Chelsea sit comfortably atop the Barclays Premier League table heading into the international break, as Jose Mourinho’s men continued their unbeaten start to the season with a 2-1 victory over Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday. One of the core attributes of Chelsea under Mourinho is their defensive strength and organization; they had the best defensive record in the Premier League last season, and they are odds-on favourites to have it again this year. However, Liverpool’s goal on Saturday highlighted a potential weakness that other teams can look to exploit. A high press employed by a team such as Chelsea often forces their opponent to be cautious when playing out of the back; such is their fear of conceding possession and giving up a clear scoring chance. But from the outset on Saturday, Liverpool elected for a much more brazen approach against the league leaders. This approach paid off handsomely in the 9th minute when Liverpool opened the scoring. Liverpool’s two fullbacks, Glen Johnson and Alberto Moreno, pushed up to the halfway line with Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet in possession of the ball. Liverpool’s two central defenders, Martin Skrtel and Dejan Lovren, split to the corners of the penalty area, with Stephen Gerrard dropping deep from midfield to form a triangle from which Liverpool could play. (Click to View Larger) Lovren eventually worked the ball into Gerrard to break the pressure from Diego Costa and Oscar, who had pushed forward to occupy the two central defenders. Gerrard took a touch and then played an inch-perfect pass into the path of Jordan Henderson, breaking the pressure from Chelsea midfielder, Cesc Fabregas. (Click to View Larger) Liverpool deserve credit for being bold enough to play four against four in their own half against Chelsea; a turnover in this situation would lead to a clear scoring chance for Chelsea, with Eden Hazard, Costa, Fabregas and Oscar all applying pressure. On the halfway line, the advanced positioning of Liverpool’s Johnson and Moreno would force Chelsea to make some difficult decisions. With Moreno pushed up all the way down the left flank, it was down to Chelsea’s Ramires to either track the run of Liverpool’s left fullback or pass him on to his own right fullback, Branislav Ivanovic. Unfortunately for Chelsea, Ramires did neither. Moreno got in behind Ramires, which was the cue for Liverpool’s Raheem Sterling to drop inside into midfield. Sterling knew that his fullback had the beating of Ramires and would occupy Ivanovic, meaning the winger could drift inside unchecked to provide an option for Henderson, who was now in possession of the ball on the left flank. (Click to View Larger) Moreno is actually the furthest Liverpool player forward – so much so, that he isn’t even visible in the picture, below, after Sterling turns with the ball: (Click to View Larger) This is where one can see the cumulative effect of Liverpool being bold with their fullbacks. Neither Johnson on the right, nor Moreno on the left, have touched the ball to this point, but their willingness to get forward was instrumental in pulling apart Chelsea’s otherwise disciplined midfield. Ramires shoulders the largest blame in this situation, as he neither tracked Moreno’s run nor pushed into midfield to contain Sterling. As a result, when Sterling received the ball from Henderson, he had freedom to turn with the ball and drive at the heart of Chelsea’s defence. With Fabregas out of the game after being bypassed by Henderson, Nemanja Matic was left on his own to cover in front of Chelsea’s back four. Matic stood no chance up against Sterling, who had the options of either Mario Balotelli in front of him or Emre Can to his right. Can, in particular, had acres of space to exploit, largely due to Hazard’s failure to recover his shape and take up a defensive position for Chelsea. (Click to View Larger) Liverpool succeeded in breaking Chelsea’s press and freeing up Can to shoot from 25 yards. Granted, the only reason the ball found the back of the net was because of a wicked deflection off of Chelsea’s Gary Cahill - Thibault Courtois would have likely saved Can’s effort had it not come off the Chelsea defender - but that is beside the point. Liverpool got the reward that their bold approach merited. (Click to View Larger) Liverpool also showed that even the best midfield duo in the Premier League this season – Matic and Fabregas – can be pulled apart by clever movement. What is most thought provoking is that the movement that caused Chelsea so many problems came from players who had no involvement with the ball. Take note of the final positions of both Moreno and Johnson, Liverpool’s two fullbacks. Both are in the attacking third, almost in line with their Chelsea counterparts. Neither touched the ball from the time it left Mignolet’s boot to the time it nestled into the back of Courtois’ goal, yet a strong case can be made that the goal would never have occurred if not for their movements. The goal was yet another example of how the modern game – specifically the role of fullbacks – continues to evolve. Air Max 90 Outlet Italia .com) - Ames, IA (SportsNetwork. Air Max 270 Scontate . Klose has a bruised pelvic bone and abdominal muscle problems but team doctors are trying to get him fit in time for the match. Bender has a hamstring injury. 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Louis Cardinals won the World Series last season, but after losing first baseman Albert Pujols to free agency and manager Tony LaRussa to retirement, they opened the 2012 season in 12th spot in the TSN.OAKLAND, Calif. - More than worrying about the daunting task of trying to replace All-Star Josh Donaldson or dwelling on the shock of being traded from Toronto, Brett Lawrie is embracing the idea of staying healthy as he joins the Oakland Athletics.Bidding farewell to the Blue Jays unforgiving turf field could be a big benefit for his body moving forward, too.(It) treats my body kind of silly and throws it off, he said, noting now, Its grass and dirt. Im excited.Oaklands new third baseman was acquired in a trade from Toronto on Friday night that sent Donaldson to the Blue Jays. Also coming to the As in the deal were left-hander Sean Nolin, right-hander Kendall Graveman and minor league shortstop Franklin Barreto.Lawrie missed a call from Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos, then quickly called back to learn he had been traded.I was kind of at a loss for words to be honest with you. I didnt really know what to say, it happened so fast, Lawrie said. Its almost like I was dreaming.Lawrie wants nothing more than to stay on the field, and figures if that happens the rest will take care of itself. He acknowledges hes had his share of bad luck, and playing on turf didnt do him any favours as a player who is constantly moving and cutting.Give me 550 at-bats in a row. These are thinggs I havent had yet in the big leagues, he said.ddddddddddddHe didnt play again after Aug. 5 following a left oblique strain he suffered in his return after being sidelined for more than a month with a broken right index finger.It marked the third oblique injury of Lawries four-year career. He strained his left oblique in a warmup game for the 2013 World Baseball Classic in March 2013, missing the first 14 games of the season. Lawrie also missed almost a month with a right oblique strain in late 2012.The 24-year-old Lawrie, who grew up in British Columbia, has already been on the