Liverpool’s wonderful away form continued in the one-sided clash with Newcastle on Tyneside. The Reds welcomed back Fernando Torres to the starting line-up, along with Harry Kewell, and both players proved a constant thorn in Sam Allardyce’s side.

The irony of the match-up was that Sam Allardyce had had a lot to say about Rafa Benitez only being able to keep his job because of his Istanbul heroics. No doubt the Anfield boss could smile to himself as he watched the hordes of Newcastle fans making their way out of the stadium. He could even have afforded to laugh if he so wished when a couple of Newcastle fans lambasted Allardyce with words straight from the pits of hell. Big Sam must have felt the heat of those acid-laced words in his face and heart.

A couple of yards to the side Benitez was doing some shouting of his own, getting instructions across to his players – business as usual for the Red’ boss. Another point to admire about the Liverpool manager is that he seems to prefer to do his talking with good results against foes who tend to do their talking to the media. And when Ryan Babel’s brilliantly taken goal went in, you could almost hear Rafa saying, “I got you! “

‘A point to admire about the Liverpool manager is that he seems to prefer to do his talking with good results against foes who tend to do their talking to the media.’


Steven Gerrard’s free-kick goal was as brilliant a strike as you will see all season. With two Newcastle defenders trying to put him off by steaming towards the ball, he struck it with such velocity and venom that it flew into the top corner and bulged the net before Shay Given could even attempt to move. A tremendous strike, a superb goal from the man who might have been adversely affected by England’s failure to secure a place at Euro 2008. But the captain of Liverpool showed up on Saturday knowing full well that three points were necessary to keep close to the top two.

The moment of true celebration came when Dirk Kuyt, Liverpool's "hard-working" striker, managed to score a goal, albeit a ricochet off the knee. Safe to say he was desperately in knee’d of a goal, and was in the right place at the right time for Gerrard's cross to hit him and go in.

Lucas Leiva had a brilliant game, too. He seems to be finding it quite easy to settle in when given his chance and did really well, allowing Gerrard to maraud forward at any given opportunity. It is a testament of Leiva’s ability that Gerrard feels as comfortable with him as he does with Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano, and Benitez must be happy with his signing.

The fact that Benitez might not be able to secure Mascherano permanently for £17m makes Leiva even more crucial. He is a brilliant fall-back option. And he is only 20, so thumbs up to the Liverpool scouting system for snapping up this Brazilian gem.

Babel, who came on as a substitute and linked up superbly with Gerrard to score a great third goal, is another gem. Rafa has done well to ease him into the harsh world of the English game and he is looking better with every passing match. Kewell was brilliant on the left and if he manages to avoid injury, could be a key player in Liverpool’s title push.

Momo Sissoko once again failed to grasp the chance he was afforded and it was a miracle he wasn’t hauled off. Benitez still backs him to come good, though fans are getting rather impatient with his poor passing. However, it was rather strange that he was played out on the right. But he was given a job and didn’t manage to do it, so if dropped, Sissoko only has himself to blame.

The last few days have been strange ones for Liverpool fans. They’ve seen two statements coming from the Yankee owners on the official website, where they seem to be exercising their authority over Benitez. Can’t they just hold the purse open for Rafa and give him what he needs to land the Premier League?

It could end up in Mourinho/Abramovich style but really, the American duo should be supporting the manager wholeheartedly, not sabotaging his efforts to build a strong enough team to land the title. Realistically, you just can’t win the league with players like John Arne Riise and Kuyt starting almost every game. You need to bring in the best. The American co-owners’ naivety in all things football is becoming more apparent. And their negative distraction has made supporters lose focus on what really matters, and that is that Liverpool FC are improving with every game – hell, they haven't lost a match yet.

Now we move on to the European stage, and Wednesday's must-win Champions League game against Porto. Can Rafa’s men build on the weekend victory and qualify for the knockout stages? If they can, they will have done it the hard way.