BIRMINGHAM 2-0 LIVERPOOL

By J Wade
February 17 2005

LIVERPOOL have been talking such a good game recently that perhaps someone should have reminded them words are meaningless without relevant action.

Anfield's players have been queuing up to repeat Rafael Benitez's assertion his charges are a better side than Everton and that the red half of Merseyside will ultimately prevail in the battle for fourth place and Champions League qualification.

Excellent soundbite material, and after successive victories over Charlton Athletic and Fulham there appeared credence to the belief within Liverpool's squad they were finally realising their obvious potential.

And with Everton having been beaten earlier in the day, the opportunity had arisen on Saturday for Benitez's side to move within touching distance of what has become their primary goal for the campaign.

Alas, what followed was a performance so inexcusably awful as to rank alongside Southampton as a low point in Liverpool's infuriating Premiership campaign.

A bewildered Benitez pronounced himself "shocked" at the result, but maybe the biggest shock was that this abject surrender wasn't a shock at all.

After all, how many supporters or pundits were genuinely surprised by yet another failure to capitalise on the shortcomings of their nearest rivals? For this is what Liverpool are at present. A team in transition, one that can be so impressive in dismantling Charlton one week and then capable of plumbing the depths of mediocrity at Birmingham the next.

Inconsistent. Frustrating. Unreliable. Yet the flashes of brilliance which have all too briefly lit up the season hint at a brighter future should Benitez be given the resources to continue his rebuilding.

Some good fortune wouldn't go amiss either, particularly with a lengthy injury list so conveniently ignored by detractors ever-keen to issue the last rites on Liverpool as a title-challenging club.

That's a bit premature, but Saturday's setback will provide Benitez with further unwanted evidence that the task he faces is a long-term one.

The short-term, however, is the more pressing concern, most notably the securing of the fourth place that will provide the Spaniard with the basis for further squad restrengthing.

And it's why Premiership failure - this was Liverpool's 10th defeat in 27 league games this season - is becoming increasingly expensive as the business end of the campaign fast approaches.

Liverpool were poor, struggled to get out of first gear and were outfought and outplayed by a compact Birmingham side that fully deserved their victory.

St Andrews, of course, is where fourth place was effectively sealed last May and where it became apparent the season before that Champions League qualification would be unlikely. Hopefully for Liverpool the Midlands venue does not prove a similar omen this time around.

To his credit, Benitez did not use the preceding internationals as an excuse for his side's jaded display, even though the lethargy was due in some part to the squad's midweek exertions, certainly in comparison with a more spritely Birmingham outfit.

Assessing the full 90 minutes, it was debatably even worse than that Southampton debacle. At least at St Mary's there was a marked improvement in the second half; on Saturday, while never quite as dreadful as the opening 45 minutes on the south coast, the visitors started badly and showed no signs of launching the type of fightback which has become a welcome trademark of Benitez's Liverpool.

That apparent lack of desire will be the most worrying aspect for the Spaniard. Fourth remains an attainable target, but how much are his players willing to sacrifice to get there? The next few months will prove crucial in helping Benitez decide which players he can rely upon next season and beyond.

The bone idle will lazily state a below-par Steven Gerrard as reason for the below-par display. But with the defence dithering, the midfield malfunctioning and the forwards flailing, Saturday's out-come was never reliant on the performance of an individual.

Football's great unwritten law of the ex determined that Emile Heskey would produce the kind of barnstorming performance that became an increasingly rare occurrence during his last two seasons at Anfield.

Sami Hyypia - making his 300th appearance for Liverpool - appeared intimidated by his former team-mate, and with Walter Pandiani proving a fine foil in attack, even the reliable Jamie Carragher seemed flustered.

As against Fulham the previous week, the midfield struggled to gel as a unit with Gerrard attempting to do the lot but achieving little, Dietmar Hamann ponderous and Igor Biscan a perennially peripheral presence.

Elsewhere, Milan Baros contributed one of his most ineffective performances in a red shirt yet it would be harsh to berate the Czech, who found himself unhappily marooned on the right side of midfield during the first half as Benitez opted for an uneasy 4-5-1 formation which Liverpool never came to terms with.

It simply did not work, and although the manager had the good sense to acknowledge his earlier mistake by reinstating Baros alongside Fernando Morientes in attack following the interval, by then the damage had been done.

How ironic that for all his critics, the suspended Luis Garcia was missed. The Spaniard may be inconsistent but at least attempts to be creative, a quality that was in short supply from the midfield on Saturday with Morientes often left to fend for himself as he waited for any semblance of support or service.

If Liverpool are to claim that fourth place and salvage something from a forgettable Premier-ship campaign, they are going to have to improve an away record which has seen them gain just 15 points from 14 games on their travels. That's nowhere near good enough, and with only 11 games remaining, time is running out to find a solution to that debilitating problem.

It took the visitors until the final minute to register a worthwhile effort on target on Saturday, when Carragher's header from a Gerrard corner was cleared off the line by Damien Johnson.

By then the outcome was a formality after two goals in eight minutes at the end of the first half. Birmingham had been the brighter throughout the opening period with only some last-ditch defending from Carragher and Steve Finnan keeping the scoresheet blank.

But it was only delaying the inevitable, and after Jerzy Dudek had stopped the impressive Jer-maine Pennant from opening the scoring after the winger was put clear by Pandiani, the deadlock was finally broken on 37 minutes.

Hyypia allowed Heskey to get goalside inside the penalty area following a long ball over the top, and in the ensuing tangle for possession both fell to the floor with referee Howard Webb immediately pointing to the spot. It was slightly contentious, but Pandiani wasn't complaining as he lashed in from 12 yards.

On the stroke of half-time the lead was doubled with another preventable goal. Djimi Traore failed to deal with Jamie Clap-ham's looping punt into the area from the left flank allowing Pennant to claim possession, slip past John Arne Riise and cross for Julian Gray to volley in at the far post.

The second half was an incident-free affair with Birmingham content to defend their lead and see out a notable double over the Merseysiders. They played on the break while Liverpool struggled to find any rhythm or attacking threat.

With no FA Cup to concern themselves with at the weekend, Benitez's side have until a week tomorrow to mull over this defeat, with the first leg of their Champions League second round encounter with old foes Bayer Leverkusen their next assignment.

And unless Liverpool can start walking the walk to go with their talk, their next appearance in that competition may not be for some time.

BIRMINGHAM CITY (4-4-2): Taylor; Melchiot (Tebily 18), Cunningham, Upson, Clapham; Pennant (Nafti 84), Clemence, Johnson, Gray; Heskey, Pandiani (Blake 89). Subs: Bennett, Morrison.
BOOKING: Heskey (foul).

LIVERPOOL (4-5-1): Dudek; Finnan (Pellegrino 79), Hyypia, Carragher, Traore; Baros, Biscan (Smicer 46), Gerrard, Hamann, Riise (Nunez 63); Morientes. Subs: Carson, Warnock.

REFEREE: Howard Webb (South Yorkshire)

ATT: 29,318

NEXT GAME: Liverpool v Bayer Leverkusen, Champions League second round first leg, Tuesday February 22, 7.45pm