Monaco, the team who embarrassed Real Madrid and Chelsea en route to last season's final, were dismantled last night and, though the scoreline suggests a squeeze, the reality was emphatic.
This was almost a mismatch, for all that the home side failed to add to Djibril Cissé's first-half opener until Milan Baros clipped in a second six minutes from time. There was a vibrancy to Liverpool's play which utterly eclipsed the visitors, their upbeat tempo set from central midfield, where Steven Gerrard and Xabi Alonso were outstanding, and maintained by attackers revelling in the freedom of it all.
The transformation from a side who stagnated too often last term was happily received and will have been noted by Gérard Houllier and Phil Thompson, the ancien regime watching from the stands in their new roles as media pundits. This was a fitting way to celebrate Liverpool's 100th fixture in Europe's elite competition, with the confidence through their side clearly evident now that Rafael Benítez's influence is taking hold.
Steve Finnan was unrecognisable from the timid figure of last year, with Harry Kewell equally inspired on the left flank. The exuberance of Luis García, integral whenever the home side ventured forward, has added much-needed creativity and menace, though it was in central midfield where Liverpool showed startling authority.
Dietmar Hamann's omission offered Alonso and Gerrard their first opportunity together as a central pairing. They purred in partnership, the Spaniard hardly misplacing a pass all night and the captain as dominant a driving force as ever. It was Gerrard's vision and execution which split the Monaco defence in first-half stoppage-time, his cross reaching García at the far post only for the header to be stifled. Yet, by then, Liverpool's advantage was established.
What Benítez's side had arguably lacked most during the season's early weeks has been reward from Cissé, with the Frenchman apparently struggling to live up to his £14.1m club-record transfer fee. Those fears were allayed midway through the first half. Alonso touched a short free-kick to Gerrard who exchanged passes with García, then eased Cissé beyond Monaco's panicked backline. The Frenchman tore into open space and ripped his first Anfield goal beyond Flavio Roma.
"It was always going to be about movement for García and Cissé, and that goal proved that," said Benítez, who had instructed his strikers to bend their runs to negate Monaco's rather ramshackle defence. "We could have scored four more than we did but it's a fantastic start."
Only profligacy threatened to undermine their dominance. García, for all his effervescence, missed too many chances for comfort. His flustered attempt from point-blank range late on, hammered inexplicably wide, was comical, though there was so much quality in his tricks and spins that he still departed triumphant. Twice in the first half he might have scored, skimming one shot wide with Roma beaten, then forcing the goalkeeper to block with his legs. Roma repeated that trick near the end - had he not been so impressive, this would have been a rout.
"Flavio saved us but we were below par all over the pitch," said Didier Deschamps. "On that display, defeat was the best result we could expect." There was sympathy for the coach. The heart has been ripped from the side beaten 3-0 in Gelsenkirchen by Porto in May, with only five of the players who began here having started the final last season.
The upheaval, coupled with the suspension of the loanee from Barcelona, Javier Saviola, wrecked the side. Emmanuel Adebayor, fed by Mohamed Kallon's corner, headed their only chance at Jerzy Dudek, but the visitors were too anaemic to exploit the vague second-half jitters at the heart of Liverpool's defence.
Though Manchester United will be encouraged by those nerves before Monday's game at Old Trafford, it was easy to excuse those rare mistakes last night. Parity would have been scandalous, so rampaging were the home side. Josemi overlapped at will down the flank - the sight of a galloping full-back still has novelty value at Anfield - with Kewell, Alonso and García a blur of quick-fire passes.
Baros joined in the fun late on, the substitute collecting Josemi's pass and cutting back from the touchline. The Czech waited for Roma to commit himself before lifting in the second. "We worked for it, but we deserved it," Gerrard said. Liverpool's prospects suddenly look rosy.