While only a fourth away league victory of the season may not be quite sufficient in itself to persuade Steven Gerrard to spurn the advances of Chelsea, his team’s excellent display will encourage him greatly. Morientes equalised just past the hour with a fine strike before García set up John Arne Riise for a winner ten minutes from time. Middlesbrough’s defeat away to Portsmouth helped to consolidate fifth place.
It seemed he would not be needed as Liverpool began strongly, with Milan Baros impressing in his lone role up front and Morientes operating intelligently just behind him. The visiting team almost took an eighth-minute lead when Igor Biscan’s shot was deflected to García, whose effort was diverted by Dean Kiely, the goalkeeper, into the path of Gerrard, who struck the crossbar when perhaps he should have scored.
Gerrard was described this week as the best midfield player in the world by Danny Murphy but the Charlton player, a friend and former club colleague, was not overawed as, along with Matt Holland, he dragged the home side into the match. Having won a corner in the 22nd minute after he skipped past Hyypia and forced Carragher into a hurried clearance, Murphy took the kick and the unmarked Shaun Bartlett sent a downward header into the net at the far post.
Thereafter the first half ebbed and flowed, Gerrard prompting a good low save by Kiely at his near post but then Hyypia toeing away the ball from Bryan Hughes three yards out. A sidefooted shot by Morientes from Gerrard’s cross was blocked by Kiely and then Baros headed over but Hermann Hreidarsson almost doubled the lead when he drew a diving save from Jerzy Dudek.
Four seasons ago Liverpool booked a Champions League place with a 4-0 win at The Valley on the last day of the campaign, but as they began the second half they would have been happy to settle for any victory in their fraught pursuit of entry to Europe’s leading competition. Realising the seriousness of the situation, they poured forward.
At first they were unlucky as Riise struck the underside of the crossbar after he was set up brilliantly by García, who was then denied by the flailing leg of a defender as he met a cross from Riise. But Liverpool did equalise in the 62nd minute when Morientes cut inside Talal El Karkouri on the edge of the box and lashed his shot past Kiely.