Three goals in six first-half minutes saw Liverpool hammer Portsmouth 4-1 and move up to fifth spot in the Premier League table. Liverpool got two goals from Fernando Torres, and a goal each from Ryan Babel, and Alberto Aquilani, who scored his first goal for Liverpool.
Liverpool’s season has been a huge disappointment and this was reflected in the crowd of 40316, te lowest attendance for a league match at Anfield in five years. Portsmouth did not help with the attendance, taking just 300 fans to Merseyside.
Liverpool had failed to score in three of their last four league matches, but it took just 26 minutes for the hosts to break the deadlock. Gerrard capitalised as Ashdown dallied at the back to leave Maxi Rodriguez to slide a neat pass to Torres, who proceeded to slam his 14th league strike of the season beyond the Pompey keeper.
Two minutes later, Glen Johnson’s marauding run down the right culminated in a raking cross-field ball to Torres, whose lay-off enabled Babel to stab a precise shot beyond Ashdown.
The Anfield crowd only had to wait another four minutes for Liverpool to establish a three-goal cushion as Torres hurtled down the left before a deft back-heel found Gerrard, and Aquilani was presented with an opening for a crisp left-footed finish to beat the Pompey keeper at his near post and open his Liverpool account.
Torres grabbed his second in the 77th minute with a second strike of immense conviction as more insipid defending from Pompey saw the Spaniard beat Ashdown at his near post after cutting in from the right with consummate ease.
Liverpool’s seventh successive Premier League victory at Anfield sees Benitez’s side assume fifth spot above Manchester City, albeit having played two games more, while Portsmouth’s plight becomes evermore hopeless.
