Birthday boy makes the difference

It took 47 minutes to break the deadlock as Fowler strook the ball home in the last minute of injury time at the end of the first half.

Liverpool should have put the game to bed early in the second half but were unable to make their chances count, with Peter Crouch coming close and Xabi Alonso hitting the post.

But the 1-0 win puts Liverpool temporarily two points behind Manchester United, although Alex Ferguson's side have games in hand.