Final, 0-0: The referee blows the final whistle. The game ends in a goal-less draw.
Hull City held Liverpool in check, frustrating and repelling the Reds in this stalemate. Liverpool dominated possession and territory for most of the game but lacked the cutting edge required to beat the well-organized Tigers.
After struggling for the first hour, Liverpool improved in the second half, following Lambert and Coutinho’s entry. The two substitutes helped Liverpool’s combination play, creating more openings and scoring chances in the second period. Liverpool might have scored that crucial goal had Jakupovic not made a number of highlight-reel saves toward the end of the game.
Liverpool gains a point from the game, but the result and performance was a downer. The Reds were hoping for a sparkling showing and a win following Wednesday’s defeat, but they ultimately failed to deliver either.
That’s all for now and thanks for joining us. Let’s discuss this one on Twitter @NESNsoccer and Facebook. Be sure to keep an eye out for some news, fan reactions, analysis and opinion that is on the way on NESN.com.
90th minute +5, 0-0: Balotelli hits a side-footed shot (off of Coutinho’s delivery), but Jakupovic makes a save at point-blank range.
90th minute +2, 0-0: Jakupovic tips Coutinho’s long-range shot over the crossbar.
90th minute +1, 0-0: Lambert finds Gerrard with a lay-off pass at the top of Hull City’s penalty area. Gerrard dribbles into the box, but Jakupovic races off his line and blocks the Liverpool captain’s shot out for a corner kick.
90th minute, 0-0: There will be a minimum of four minutes of added time in the second half.
88th minute, 0-0: Liverpool wants a penalty kick, but the referee declines the home team’s appeals.
Balotelli and Davies were entangled in front of the Hull City goal. Balotelli went down, but the referee ruled the contact to be fair.
87th minute, 0-0: Meyler replaces Diame, as Hull City makes its final substitution.
86th minute, 0-0: Coutinho heads Gerrard’s free kick off target.
82nd minute, 0-0: Henderson is cautioned for an apparent dive inside the Hull City penalty area.
82nd minute, 0-0: We’re in the final 10 minutes of the game. We’ll find out if Liverpool will be rewarded for its patient approach.
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80th minute, 0-0: Hull City is containing Liverpool, as the Reds push forward. Aluko chases a clearance down the field, cuts inside and shoots, but his effort goes straight to Mignolet.
75th minute, 0-0: Liverpool makes its final substitution, as Henderson replaces Can for the last 15 minutes.
71st minute, 0-0: Hull City makes a pair of substitutions. Aluko comes on for Ben Arfa, and Ramirez replaces Hernandez.
The changes could revive Hull City’s attack, which has been dormant in the second half.
67th minute, 0-0: Liverpool has had all of the ball since the introductions of Coutinho and Lambert.
The Reds are pinning Hull City back, but the visitors are preventing the breakthrough with desperate blocks and tackles in the final third.
63rd minute, 0-0: Jakupovic saves Sterling’s shot moments after Balotelli failed to knock Can’s flick-on header into the goal from point-blank range.
61st minute, 0-0: Liverpool is making a double substitution.
Lallana and Allen exit. Lambert and Coutinho enter.
Liverpool will play with Lambert and Balotelli up front, as Rodgers changes his system for the last half-hour.
60th minute, 0-0: Gerrard misses wide with a low, curling shot from just outside the Hull City penalty area.
58th minute, 0-0: Hernandez turns and shoots from 22 yards out, but it flies straight into Mignolet’s waiting hands.
57th minute, 0-0: Balotelli is cautioned. The Liverpool striker appeared to elbow Bruce during and aerial challenge.
55th minute, 0-0: Sterling is cautioned for a tackle on Bradly, which left the Hull City midfielder down on the field writhing in pain.
55th minute, 0-0: Liverpool has got into threatening positions, but hasn’t managed to test Jakupovic so far in the second half but
50th minute, 0-0: Ben Arfa is cautioned for a late challenge on Gerrard.
46th minute, 0-0: The second half is underway.
Halftime, 0-0: The referee blows the whistle, signalling the end of the first half. It’s goal-less at Anfield.
Liverpool didn’t deliver the incisive and spirited performance for which their fans were hoping in the first half. The Reds started brightly and put Hull City under pressure. Lovren had the best chance to score with the early header. But Liverpool early dominance gradually faded as the half progressed.
Liverpool has the advantage in possession percentage but hasn’t translated that into scoring opportunities. Hull City have been well-organized and determined defensively, making it hard for the Reds to burst into the open spaces in their half.
45th minute, 0-0: Huddlestone shoots, but it deflects out for a corner.
Hull City is ending the first half strongly.
43rd minute, 0-0: Diame shoots wide.
42nd minute, 0-0: Ben Arfa bursts into Liverpool’s penalty area and slips but he still manages to find Livermore with a cut-back pass. Livermore shoots on goal. Mignolet saves it.
It was Hull City’s first genuine scoring chance of the game.
40th minute, 0-0: Huddlestone is cautioned for a foul on Can.
38th minute, 0-0: There are nervous sounds at Anfield, as the game nears halftime.
34th minute, 0-0: Mignolet beats Hernandez with a nice piece of skill. The gasps from the crowd take the focus away from an opportunity Allen spoiled at the other end.
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28th minute, 0-0: Allen shoots wide from around 20 yards out.
25th minute, 0-0: However, Hull City isn’t backing down. The Tigers have packed the midfield with bodies, who are closing down the spaces well. Hull City’s pressure is disrupting the flow to Liverpool’s passing, making the game very competitive.
18th minute, 0-0:Â The first quarter-hour went well for Liverpool. The Reds are creating scoring chances with their quick passing and movement. The score could be 2-0 right now if not for Jakupovic and Elmohamady’s goal-line heroics.
13th minute, 0-0:Â Balotelli receives Sterling’s pass on the turn and fires a shot on goal, but Jakupovic turns it away.
10th minute, 0-0: Lovren heads Gerrard’s corner on goal, but Elmohamady heads it off the goal line.
A few seconds pass, Lovren then has a follow-up strike, which Hull City blocks. It comes back to Lovren, who shoots over the crossbar.
Eighth minute, 0-0: Sterling goes down in the Hull City penalty area under Brady’s challenge. The home fans want a penalty kick, but the referee rules in Hull City’s favor.
Fifth minute, 0-0: Can is down in pain after Huddlestone’s tackle caught his ankle. The German midfielder is receiving treatment, and it looks like he’ll be able to continue.
Fifth minute, 0-0: Hull City has started the game on the front foot.
Fourth minute, 0-0: Ben Arfa charges forward, dribbling thirty yards before laying off a pass to the right. Gerrard intercepts the delivery, but it was a dangerous sequence for the visitors.
Kickoff: The Premier League game between Liverpool and Hull City is underway at Anfield.
Pregame: Rodgers has made a few changes to the starting 11 he fielded against Real Madrid on Wednesday.
Manquillo starts ahead of Johnson at the right fullback position.
Can, 20, replaces Henderson in the midfield. Henderson, Liverpool’s vice-captain, has gone 90 minutes in each of the Reds’ first eight league games this season. Rodgers has elected to swap Henderson for Can, who starts for the second time in 2014-15.
Lallana starts ahead of Coutinho. Lallana will play either as an attacking midfielder or wide forward against Hull City.
Balotelli retains his place in the starting 11. Balotelli still is looking to score his first Premier League goal with Liverpool. The Italian has drawn blanks in his first six outings.
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9:30 a.m.: Here are the lineups:
Liverpool
Simon Mignolet (22), goalkeeper
Alberto Moreno (18), left back
Dejan Lovren (6), center back
Martin Skrtel (37), center back
Javier Manquillo (19), right back
Steven Gerrard (8), midfielder
Joe Allen (24), midfielder
Emre Can (23), midfielder
Adam Lallana (20), forward
Raheem Sterling (31), forward
Mario Balotelli (45), striker
Substitutes
Brad Jones (1), goalkeeper
Kolo Toure (4), defender
Glen Johnson (2), defender
Jordan Henderson (14), midfielder
Philippe Coutinho (10), midfielder
Lazar Markovic (50), forward
Rickie Lambert (9), striker
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Hull City
Eldin Jakupovic (16), goalkeeper
Alex Bruce (4), center back
Curtis Davies (6), center back
James Chester (5), center back
Ahmed Elmohamady (27), midfielder
Tom Huddlestone (8), midfielder
Mohamed Diame (17), midfielder
Jake Livermore (14), midfielder
Robbie Brady (11), forward
Hatem Ben Arfa, forward
Abel Hernandrez (9), striker
Substitutes
Rory Watson (35), goalkeeper
Paul MacShane (15), defender
Liam Rosenior (2), defender
David Meyler (7), midfielder
Stepehn Quinn (29), midfielder
Gaston Ramirez (25), midfielder
Sone Aluko (24), striker
8:30 a.m. ET:Â Liverpool can make it a quick turnaround — both literally and figuratively.
Liverpool returns to Premier League action Saturday, as Hull City makes its first visit to Anfield in 2014-15. For Liverpool, the game comes just three days after Wednesday’s 3-0 loss to Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League, and the Reds are hoping to use lessons from that European setback to fuel their ongoing domestic revival.
Liverpool remains work-in-progress. Results and performances have been mixed, as manager Brendan Rodgers looks to re-instill the principles that worked so well last season. But the calendar is offering up a glut of games, giving the Liverpool boss less time to work on tightening his team’s defense and sharpening its attacking thrust.
Liverpool has won two-straight Premier League games, taking it up to fifth in the standings. Hull City presents an opportunity for the Reds to make it three in a row on the domestic front. Hull City occupies 11th place in the standings, having taken 10 points from its first eight games.
The teams split last season’s meetings — Hull City won 3-1 in December at the KC Stadium, and the Reds earned a 2-0 win at Anfield on New Year’s Day.
Liverpool-Hull City kicks off at 10 a.m. ET. Stay right here for all the action from Anfield.
