Liverpool, despite being the last side to lose a Premiership match at the Stadium of Light, had the look of cold-eyed assassins. They have now not conceded a goal in seven matches and they could cope with the dropping of Djibril Cisse, though his manager, Rafael Benitez, denied it was for disciplinary reasons, and the dismissal of Mohamed Sissoko for two crude tackles. Cisse has taken another step towards leaving Anfield, though for the first time Benitez now finds himself in a Champions League position from where he will take some dislodging.
In the wake of Saturday's defeat by Birmingham, Mick McCarthy had given what amounted to a funeral oration over a dying club, claiming that the players he had bought to Wearside were gutless, inept and lacking in ability. It was the Sunderland manager's penultimate card - the final one would be to submit his resignation - and it was played in the hope of rousing a stricken side into some kind of response. It worked in parts, with Sunderland funnelling some imaginative play through Liam Lawrence and Dean Whitehead, until it became so much wasted breath.
The applause for Sunderland's efforts was muted mainly because the Stadium of Light at kick-off resembled the Stadium of Light 10 minutes before the end - there were swathes of empty red seats. There are only so many blows these already bruised supporters can take, though McCarthy claimed that this time Sunderland had shown some fight.
Regulars would have known that Sunderland have frequently begun well, only to fall apart. Last night the collapse began after half an hour, as a long ball played from deep in Liverpool's area by Xabi Alonso found Luis Garcia just on-side between two hopelessly positioned central defenders. The Spaniard drew Ben Alnwick and then placed the deftest of shots inside the near post.
On the verge of half-time Alonso, who Benitez considered to be one of the best passers of a ball in the world, repeated the move with a beautiful, curling ball that found Steven Gerrard. Again, Alnwick came out to narrow the angle, again he was beaten by exceptional finishing, of the kind Sunderland, for all their sweat, could not hope to match.
The only question now was whether Peter Crouch would score and it says something for the cynicism on Wearside that many home supporters had backed him to find the net for the first time.
He left the field having taken his time without a goal to 11 minutes short of 24 hours. However, he ought to have won a penalty when he was dragged down in a goalmouth scramble, while John Arne Riise smashed a shot against the crossbar. It might have been a rout, instead it was merely a defeat and these days Sunderland might be grateful even for that.