The striker was at it all afternoon, to Palace’s immense displeasure, but his actions came to swing this game — at the death — in Liverpool’s favour.
Baros drilled the ball to Gabor Kiraly’s right to become the first player ever to score a hat-trick in this fixture. How Liverpool were relieved. They had just about done enough to deserve victory but had been suffering from their now regular problem of failing to put the opposition away. Dowie must have been agonised, having come so close to yet another remarkable result, only to see his team let themselves down when Tom Soares, their substitute, gave the ball away and Popovic allowed Baros to sprint ahead of him onto Harry Kewell’s pass, before tripping the Czech.
“Baros is an outstanding player and he hurt us today,” said the Palace manager. “I’m not going to get embroiled in whether he went down too easily for the penalties. That’s for others to judge. Overall, the result’s hard to stomach but we didn’t defend well enough throughout the game.”
Kolkka, booked when he complained to the referee after finishing his mimicry of Baros, would have also been pained, having done so much to keep his side in the game. The free kick awarded for his “foul” on Baros, just before the interval, had seen Liverpool go 2-1 up when Xabi Alonso floated the ball into the box, Kewell turned it across goal and Baros tapped in from two yards. But Kolkka came back out after the interval and created his team’s second goal, having scored Palace’s first with a lovely volley. The little winger prospered despite giving away several inches to every one of Liverpool’s players except Luis Garcia, and he epitomised Palace’s spirit.
It might have been different had Dowie been able to field Andy Johnson, his top scorer and a supposed transfer target for Liverpool, but the striker was left out as a precaution because of a hip problem. Tord Grip had come to Anfield hoping to watch the Premiership’s leading English-born marksman, but had to be content with seeing a steady performance from Jamie Carragher, an injury-free afternoon for Chris Kirkland, and the especially pleasing sight of Steven Gerrard doing some light jogging work with a Liverpool fitness coach out on the pitch after full-time.
Grip might also have been intrigued by Ben Watson, who has just been called up by England Under-21s, and more than held his own against Alonso and Dietmar Hamann. With Palace playing five across the middle and Kewell showing a tendency to drop deep for Liverpool, the game was played largely in midfield until tiredness stretched Palace near the end. The home team, despite predictably dominating possession, found it hard going during the opening period and when Alonso opened up , dinking a pass inside Danny Granville to create a chance that Carragher, with his defender’s feet, was too ponderous to take, it was a rare moment.
Garcia and Alonso looked Liverpool’s likeliest safe-breakers, but Hamann surprised everyone by coming up with the combination to unlock Palace. The German poked the ball through to Baros, who bumped bodies with Mikele Leigertwood and went down as if the impact had been made not by a 12st defender, but a 12-ton truck. Phil Dowd pointed to the spot and Dowie’s men could not believe it. Baros made a miraculous recovery and passed his penalty into the net.
After more stuntman antics from Baros played their part in Liverpool’s second goal, the Kop greated the half-time whistle with acclaim, but a few minutes previously they had been silenced when Kolkka equalised. Slipped clear by Watson, the Finn arched a volley over Kirkland from an angle.
Palace levelled at 2-2 when Watson helped spring a counter-attack in which Kolkka raced down the left and crossed to the near post for Michael Hughes to nod in. For a long time it looked like bouncebackability would be the story of the day. But when Baros goes to ground there is no bouncing back. He stays down.