Liverpool v Chelsea 1-1;Riise own-goal gives Chelsea hope

Liverpool’s John Arne Riise accidentally headed the ball into his own net in the fifth minute of injury time, giving Chelsea a 1-1 tie Tuesday night in the first leg of the Champions League semifinals.

Dirk Kuyt put Liverpool ahead in the 43rd minute when he beat goalkeeper Petr Cech from close range after Javier Mascherano’s mis-hit spun over Chelsea’s Claude Makelele.

But Riise tied it when his diving header to clear Salomon Kalou’s cross for Nicolas Anelka went in from about 5 yards. Goalkeeper Pepe Reina had no chance to stop the ball.

“These ties are decided on small details, and unfortunately the little bit of luck’s gone to Chelsea at the end,” Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard said. “But maybe we’ll get a bit of luck at Stanford Bridge. No fingers pointed at John; we’re all in this together.”

Liverpool and Chelsea are meeting in the semifinals for the third time in four seasons. Liverpool advanced in 2005 and 2007 but played the second leg of the total-goals series at home. The teams meet April 30 at London, with the winner advancing to the May 21 final against Manchester United or Barcelona, who play their first leg Wednesday in Spain.

“I think we deserved definitely to get the draw at the end,” Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard said. “They had chances, we had chances. It was a battle and we carried on to the end.”

Liverpool co-owner Tom Hicks met with manager Rafa Benitez before the game and attended his first match at Anfield since December. Fans flicked abusive hand signals at the Texan as he appeared to join in the club anthem “You’ll Never Walk Alone” before the game while his son, Tom Hicks Jr., waved a Liverpool scarf. Chelsea fans bellowed taunts of “U-S-A! U-S-A!” during the early stages of the match.

Hicks is being blamed for threatening to block George Gillett Jr. from selling of his 50 percent stake in the Premier League club to Dubai International Capital. Gillett had been planning to also attend but he didn’t travel to northern England on doctors’ advice.

Police warned the club about the fans potentially targeting Hicks and Gillett.
“Security advice was provided to the club based on standard ongoing risk assessments,” the Merseyside Police said. “As with any other event, the safety of all those attending has been considered.” (source; yahoo/ap)