Liverpool suffered a shock 0 - 1 defeat against Wigan Athletic on Monday night to deal their quest for finishing fourth in the Premier League a mighty blow.
Hugo Rodallega bagged the only goal for the game for the Latics in the 35thminute when the Colombian forward steered Emmerson Boyce’s cross home from close range after Liverpool had conceded possession deep inside their own half.
The return of Glen Johnson as a second-half substitute was the only positive on a night to forget for the Reds at the DW Stadium.
The result leaves Liverpool sixth in the Barclays Premier League, a point behind top four rivals Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City, though both sides have games in hand on the Reds, as do seventh-placed Aston Villa.
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Liverpool beat Unirea Urziceni 3-1 in Bucharest last night in their Europa League match with goals from Javier Mascherano, Ryan Babel and Steven Gerrard.
Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez made two changes two his side that drew 0-0 with Man City at Eastlands on Sunday, bringing in Yossi Benayoun to replace cup-tied Maxi Rodriguez and young French striker David N’gog was given a start, replacing Dirk Kuyt.
It was the home side who had the first attempt, with Sorin Frunza seeing his shot from just outside the box fizz over the bar after Liverpool had failed to deal with an Unirea free-kick.
However Liverpool were quick to respond with captain Steven Gerrard forcing Unirea goalkeeper Giedrius Arlauskis to make a save.
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Chelsea’s lead at the top of the Premier League was cut to one point on Wednesday when they lost 2-1 at Everton with Louis Saha continuing his scoring jinx over them.
Second-placed Manchester United drew 1-1 at Aston Villa while Arsenal stayed in the hunt after beating Liverpool 1-0.
Saha, who scored against Chelsea in the FA Cup final last season and in the 3-3 draw against them in December, cancelled out Florent Malouda’s 17th minute opener for Chelsea with a header in the 33rd.
He then had a penalty saved by Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech on the stroke of halftime before scoring the winner after 75 minutes when he chested the ball down, turned and fired home.
That sent Chelsea to their first defeat in 11 matches and gave Everton manager David Moyes his first victory over the London side on the night he celebrated his 300th Premier League game.
Chelsea remain top with 58 points, but are just one point ahead of Manchester United, who drew at Villa despite playing for more than an hour with 10 men after Nani was sent off for a ragged two-footed challenge on Stilian Petrov.
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Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard believes that the derby win over Everton over the weekend was just the right medicine to kick start their stuttering season.
The Reds won local bragging rights at Anfield on Saturday as Dirk Kuyt’s close-range header 10 minutes after half-time proved the difference.
Gerrard was happy with all three points and the team’s display, especially as Liverpool had to play most of the match with 10 men after the sending-off of Sotirios Kyrgiakos.
And with confidence high, the Liverpool skipper hopes his team can keep up the momentum and finish the campaign well.
“You always enjoy beating your local rivals but it was the way we did it that was really satisfying, particularly after losing a man after half an hour,” Gerrard said. “I thought we showed fantastic character, a great attitude and I also thought we played some decent stuff at times. I thought it was a fully deserved win.
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Liverpool’s hopes of returning to the Champions League next year was dealt another setback whilst Tottenham retained their spot in the top four by beating Fulham 2 - 0.
Despite the return of club captain Steven Gerrard from injury, Rafael Benitez’s men were listless in a goalless stalemate at struggling Wolves.
But the Liverpool manager was defiantly upbeat after a result that means his side are unbeaten in five matches in the league.
“We had two or three chances in the first half and it was same in the second but our final pass not the best,” the Spaniard said.
“But it is another clean sheet and everyone is working really hard, so I think it is really positive.”
The draw leaves Liverpool three points adrift of fourth-placed Tottenham, who were always in control of their London derby clash with Fulham at White Hart Lane.
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Just when Rafa Benitez thought things couldn’t get worse for Liverpool, he is now facing the prospect of being withou his star players Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard.
The pain felt around Anfield following on Wednesday’s shock extra-time FA Cup defeat by second division Reading, was compounded Thursday by news that Torres, Gerrard and Yossi Benayoun had all sustained injuries during the 2-1 extra-time loss.
Torres, who lasted barely half an hour at Anfield, faces the longest lay-off of the trio.
The Spain striker is set to be sidelined for six weeks with a knee injury while inspirational club captain Gerrard, substituted at half-time, is expected to be out for a fortnight with a hamstring injury.
Meanwhile, Israeli playmaker Benayoun - one of Liverpool’s better players in a terrible season so far for the Merseysiders - sustained a fractured rib against Reading and could be unavailable for at least a month.
Torres is to undergo an operation but England midfielder Gerrard may not need surgery.
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Liverpool’s 2 - 1 victory over Wigan Athletic last night at Anfield came as a welcome relief for Red’s boss Rafael Benitez.
Young French striker David Ngog’s 10th-minute glancing header from Fabio Aurelio’s cross and Fernando Torres’ second-half scrambled effort proved enough to see off a Latics side, for whom Charles N’Zogbia scored an injury-time consolation.
It was only Liverpool’s fourth win in 16 matches and just their second at Anfield since September 26 but it will do much for the team’s shaky confidence.
Although Ngog impressed in the first half the crowd eagerly awaited the arrival of substitute Torres for his 100th appearance, which eventually came in the 64th minute. The striker duly delivered with his 61st goal for Liverpool to wrap up victory.
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Andrey Arshavin kept Arsenal’s title hopes alive by scoring the decisive goal to beat Liverpool 2 - 1 at Anfield on Sunday.
Arsenal fell behind to Dirk Kuyt’s goal shortly before half-time but levelled soon after the break through a Glen Johnson own-goal.
Russia international Arshavin, who scored four goals in last season’s 4-4 draw at Anfield, then produced a sublime moment of skill to complete Arsenal’s fightback with a slickly-taken, forceful shot, just before the hour mark.
Victory saw Arsenal regain third place and move to within six points of leaders Chelsea, held to a draw by Everton on Saturday and three of second-placed champions Manchester United, beaten by Aston Villa on Saturday, with a game in hand over the top two.
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Chelsea beat Arsenal 3 - 0 at the Emirates on Sunday, whilst Liverpool won their derby match 2 - 0 against Everton at Goodison Park in the English Premier League.
Two goals from Didier Drogba and a Thomas Vermaelen own goal made the difference as Arsenal, who had won their previous 11 home games in all competitions, struggled to make an impression on a Chelsea defence that has conceded just eight goals in 14 league games.
The match encapsulated the key differences between the two London sides as Chelsea’s powerful lineup outmuscled Arsenal’s lightweights and, when in sight of goal, went for the jugular.
In contrast, Arsenal were content to play endless passes around the box in attacks that all too often petered out thanks to over-elaboration.
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Ryan Babel has hinted at leaving Liverpool if he isn’t given more opportunity to play more first-team football. This adds to the sense of crisis gathering around Anfield in what has been a frustrating season to date.
Babel, an 11.5-million-pound signing from Ajax two years ago, is unhappy with the number of matches he has started and has risked incurring the wrath of manager Rafael Benitez by criticising the manager’s communication skills.
“I have tried to talk to the manager but it isn’t of any use,” he was quoted as saying in Tuesday’s edition of The Sun. “I couldn’t really do anything with the feedback Benitez gave me.
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