Liverpool (1) v Sheffield Utd (2), On TV: Sky Sports 2 (kick-off 8.0)There have been attempts on both sides of the Pennines to play down the simmering feud that boiled over a fortnight ago, but this evening's semi-final second leg between Liverpool and Sheffield United is likely to be laced with as much spite in the dug-outs as on the pitch.
The Blades arrive at Anfield defending a 2-1 advantage, but their late comeback at Bramall Lane has been overshadowed by the fiery aftermath. Liverpool departed South Yorkshire apoplectic at the home side's physical approach and the manager Neil Warnock's persistent gamesmanship. United retorted with accusations of a lack of grace in defeat on the visitors' bench.
Tempers have since been further frayed, with the return game threatening to be just as venomous, although the Liverpool manager, Gerard Houllier, said yesterday: "I'm motivated for us, not against the opposition, and I don't give a damn about all the talk. Football is the best way of providing an answer."
Before the first leg the Tannoy announced the eventual match-winner's arrival for his warm-up with: "And please welcome the most valuable player on the pitch, Michael Tonge."
Warnock has also compared United's annual turnover to the average wages of one player at Anfield, and has claimed Liverpool's players were instructed not to swap or sign shirts after their defeat.
"That's wrong," snarled Houllier. "I think it's cheap comparing the finances at the two clubs, and that announcement demonstrated a complete lack of respect."
United have expressed some bemusement at Liverpool's reaction. Their assistant manager, Kevin Blackwell, said: "I never spoke to (the Liverpool assistant manager) Phil Thompson during the game but I offered him my hand at the final whistle and he was reluctant to take it. He kept saying: 'Wait until we get you back to our place.' He bad-mouthed everybody in our dug-out. He even tried to stop his players swapping shirts afterwards."
Liverpool will be without suspended full back Djimi Traore for the match, but Senegal midfielder Salif Diao is available after serving a one-game ban. German midfielder Dietmar Hamann continues to be sidelined with a shin problem. Otherwise the team is set to resemble the one that beat Southampton 1-0 in the league on Saturday. That victory ended the club's worst league run in 50 years after they had gone 11 games without a win.
With strikers Dean Windass and Steve Kabba cup-tied, Warnock will choose between Wayne Allison, Carl Asaba and Tommy Mooney for the two forward roles.
Meanwhile, former Liverpool player Mark Lawrenson insists footballers' betting was just the same in his day as it is now, and that Michael Owen should be able to spend his money how he pleases.
Owen has admitted losing around £40,000 over the last two years. Lawrenson said: "Back in the '80s we used to play cards, relatively speaking for about the same amounts and it was never a bone of contention. That hasn't changed and no one in the game will think of it as something to worry about, unless players take their debts and losses onto the pitch with them . . . David Beckham may gain the same enjoyment from spending thousands of pounds a month on designer clothes, but no one would bat an eyelid about that."
