Pre-Season Friendly
Wrexham 2 v 3 Liverpool
Saturday, 7 July, 2007

Goals -
Wrexham: Eifion Williams (64)(89)
Liverpool: Besian Idrizaj (5)(17)(24)

IT really was a game of two halves, and in the end Brian Carey's Wrexham side did themselves proud against one of European football's powerhouses.

Both Carey and Rafa Benitez named separate sides for each half, an arrangement which was broadly kept to, and the fans were treated to two very different matches as a result.  Liverpool led 3-0 at half time, Austrian youngster Besian Idrizaj benefitting to the tune of three goals from some outstanding approach play by Jermaine Pennant., but in the second half it was new boy Eifion Williams who stood out with two well-taken goals, much to the delight of the home fans and the gratification of Carey

In truth Carey's first half side started well, but as often happens when sides from different leagues clash, it was the difference in quality in the final third which proved decisive.  Despite some promising interplay and plenty of possession in the first twenty minutes, Wrexham failed to create a decent effort on goal in the entire first half and were made to pay a heavy price.

Carey's testing of a new 4-3-3 system saw the likes of Chris Llewellyn, Matty Done and Mike Carvill adapting to subtly different roles with some success, but the lack of cover it afforded the full-backs was to prove decisive as Jermaine Pennant was allowed a free run at Mike Williams with devastating consequences.  In the fifth minute a quick free kick following a Steve Evans handball set Pennant away and when he pulled the ball back into the goalmouth Jordy Brouwer laid it off for Idrizaj to smash gleefully in from ten yards.

Liverpool's next decent attack led to another goal: Pennant timed his run perfectly to get in behind the defence and he showed his class, coolly weighing up his options as he cut in along the goal line before floating a perfect cross onto the head of Idrizaj, who made no mistake.

Idrizaj's nineteen-minute hat-trick was completed when Pennant set off on another charge down the right, pulling a cross to the near post where Idrizaj headed in from close range.  Liverpool's superiority was such that they could even score that goal when down to ten men as Brouwer had left the pitch to change his boots.

The concern for the Wrexham fans was now that this side, which was considerably stronger than the second half eleven, would be demoralised by the beating they were taking.  Certainly the blow of a third goal seemed to have an impact as their attacking threat petered out and they appeared in danger of taking a beating. 

Alfaro Arbeloa, hardly known for his attacking menace, broke clear and hit a shot from a tight angle which Anthony Williams did well to palm into the side-netting, the unsighted referee giving a goal kick, and Pennant drove a shot from the edge of the area which was too close to the keeper.

However, the main reason Wrexham's wilting side did not concede more before the break was the sudden profligacy of Idrizaj; having been so clinical in taking his goals, he now missed two easier chances.  The first came when an Arbeloa cross deceived Williams, who came but could not reach it.  Presented with a sight of an open goal from a tight angle, Idrizaj even missed the side-netting!

However, his next miss was nothing short of comical!  Idrizaj was sent clear on goal and rounded Williams, but the keeper forced him wide.  Brouwer, running up behind, had an easy tap-in but Idrizaj was selfishly determined to get a fourth and barged in front of his team-mate, and in the time it took him to deny his team-mate a goal Shaun Pejic got back and was able to block his shot. 

Idrizaj's inconsiderate play had consequences for him later in the half when Brouwer had a chance to put him clear but predictably decided to go on himself and shoot wide rather than oblige his colleague!

A stunned Wrexham side left the pitch at half time, but only one of their number emerged for the second: the solid Richard Hope, who had replaced Steve Evans on the half hour, his injury turning out be a mere jarred knee rather than anything to worry about.  The new Dragons, facing a much more inexperienced Liverpool side, set about their task with relish, and a more feisty atmosphere prevailed, capped off by a foul from Levi Mackin on Jay Spearing which resembled a monster truck ploughing through a camper van!

Idrizaj remained on for a while, perhaps asked to toil for longer as the sun began to beat down as punishment for his earlier selfishness, and from a Stephen Darby cross he nearly got a fourth, Michael Jones getting across sharply to tip his header over.  However, Liverpool were to provide little further threat to Wrexham's goal save a late volley by Nabil El Zhar which flashed over.  Instead it was to be Eifion Williams' half.

Supported by the typically enthusiastic presence of Marc Williams and another all-action showing by Michael Proctor, Williams showed the pedigree in front of goal that earned him the faith of the Hartlepool fans.  Mackin had fired a warning shot across Liverpool's bows with a strike from the edge of the area which David Martin held on to, but a combination of sub goalie Martin Hansen and Williams would be what brought the breakthrough.

A back pass by Darby seemed innocuous enough, but the goalkeeper scuffed his clearance straight to Williams, and although Derby put him under pressure the Welsh striker coolly set himself and stroked the ball into the bottom right corner, beyond Hansen's desperate lunge, when most lower division players would have thrashed hurriedly at the chance.

If that finish brought hope Williams' second, in the 88th minute, was a flash of sheer class.  A corner from the right tempted Hansen too far from his line, and he ventured into traffic only to punch weakly out of the box.  He would have got away with it though, were it not for the predatory instincts of Williams, who chased the ball and pivoting from twenty five yards, showed he knows where the posts are by lobbing a shot in one movement over the retreating goalkeeper and into the net.

A frantic finish ensued as Marc Williams earned a corner which came to nothing, and soon the game was over.  You might learn little from friendlies, but Wrexham had hopefully glimpsed a goalscoring instinct in Eifion Williams which will stand them in good stead over the coming season.

WREXHAM (4-3-3): Anthony Williams (Michael Jones 46); Simon Spender (Ryan Valentine 46), Steve Evans (Richard Hope 30), Shaun Pejic (Gareth Evans 46), Mike Williams (Neil Taylor 46); Mark Jones (Levi Mackin 46), Conall Murtagh (Danny Williams 46), Chris Llewellyn (Andy Fleming 46); Mike Carvill (Michael Proctor 46), Neil Roberts (Marc Williams 46), Matty Done (Eifion WIlliams 46)

LIVERPOOL (4-4-2): David Martin (Martin Hansen 60); Steve Finnan (Stephen Derby 46), Gabriel Paletta (Mike Roque 46), Jack Hobbs (Ronald Huth 46), Alfaro Arbeloa (Robbie Threlfall 46); Jermaine Pennant (Nabil El Zhar 46), Momo Sissoko (Ryan Flynn 46), Lee Peltier (Jay Spearing 46), Adam Hammill (Krisztian Nemeth 60), Besian Idrizaj (Andras Simon 60), Jordi Brouwer (Craig Lindfield 46)

Bookings: None

Referee: Mr. Mike Jones
Assistants: Mr. Billy Smallwood, Mr. John Stokes
Standby Official: Mr. Andy Hutchinson

Match Sponsors: Thermofix
Ball Sponsors: Retro Reds Memorabilia
Robertson & Jones
Doctor Property Ltd