Liverpool drag Fulham into mire

Deep trouble ... Fulham are precariously placed. Source: Sang Tan / AP

Daniel Sturridge's scored his first ever hat-trick to inspire Liverpool to a 3-1 win over Fulham at Craven Cottage.

Former Chelsea striker Sturridge cancelled out Dimitar Berbatov's opener in the first half before going on to complete his treble with two strikes in an impressive second-half showing.

Philippe Coutinho had the first noteworthy effort of the game on 15 minutes when he beat two Fulham challenges on the edge of the box and fired in a swerving shot which Mark Schwarzer did well to bat away.

		P	W	D	L	GD	Pts
1	Man United	37	28	4	5	43	88
2	Man City	36	22	9	5	31	75
3	Chelsea	37	21	9	7	35	72
4	Tottenham	37	20	9	8	19	69
5	Arsenal	36	19	10	7	31	67
6	Everton	37	16	15	6	16	63
7	Liverpool	37	15	13	9	27	58
8	West Brom	37	14	6	17	-4	48
9	Swansea	37	11	13	13	-1	46
10	West Ham	37	11	10	16	-10	43
11	Stoke	37	9	14	14	-11	41
12	Norwich	37	9	14	14	-18	41
13	Newcastle	37	11	8	18	-22	41
14	Southampton	37	9	13	15	-11	40
15	Fulham	37	10	10	17	-13	40
16	Aston Villa	37	10	10	17	-22	40
17	Sunderland	37	9	12	16	-12	39
18	Wigan	36	9	8	19	-23	35
19	Reading	36	6	10	20	-26	28
20	QPR	37	4	13	20	-29	25

The lead proved short-lived as Liverpool equalised three minutes later with Sturridge latching onto a long ball upfield from Andre Wisdom before turning Aaron Hughes inside out and smashing his right-footed shot high into the net past Schwarzer.

Fulham had strong claims for a penalty turned down just past the hour mark when Bryan Ruiz's cross appeared to strike the arm of Lucas, but Halsey waved away the home side's appeals.

Liverpool grabbed the lead on 62 minutes when Coutinho's deflected shot fell into the path of Sturridge inside the six-yard box and the striker gleefully slotted the ball into the net past Schwarzer.

Sturridge missed a great chance of complete his hat-trick a minute later when he robbed Brede Hangeland of possession to go clear on goal, but Schwarzer did well to deny Sturridge.

Five minutes later Sturridge fluffed another great opening to grab a hat-trick when he burst clear on goal and instead of passing to two team-mates unmarked inside the box he fired in a shot which Schwarzer did well to keep out.

Liverpool continued to squander chances to add to their lead as Stewart Downing picked out the unmarked Jonjo Shelvey inside the box, but just when the midfielder was about to pull the trigger he lost his footing allowing Hughes to get back to clear the danger.

Fulham came close to equalising twice 15 minutes from time when Reina tipped Berbatov's shot round the post and from the resulting corner the Liverpool keeper produced a superb flying save to keep out Hughes' goalbound header.

Fabio Borini was inches away from scoring on 78 minutes with almost his first touch after coming on when he cut inside and smashed a shot off the post with Schwarzer well beaten in the Fulham goal.

Sturridge finally completed his hat-trick and put the game beyond Fulham five minutes from time when Coutinho sent him in on goal and he beat Schwarzer to the ball to lift his effort into the net.

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers was full of praise for Sturridge after his hat-trick heroics.

"He's scored goals from the minute he has come in and that is 11 goals in 15 games which is a fantastic impact which we hoped he would make," noted Rodgers.

Martin Jol had few complaints with the application of his players despite the defeat.

He told Sky Sports: "If you look at the effort we've put in against Chelsea, Arsenal and even today, there's nothing wrong with the effort or application or mentality, but when we've needed to change the game to score, we've looked a bit vulnerable."

Read more: http://www1.skysports.com/football/live/match/261924/report

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Moyes's final shot at Liverpool?

Massive contest ... there's few bigger rivalries than Everton against Liverpool. Source: Jon Super / AP

It's the one stat that will irk David Moyes at Everton.

Sixty three league points have been on offer in Merseyside derbies and his side has only secured 15. 

For all the accolades and the consistent overachievement that Moyes has maintained throughout his 11 seasons at Everton, it has become his most difficult fixture. 

He is well versed in the importance of it; the days of when it was known as the ‘friendly derby’ now well and truly in the past. He played up to the rivalry between the two clubs as soon as he arrived in 2002. "I am joining the people's football club. The majority of people you meet on the street are Everton fans," Moyes said at his first press conference.

His players are also under no illusion of how important the match is. "My wife knows that every time she arranges a Saturday night out it’s based on what the result of that day’s game is. If we lose, we don’t go out. Simple as that; I’m no good to anyone. And if we lose to Liverpool, she might as well cancel the rest of the month," Everton captain Phil Neville said in the build-up to their meeting earlier in the season. 

It finished 2-2 in October at Goodison Park and Neville’s wife did not have to cancel the next month’s worth of Saturday nights out, but a party atmosphere after playing Liverpool while Moyes has been at the helm has been rare. Whether it has been Gerard Houllier, Rafa Bentiez or Kenny Dalglish, Moyes has rarely come out on top.

Form has seemingly counted for little. Often Everton have come into the match in better form and with less off-field distractions but the results have lived up to the cliché that form goes out the window when it comes to derbies. 

The earlier meeting between the two sides this season looked almost certain to provide him with three points. Having had their best start to a season since they qualified for the UEFA Champions League in 2004-2005, Moyes’ men sat in fifth place while Liverpool - under new boss Brendan Rodgers - were struggling in 12th place. However, they were caught cold by the Reds who took a 2-0 lead before Everton stormed back to draw 2-2. 

In a pulsating 90 minutes it looked like Everton would take all three points after they equalised 15 minutes before half-time and continued to lay siege to the Liverpool goal. But the Toffees were thwarted by Rodgers’s shift to a back-three, which gave the Reds much more control and Everton were perhaps lucky not to lose after Luis Suarez scored late-on only for it to be wrongly ruled out for offside. 

Sunday’s 220th league meeting between the two will take on extra significance for Moyes as it may be his last. With his contract set to expire at the end of the season there has been no decision made by the former Preston North End boss on whether he will stay at the club. 

After 11 successful seasons at the club there is little doubt that Everton are desperate for him to remain but there is a growing belief that he will depart in search of a new challenge. Rumours of a switch to Germany or Spain have long been circulating with Malaga being the latest club to be linked with the Scot. 

		P	W	D	L	GD	Pts
1	Man United	35	27	4	4	43	85
2	Man City	34	21	8	5	30	71
3	Chelsea	34	19	8	7	33	65
4	Arsenal	35	18	10	7	30	64
5	Tottenham	34	18	8	8	17	62
6	Everton	35	15	14	6	14	59
7	Liverpool	35	14	12	9	25	54
8	West Brom	34	14	6	14	2	48
9	Swansea	34	10	12	12	-1	42
10	West Ham	35	11	9	15	-8	42
11	Fulham	35	10	10	15	-9	40
12	Stoke	35	9	13	13	-10	40
13	Southampton	35	9	12	14	-10	39
14	Norwich	35	8	14	13	-21	38
15	Sunderland	35	9	10	16	-12	37
16	Aston Villa	35	9	10	16	-22	37
17	Newcastle	35	10	7	18	-23	37
18	Wigan	34	8	8	18	-23	32
19	QPR	35	4	13	18	-27	25
20	Reading	35	5	10	20	-28	25

Everton’s players will be well aware of the importance three points against their bitter rivals could play in his decision to stay or go. With three games to play Everton are five points off a Champions League place and only three points off a Europa League spot. For the fiercely ambitious Moyes, leading Everton into Europe may be enough to convince him to remain at the club. 

On Sunday there is also the chance of extinguishing Liverpool’s hopes of qualifying for Europe. The Reds are seventh, five points behind Everton and a loss would spell the end of their already slim hopes of a Europa League place. 

Rodgers may have said missing out on the competition might be a blessing in disguise as it would allow them to concentrate on the Premier League but the absence of European football is unlikely to be welcomed by many at Anfield. As their former manager Roy Evan once said: "Liverpool without European football is like a banquet without wine".  

The key to Moyes enjoying his trip to Anfield will be subduing Liverpool’s attack. Only the champions Manchester United have scored more goals this season and even with Suarez suspended they managed to put six past Newcastle in their last outing. 

His own attack will also be a concern with Swansea and West Ham the only other teams in the top ten who have scored less goals away from home. The chief reason for this has been the form of striker Nikica Jelavic who has scored just once in the league this season. The lack of firepower has left Moyes to lament what a 20-goal a season striker could have done for his side, who have drawn 14 times this campaign. 

If Sunday proves to be Moyes’s last Merseyside derby he will be aware of the impact it will have on the way he is remembered by the Everton faithful. His outstanding body of work will always be recognised but the importance of the derby to the football mad city of Liverpool cannot be understated. This is far from the ‘friendly derby’ it once was; come Sunday football will very much feel like a matter of life of death on Merseyside. 

Follow me on Twitter @beaubusch 

Catch all the action on Fox Sports 1 HD from 10pm (EST) on Sunday!

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Liverpool slam 'absurd' Suarez ban

Who's the victim? ... Suarez's ban has been the source of much debate. Source: PA Wire / AAP

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has slammed the English Football Association for prejudicing the hearing that resulted in a 10-match ban for Luis Suarez.

And in an even more incredible outburst, goalkeeper Pepe Reina has labelled the ban as "absurd" and said Suarez has been treated differently by the FA because he's Uruguayan.

Reds striker Suarez was hit with the suspension on Thursday morning (AEST) after biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic during last weekend's 2-2 draw at Anfield.

The Uruguay international will miss the rest of this season and the first six games of next season and it has been reported that Suarez is now considering whether to quit English football in protest at the severity of the punishment.

Faced with the possibility of losing his star forward, who has scored 30 times for Liverpool this season, Rodgers turned his fire on the FA.

He was infuriated not only by the independent panel's ruling, but also the FA's decision to state prior to the hearing that the statutory three-match suspension for violent conduct would be "insufficient".

"We need to understand what an independent panel is," Rodgers said.

"If you are an independent panel and yet the day beforehand the FA come out and say he (Suarez) will serve more than three games it is not independent because they are already putting pressure on the sanction."

Claiming that Suarez has been victimised due to his controversial personality, Rodgers referred to the 2006 cases of Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe, who escaped with just a booking for biting West Ham's Javier Mascherano, and Chester's Sean Hessey, who was banned for five matches for a bite on Stockport's Liam Dickinson.

"For him to receive that (10-match ban), when the comparisons of the similar incidents is somewhat different, then that is what is hard to take."

This despite the 26-year-old having a previous seven-game ban in Holland for biting PSV midfielder Otman Bakkal while playing for Ajax and an eight-match suspension last season English for racially abusing Manchester United's Patrice Evra.

Rodgers added: "I felt it could have been 12 games but with a six-game ban and six games suspended, looking at his future behaviour.

"I can't help but look at it and look at the sanction which has been put on Luis and I honestly feel the punishment has been against the man rather than the incident."

Reina believes Suarez, who has until noon on Friday to appeal against the additional seven-match ban, has been singled out because of his nationality and past misdemeanours.

"I consider myself a friend of Luis," Reina told Spanish radio station Cadena Cope.

"People in England are treating him different because he is Uruguayan; because he has had a previous episode like this.

"He knows perfectly well that what he did was wrong but a 10-game ban seems to me absurd, out of proportion and unfair. It seems that the people making the decisions have got it in for Luis a little bit.

"I know Luis and I know that he is the complete opposite (off the pitch): he is a magnificent person and great team-mate. But because of the way he plays, he is aggressive and very competitive, he plays like a street player and sometimes the way he is gets him into trouble.

"There is a lot of hypocrisy. Some players are treated differently to others. In the racism cases: the one with proof got a four-game ban and Luis got eight matches."

Asked if he felt there was xenophobia in England, he added: "No, but there is hypocrisy - a different measure is used."

Read more: http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11669/8670697/Pepe-Reina-hits-out-at-absurd-10-game-ban-for-Liverpool-s-Luis-Suarez

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Bring on Liverpool, Man United!

Star power ... Robin van Persie, Wayne Rooney, Luis Suarez and Steven Gerrard will grace our shores. Source:AFP

How far has the A-League come in the eight short years it's been around? I could throw facts and figures on crowd numbers and television ratings at you all day, but how about this instead?

In three months Robin van Persie, Wayne Rooney, Steven Gerrard and Luis Suarez will be on our shores, playing in our stadiums against the A-League’s best players, as they prepare for the 2013-2014 Barclays Premier League season.

Think about that for a second ...

Australia’s two most supported English teams playing in this country in the space of a week.

Barclays Premier League giant Liverpool have followed Manchester United’s lead in announcing a tour of Australia, where they will play Melbourne Victory at the MCG on July 24.

Just four days earlier the Red Devils will line up against a fan-voted A-League All-Stars team, expected to feature the likes of Alessandro Del Piero and Emile Heskey, in Sydney. Not even the A-League’s staunchest supporter could have envisaged this a few years ago.

The strength of the A-League is now a beacon for Australian football. No longer do the Socceroos carry the burden alone for Australian football. In fact, FFA chief executive David Gallop says even the code can continue to flourish on the back of the A-League - if, in a worst case scenario, the Socceroos aren't in Brazil. 

"It wouldn't be catastrophic (if Australia didn't qualify). Season eight of the A-League has demonstrated that the true backbone of the game now is the A-League."

Fans and journalists alike have waxed lyrical about the growth of the A-League all season – and for good reason - but in July we get to see tangible evidence of that growth.

Excitement is building and we’ve picked out five things we can’t wait to experience when Manchester United and Liverpool touch down on our shores.

---

1-    The big names

Robin van Persie, Luis Suarez, Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand, Paul Scholes, Pepe Reina, Ryan Giggs ...

These are some of world football’s best players. The absolute cream of the crop, squads stacked with UEFA Champions League and Premier League winners.  Don’t expect Sir Alex Ferguson or Brendan Rodgers to field second-string sides either as both have promised to take the tour very seriously.

2-    The coaching duels

The duel between Ange Postecoglou and Brendan Rodgers is particularly intriguing as both coaches are noted for using a high-tempo, short passing and high-pressing style of football. Regarded as one of Australia’s best tacticians, and a future contender for the Socceroos post, this is Ange’s chance to show what he's got against world class opposition in Rodgers and Sir Alex.

3-    Heskey faces old friends and foes

The big Jets striker might feel he has a point to prove after a tepid end to his career in England. He was a shining light in a disappointing season for the Jets, banging in nine goals, but Manchester United is a very different animal. Fitness issues permitting, he could be marked by former Three Lions teammate Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic, arguably the most physical defender in the world. No doubt the English press will be delighted to see him again, too! 

4-    The ADP factor

What A-League All-Stars list would be complete without a mention of Alessandro Del Piero? The Italian was involved in some great battles with Man United in his Juventus days, particularly during the Red Devils' run to the treble in 1999. Del Piero toyed with defenders in his first season in the A-League and the July 24 clash will provide the stage for the Italian maestro to once again put his skills on display against the game’s elite.

5- Ange's brigade on the world stage

Earlier this season, Liverpool sent scouts to watch ‘Kiwi Messi’ Marco Rojas in action. Now the little man has a chance to impress Rodgers and co in the flesh. Who knows, he might even play his way into a Reds contract. Mark Milligan and the classy Marcos Flores will be relishing their roles on the field, while off it, the Northern Terrace - Melbourne Victory’s passionate supporter group - will compete against the Liverpool faithful singing 'You'll Never Walk Alone' for this first time ever in this country.

---

What are you most looking forward to? Have your say by leaving a comment below.

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'A long way to go for Liverpool still'

Not there yet ... have Liverpool convinced you with their Spurs display? Source: Peter Byrne / AAP

Liverpool may have beaten Tottenham on Super Sunday, but Jamie Redknapp feels Brendan Rodgers' side have a way to go before they'll start competing with them on a more consistent basis.

Goals from Luis Suarez, Stewart Downing and a Steven Gerrard penalty were enough to secure a 3-2 home win at Anfield, but Spurs dominated for long spells and enjoyed more possession, passes, shots and corners in the game.

Redknapp, a pundit in England, was pleased to see Liverpool's home form improving, but felt they benefitted from some Tottenham errors - a miscued pass from Kyle Walker set up the second goal and Jermain Defoe's error led to Benoit Assou-Ekotto giving away a late penalty - and they still have work to do if they are to challenge for the top four next season.

"I still think they have a bit of a distance to go and that showed today," he said.

"Tottenham looked a little bit more powerful at times. At set pieces it looked like there was a little bit more physicality about their play.

"And they had more possession. We hear all about Liverpool's passing game, but they were outplayed at times by Tottenham today, who had more of the ball. It showed they still have a bit of a way to go.

"They've now won more games this season than last season at home and you have to start doing that.

"Anfield should be a fortress. I played here for many years and when you're at Anfield you feel like you've got 12 men with the crowd on your side, but it's something they've found difficult to deal with."

The Super Sunday fixture was billed as a showdown between two of the players of the season, Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale, and while the former got on the scoresheet, the latter created both of Tottenham's goals.

But Redknapp was eager to praise Liverpool's team performance - both in the way they contained the threat of the Spurs winger and for giving their own star man the room to shine.

He said: "It helps when you've got players to take the load off Suarez and I think that's why he's finding a bit more space. Teams are not just having to worry about him and are having to worry about Sturridge and Coutinho.

"I was disappointed in Sturridge today, I don't think he did enough for me and Philippe Coutinho showed one or two glimpses of absolute brilliance, certainly for the first goal.

"I thought they did a good job on Bale, probably the best any team has done for a while, and Lucas and Gerrard rattled him at times.

"He still had an influence and made one of the goals with a brilliant cross and the other with a free-kick, but they did as well as anybody has done on Gareth Bale in the last four or five weeks."

The result brought Tottenham's 12-game unbeaten run to an end and with the side still involved in the Europa League, Redknapp believes they face a tough task to hold on to a UEFA Champions League spot.

But he said they shouldn't be too disappointed with the defeat because they played well for long periods and were let down by mistakes.

He added: "Andre Villas-Boas didn't want to blame anybody, but they were poor individual errors; Defoe and Benoit Assou-Ekotto for the third goal and Kyle Walker for the second.

"On the way home on the coach he'll be thinking they were exceptional at times, but individual errors cost them.

"There are a lot of games and they haven't necessarily got the biggest squad in terms of depth up front and they need Emmanuel Adebayor back to take the weight off Defoe.

"The problem is the games are coming thick and fast whereas Arsenal are just playing Premier League because it looks like they are going to go out of the Champions League against Bayern Munich.

"It's opened up for Arsenal now and has given them a lifeline and they've got to try and win their games, but with the way they're playing at the moment it looks like they can't put a run together either."

Read more: http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/15117/8555529/Jamie-Redknapp-says-Liverpool-have-progress-to-make-after-beating-Spurs

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Debts highlight Liverpool demise

Kenny Dalglish ... Liverpool had to pay out the former manager to the tune of around $15m. Source: Jon Super / AAP

Liverpool owners have been hit by a set of "painful'' financial results that highlight the cost of investing heavily in players who have failed to re-establish the club as a force in England or Europe.

The debt at Liverpool was revealed on Monday to have risen by one-third to £87.2 million ($A130 million), while losses of £40.5 million ($A60 million) were accrued during the 2011-2012 season.

		P	W	D	L	GD	Pts
1	Man United	28	23	2	3	37	71
2	Man City	27	16	8	3	26	56
3	Tottenham	28	16	6	6	16	54
4	Chelsea	28	15	7	6	26	52
5	Arsenal	28	13	8	7	21	47
6	Everton	28	11	12	5	9	45
7	Liverpool	28	11	9	8	19	42
8	Swansea	28	10	10	8	5	40
9	West Brom	28	12	4	12	1	40
10	Fulham	28	8	9	11	-5	33
11	Stoke	28	7	12	9	-7	33
12	West Ham	28	9	6	13	-9	33
13	Norwich	28	7	11	10	-18	32
14	Sunderland	28	7	9	12	-7	30
15	Newcastle	28	8	6	14	-11	30
16	Southampton	28	6	9	13	-12	27
17	Wigan	28	6	6	16	-22	24
18	Aston Villa	27	5	9	13	-26	24
19	Reading	28	5	8	15	-20	23
20	QPR	28	3	11	14	-23	20

"I take comfort in the fact that the work we have done, some of which costs us a lot of money in this period and beyond, looks pretty painful at the time,'' managing director Ian Ayre said.

"But as long as you invest in it and manage it in the right way, then hopefully it bears fruit as we go forward.''

There's little prospect of Liverpool reaping riches from the UEFA Champions League next season, however, as the team languishes in seventh place in the Barclays Premier League, outside the top four qualification places.

The downbeat financial results demonstrate the minimal impact of having reached two domestic finals last season and ending a six-year title drought by winning the League Cup.

The five-time European champions were strong performers in the Champions League before slumping out of the group stage in 2009.

It was the eighth-placed finish last season in a top-flight division the club has won 18 times - a haul only surpassed by Manchester United - that bit so hard on the Anfield balance sheets and led to Kenny Dalglish losing his job as manager, replaced by Brendan Rodgers.

The cost of firing Dalglish was included in £9.5 million ($A14 million) of "exceptional payments" during the 10 months to May 31, 2012 covered by these accounts.

Liverpool's losses of £40.5 million in the accounts covering a 10-month period were in line with the losses in the previous full year.

There was only a modest increase in turnover of £5 million ($A7.5 million) from the £184 million ($A273 million) reported for 2010-2011.

Man United's revenue by comparison in 2011-12 hit £320 million ($A476 million).

Ayre accepts the club must "mprove revenues and manage our cost base effectively''.

Owner John Henry's Fenway Sports Group, which rescued the club from fellow Americans Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr in 2010, injected £46.8 million ($A70 million) into the club last season.

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Liverpool put five past Swansea

You beauty ... Liverpool put five past Swansea in the EPL. Source: David Davies / AP

Liverpool ended a winless run of five games in impressive fashion on Sunday as they whipped an under-strength Swansea 5-0 in their Barclays Premier League clash.

 Victory saw Liverpool leapfrog Swansea into seventh spot and give former Swans manager Brendan Rodgers something to smile about at the end of a week that saw defeats by West Brom and then Zenit St Petersburg in the Europa League.

A penalty from Steven Gerrard got them on their way and three goals early in the second-half from impressive debutant Philippe Coutinho, Jose Enrique and Luis Suarez wrapped up the points against a side seemingly distracted by the League Cup final with Bradford next Sunday.

Daniel Sturridge, who like Coutinho missed the Europa League match, added a fifth from the penalty spot.

Swansea manager Michael Laudrup was made to regret sending out a starting line-up shorn of several first choice players, including leading scorer Michu, preferring to give the 15-goal Spaniard time on the bench.

Liverpool, who in three previous Premier League meetings with Swansea had failed to score, made all the running from the kick-off with Suarez looking particularly sharp, going close first with a freekick and then another good effort, which crept over the bar.

Suarez, though, should have done better after Sturridge had done all the work in beating two defenders and then goalkeeper Michel Vorm before going to ground, but with the goal at his mercy the Uruguayan put the ball wide.

The hosts got a penalty in the 34th minute as Suarez was needlessly pushed by Kemy Agustien and Gerrard, who had missed a penalty in the defeat by West Brom last Monday, made no mistake from the spot.

The doubled their lead almost immediately from the kick-off as Coutinho, taking advantage of the Swansea defence not going in for the tackle, saw his shot go under Vorm and into the net.

The hosts added a glorious third in the 50th minute as Jose Enrique finished off a beautiful passing move involving Coutinho, Suarez and Sturridge.

Swansea had completely capitulated and Suarez added a fourth six minutes later with a brilliant individual effort and soon after Rodgers decided Coutinho had done more than enough on his debut and took him off.

Sturridge was also a vibrant presence and Vorm had to be at his best to keep out a stinging effort but he deservedly did get his name on the scoresheet with a penalty in the 71st minute awarded for a handball by Wayne Routledge.

The only downside for Liverpool is it is believed Fabio Borini will be out for the rest of the season after suffering a shoulder injury.

"I think he'll be out for the season," manager Brendan Rodgers said. "It's unfortunate for Fabio because he has done his other shoulder before and had a similar thing so it looks like the early stages of that again, but the other shoulder which is a big disappointment.

"He came on for 15 minutes and looked quite bright in his movement and he worked very hard to try and stop the forward pass and obviously got injured."

Rodgers was delighted with his players in general as the victory lifted the Reds into seventh in the top flight.

"It was a brilliant performance and it's a big applause to the players because their attitude was fantastic throughout the game," he added.

"It was important for us today for a clean sheet, believe it or not even though we scored five goals and I think we had 35 shots.

"It was our main focus going into the game was about being defensively solid and compact against obviously a Swansea team and players that I know very well.

"So all round a fantastic performance and a good three points for us."

Read more: http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11669/8506754/Liverpool-s-Fabio-Borini-is-set-to-miss-the-rest-of-the-season-with-injury

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