More was expected of Sofia but all they could manage was a header just before half-time by Velizar Dimitrov which briefly threatened to knock Liverpool out of their assured stride.
Liverpool comfortable in defence
More was expected of Sofia but all they could manage was a header just before half-time by Velizar Dimitrov which briefly threatened to knock Liverpool out of their assured stride.
Especially pleasing for the Merseysiders was the return to form of Fernando Morientes. His two-goals added to the opener by Djibril Cisse enabled manager Rafael Benitez to carry through his plan not to use Milan Baros, his other striker. Baros, subject of much transfer speculation, would have had his £7million price tag cut if he had been barred from playing for another club in Europe as a consequence of appearing here.
Steven Gerrard has proved an inspirational captain in guiding Liverpool along the long route to the draw for the group stages of the Champions League, the England midfielder amassing a remarkable total of seven goals in the two previous rounds. Here he played the role of provider to put his team in command of what was expected to be a much tougher assignment against a CSKA team who won the last of their 30 Bulgarian titles last season.
Gerrard's shooting power clearly worried the home side and after he had been off target with two long-range attempts they expected him to take aim for a third time when Xabi Alonso found him unmarked 25 yards out. This time, however, he feigned to shoot and slipped a perfectly-weighted pass into the path of Cisse, who threaded the ball past goalkeeper Evgheni Hmaruc from a tight angle.
That 23rd-minute effort was Cisse's fourth goal in five European outings and when Morientes opened his account six minutes later by heading home a Gerrard free kick, Benitez's men were looking forward to an Anfield stroll in two weeks time.
That second leg would have been a formality if Liverpool had taken any of the other chances they created in an impressive first-half display, but that was marred by the loss of concentration just before the interval which allowed Sofia back into the tie. Sami Hyypia, who earlier had expressed his delight at signing an extension to his contract which now runs until 2008, watched in despair as a left-wing cross from Mourad Hdiouad found the diminutive Dimitrov on the six-yard line. The downward header gave Jose Reina no chance.
Just before that setback, Morientes, who had been urged by his manager to show more of his Spanish international form, headed wide from another dangerous Gerrard ball into the area, while Liverpool were marginally denied another away goal when John Arne Riise was adjudged to be offside when running on to a Cisse flick.
Scoring just before the interval had a galvanising effect on Sofia and their supporters in a half-empty Levski Stadium - the club's attempt to cash in on their opponents European Cup-winning status by raising admission prices backfiring badly - and the Bulgarians immediately put Liverpool under pressure in the second half.
Liverpool refused to be intimidated and had soon restored their two-goal cushion, courtesy of more penetrating approach work by Gerrard and another neat finish by Morientes.
The Spaniard was given an extraordinary amount of time to control his captain's pass eight yards from goal and was able to turn and shoot comfortably past Hmaruc. That third Liverpool goal helped Morientes to forget an alarming miss a couple of minutes earlier when he had been sent clean through by his compatriot, Alonso. With only the goalkeeper to beat he shot against an upright.
The third goal convinced Benitez that the job was in hand and attention turned towards the awkward Premiership opening fixture at Middlesbrough on Saturday evening as the manager gave Gerrard a rest. His departure brought respectful applause from the Bulgarian fans and there was a similar ovation when Morientes followed him to the dug-out.