The match had to be decided by penalites after an exciting 120 minutes of football couldn’t separate the two teams.
Joe Mason took the lead for the Welsh side by nutmegging Pepe Reina in the first half. On 60 minutes Martin Skrtel poked the ball into the net after Downing, Carroll and Suarez combined to set up the chance.
The game was still locked at 1-1 after 90 minutes, so extra time was needed. Substitute Dirk Kuyt lashed the Reds’ into the lead in the 108th minute and it looked like the game was over.
But instead of focusing on possession and dominating the rest of the game, Liverpool seemed to go into defensive mode and allowed Cardiff to come at them in the final ten minutes.
After going 116 minutes without being allowed to win a corner, Cardiff suddenly won three in quick succession. From one of those set pieces Ben Turner managed to scramble the ball home with just two minutes remaining.
A tight penalty shoot-out ensued, with Liverpool just edging out their opponent 3 – 2.
There was some cruel irony as Anthony Gerrard missed Cardiff’s final penalty, and a few minutes later his older cousin, Steven, was hoisting the Carling Cup.
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