A European match kicking off in the afternoon felt strange - a bit like Roy Evans' vintage wine presented in a plastic bottle. The blazing sun rather than the floodlights continued the unfamiliarity of this match, but much stranger things have happened.

Liverpool started their European journey in the Stade Municipal in the city of Toulouse in south-west France, an adventure into the unknown for both the team and fans. The French side treated the occasion in the way a Championship side would treat an FA Cup tie against a Premier League team televised by Sky. Their fans seemed to rise to the occasion, too, filling the four sides of the stadium, and along with their noise adorned the terraces with their long, narrow flags.

Liverpool, with six changes from last Saturday's Premier League opener, quickly showed their European pedigree and experience and dictated the pace of the match while letting their over-zealous opponents do the running in the scorching heat. Mentioning journeys earlier on, this one was rather plain-sailing, with next to no hitches or twists. The finishing line can only be achieved in two weeks' time, as Jamie Carragher correctly reminded  - but the display was efficient and Rafa Benitez was happy.

'An away goal, a clean sheet and modest opposition put Champions' League football on the amber light'


The killer blow was dealt by the new kid on the block, Andriy Voronin. With his back to goal, some 25 yards out, he chested Peter Crouch's flick from Steve Finnan's cross, let the ball bounce and unleashed a shot into the top-right corner.

Without much hype, the Ukrainian is settling quietly into the side and contributing his fair share. I wasn't expecting much from him myself, but so far he is proving me wrong and I am happy to eat humble pie. His official goalscoring account was opened with a big thud of a warning of what he might offer in the future, which was already discreetly shown pre-season.

An away goal, a clean sheet and modest opposition put Champions' League football on the amber light. All will be forgotten by next Sunday when the focus will all be directed on Chelsea's fourth visit to Anfield this year, albeit under different circumstances and with different issues at stake.