my feeling zone

It must have gone against all of Rafael Benítez’s instincts to send Fernando Torres out in the driving Mbt trainers snow last night, but, finally, in the third minute of stoppage time, the Liverpool forward got the chance that he craved.

Showing the cold-eyed instincts of a world-class goalscorer, he secured a dramatic victory that gave his team hope last night in their bid for a place in the Champions League next season.

For Torres, after the injury problems he has endured in recent months, playing 90 minutes twice in three days seemed to represent a feat of endurance, but as the clock ticked down, he steeled himself for one final push, a push that took him beyond the opposition defence ghd straighteners  and allowed him to beat Brad Friedel.

In doing so, he reminded Aston Villa and indeed Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City that his team still have designs on a top-four finish.

Much will be made of the historic context of Torres’s 50th league goal for Liverpool — a milestone he has reached in just 72 appearances, quicker than any player in the club’s illustrious history — but his progress towards that mark had become painful and anguished in recent weeks.

A groin injury, an ankle injury, a malaise hanging over his team — these are the factors that have clouded his and Liverpool’s season — but, as he wheeled away to celebrate with his team-mates  Mbt in front of the visiting supporters in the Doug Ellis Stand, it seemed that the first pale, green shoots of recovery might be evident.

Martin O’Neill, the Villa manager, looked upset at the final whistle and carried his dark mood into the post-match press conference, after which he felt moved to apologise to one journalist for responding spikily to a fairly inoffensive question.

His disappointment was understandable, as he stated that Villa had enough chances to win the game and yet somehow ended up losing it, but it may have been compounded by the fact that, for all the eulogies his team have earned in recent weeks, they now lead Liverpool — demoralised, depleted crisis-club Liverpool — by just two points.

This being Liverpool, it could not be a perfect night — Glen Johnson left the ground on crutches, after a collision with James Milner late in the game, and will undergo a scan today to assess the extent of his knee injury — but Benítez looked happier than he has done for some time.

Not only was this a second consecutive Barclays Premier League victory but it was a second consecutive clean sheet, one that owed much to the performances of Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger, who were impeccable for the most part, and Pepe Reina, who made an excellent save from Stewart Downing in the first half.

Torres had been on the periphery of the game when finally opportunity knocked in stoppage time as a result of a comedy of errors in the Villa rearguard. O’Neill preferred to call it “a collection of circumstances”, but, as Stephen Warnock and then Steve Sidwell, in trying to clear, succeeded only in helping Torres on his way, it seemed like the kind of goal that normally has managers ripping their hair out when they see it replayed.

For all that, Torres took his chance magnificently. “He is one of the best strikers in the world,” Benítez said afterwards ghd hair straighteners. “You can never say that one player is the best, because in other countries there are also great players, but I think he’s one of the best.

“He has had some problems with his ankle, as well as his groin, but he was working hard in training and he did well.”

Perhaps Villa paid the price for fatigue, having had barely 48 hours to recover since their 3-0 defeat by Arsenal on Sunday. O’Neill would point out that they had been the more dangerous team in the final 20 minutes and that they had the more clear-cut chances, but Benítez, in his matter-of-fact way, ascribed those opportunities to “set-pieces and one counter- attack”. They were both telling the truth, if not the whole truth.

In the absence of Ashley Young, who was suspended, Villa’s chances did come almost exclusively from set-pieces, with Downing forcing Reina into a fine save and John Carew missing with a free header from six yards. There was also a scare for Liverpool midway through the second half when Carragher slipped and Gabriel Agbonlahor got behind him, but the Villa forward’s left-foot shot lacked power.

Liverpool’s attacking play was short on the dynamism and the penetration with which they are synonymous at their best, but their football was controlled, with Alberto Aquilani quietly making his presence felt on only his second Premier League start and Gerrard, while not close to his best, looking fitter and happier than he had during the disappointing 2-0 defeat by Portsmouth ten days earlier.

Chances were scarce, with Friedel saving from Yossi Benayoun and Gerrard, but, the odd scare at dead-ball situations aside, it was one of their more convincing displays of the season.

Had the match ended goalless, Benítez would have bemoaned Lee Probert’s failure to award Liverpool a penalty Mbt sale in the 37th minute, when Richard Dunne clattered into Dirk Kuyt. The Liverpool forward did not have the ball under control, but this should not have been a consideration for the referee. Benítez was entitled to look aggrieved as the half-time whistle blew.

Afterwards, the Liverpool manager looked rather happier, but he, like O’Neill, showed the odd sign of tetchiness. In particular he seemed determined to challenge the largely sceptical reaction to his much-publicised “guarantee” that his team will qualify for the Champions League.

It was, he said, a reflection of positive thinking, not arrogance. There has been no place for either at Anfield in recent months, but finally, this morning, Torres and Liverpool might be feeling better about themselves.