamble to get on the end and that was a let-off for Liverpool.

Break on? No, Babel loses it and it's Lille who can charge. Liverpool all over the show and Cabaye's shot is blocked by a team-mate. Then, a cross drifts over before Insua can breathe enough to clear.

Ludovic Obraniak baulked by Carragher but only a throw given. Then Balmont on the burst and Lille continue to pressure.

Maybe now they can attack. No, Kuyt's ball to Babel balloons out wide on the left.

Frau again on the wing, ball played in but Carragher is alert to the danger. Lille are up for this. Are Liverpool? Difficult to say - they have barely touched it.

Johnson, back after that lay-off, quells mounting danger and Liverpool vainly attempt an attack. Gerrard loses the flight of the ball and it's back with Lille.

Keep-ball session from the French. Frau and Cabaye link and Agger has to hoof clear as Lille threaten. A slow start from Liverpool. We've said that before.

Masherano penalised for a foul and Lille play back to their keeper.

Liverpool need to clear. Taken short by Balmont and Lille fail to get the ball into the danger zone. A waste.

Torres attempts a wriggle through but Lille break away at pace. A corner is forced too.

And out for a throw. But Liverpool soon cede possession and Cabaye hits a shot that Reina saves. The ball took a funny turn and it seems that was because it has deflated. New balls please!

And Lille get us on the go. And immediately hoof the ball long.

Liverpool in all white - booze advertising is banned in France.

Destination Hamburg? Let's see for Liverpool...

There's some rather natty waving of some flags in what looks like a rather small stadium. Lille played their Champions League games in Paris in the days when they beat Manchester United but these municipal grounds in Le Hexagone always generate a boisterous old noise.

Lille are free-scoring in the French league and this is a pitch that Rafa Benitez has already used as a means to get his excuse in early.

So, Rafael Benitez makes yet another attempt to salvage his team's season. He's gone full bore with his selection - his next game in England is vs Portsmouth on Monday so he has time to play with. That's live on ESPN of course....

Join us at 18.00 GMT to see if Liverpool can turn around their recent performances with an away trip to the impressive Lille in the Europa League.