Something a bit different for the Liverpool game. Let's see what the so called professionals thought about the game :
To see the young players against stronger rivals, I think it's important to see these kind of teams. We brought Torres on to try and score the third goal - every competition is important so we were trying to create more chances. So going forward Torres would give us more space and you could see he had two chances to score which if they would have gone in would have sealed the game. As always in these kinds of games, if you don't score the third goal and finish the game, then things can get a bit nervous.
We were a little bit nervous today and we certainly had enough chances to score a third goal. It was good for some of our younger players to play against players like Crewe, who are coming to come here and be competitive and play football. They have strong players and compete really well, and it's a good test. I think it was positive watching the lads against a competitive team, it was very positive.
Rafa Benitez
'Crewe made it difficult but that's what you are always going to get against a lower division side - they fight until the end and that's what happened. Maybe we could have played a bit better in the second half but it was a tough match and in the end we have to be happy to go through.
'It was a good battle and I'm happy because maybe the League Cup is a competition in which I will play, so I'm very happy we got through to the next round and hopefully it will mean another game for me.'
Sami Hyppia
Pope's late miss and a half-chance for Anthony Elding seconds later injected tension in the game. We were left to ponder what might have been. It was an isolated chance but that was the one that had to go in for us, but the fact we had a chance of getting something so late on showed what a decent performance we gave
Steve Holland
'I think we were all relieved when Lucas' goal went in. We'd missed a few chances and Crewe were also defending well, so it was nice to see the ball hit the net. 'Now we'll be looking forward to seeing who we get in the next round.'
Jermaine Pennant
'It has been an awesome night. From the first whistle, and having 'You'll Never Walk Alone' sung by a packed Kop, to the way we played was a brilliant experience for everyone. I must admit the heart raced a bit when I saw Torres coming on and then Robbie Keane. They are top quality players and to play against them is something I will never forget. That really is the last thing you need when you see them two warming up with 20 minutes to go!
