Sport 27-10-2000 Heskey Rescues Limp Liverpool who: Liverpool what: Beat Slovan Liberec 1-0 where: Anfield, LIVERPOOL when: Last night snippet: "Emile Heskey rescued Liverpool two minutes from time after skipper Fowler missed a penalty and a hatful of chances," reports The Mirror from Anfield, where Liverpool last night beat Slovan Liberec 1-0 in the second round of the UEFA Cup. "Slovan Liberec never once hinted at ambition, rarely crossed the half-way line and placed so many men behind the ball that the evening was almost totally bereft of entertainment," says Ian Ross in The Guardian. "And yet, they headed home reflecting on arguably the most satisfying result in their distinctly unspectacular history." "At least Fowler had an excuse," says a none-too-charitable Oliver Kay in The Times, "having spent the previous night at his girlfriend`s bedside as she gave birth to their second daughter. Why his team-mates looked as if they had spent Wednesday evening without any sleep is a different matter." After being awarded a surprise penalty for "an innocuous challenge by Stajner on Hamann," says The Telegraph`s William Johnson, "Fowler showed he was not one to hide from responsibility, but his shot from 12 yards would probably go down as one of the wildest of his career, soaring yards over the crossbar." There never seemed any danger that Liverpool would lose, comments Mike Ellis in The Sun, but Heskey`s opportunistic shot from close range was a blessed relief and the team`s failure "to punish their inexperienced opponents was a cause for concern". [... more]

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