FA PREMIERSHIP / LIVERPOOL 4 BLACKBURN 3: If timing is everything then Matt Jansen may just have booked an unlikely call-up to England's World Cup squad here last night.
The eyes of the nation may have been fixed upon raucous events 30 miles down the M62 but, for Sven Goran Eriksson, the focus of attention was firmly on Merseyside.
Jansen, along with the home side's Danny Murphy and Jamie Carragher, was given one last chance to impress; with 11 minutes remaining, darting on to Keith Gillespie's cross, he took it.
The goal may have been checked by Emile Heskey's late winner, drilled into the net to maintain the Reds' breathless charge towards a second-place finish, but by then Eriksson had departed. For Jansen, hope springs eternal this morning.
Not that the Cumbrian eked out much joy initially from his man-mountain opponents Stephane Henchoz and Sami Hyypia. For all his sways and swerves, Jansen was dwarfed, with the Swiss crunching him twice in quick succession when he proved too pesky.
Only briefly were the shackles relieved as Andy Cole's pass saw his partner veering into the area. A dropped shoulder and a flick inside threw off Henchoz, though the final shot was blazed just wide.
By then, other England hopefuls had made their mark. The busy Murphy, impressive against Paraguay, emerged from a tense opening quarter to wriggle into a cluttered area, slipping on the greasy surface and then hooking the ball beyond Alan Kelly as he lay sprawled on the turf.
But, within five minutes, parity had been restored. Damien Duff, Japan-bound and outstanding again here, gathered a short free-kick before dancing across the edge of the area exchanging passes with Nils-Eric Johansson and Tugay Kerimoglu. With defenders all a-dither, he calmly placed his shot back across Jerzy Dudek, through a mess of legs and into the far corner.
Nicolas Anelka may yet be on the way out of Anfield, but this game's busiest player is learning to live with rejection. Omitted from the French squad, his blazing run across the area left Craig Short floored. With a sight of goal, the 23-year-old steered his shot beyond Kelly to restore Liverpool's advantage.
Murphy and Hyypia might have added to that lead before the break. Yet, with the home defence strangely unconvincing whenever Rovers attacked down the flanks, those misses were quickly rued.
Lucas Neill, barging his way beyond John-Arne Riise, found unexpected time and space to cross for Cole who slipped unnoticed between centre-halves to head at goal. Dudek, back-pedalling frantically, could only palm the ball into his net.
Riposte was swift, as Hyypia's cleverly flicked header from Murphy's free-kick reclaimed the lead.
LIVERPOOL: Dudek, Carragher, Henchoz, Hyypia, Riise, Murphy, Gerrard, Hamann (Xavier 81), Heskey, Anelka, Owen (Smicer 90). Subs Not Used: Arphexad, Barmby, McAllister. Booked: Gerrard. Goals: Murphy 23, Anelka 39, Hyypia 52, Heskey 86.
BLACKBURN: Kelly, Curtis (Gillespie 60), Berg (Hughes 90), Short, Neill, Dunn, Tugay, Johansson, Duff, Cole, Jansen. Subs Not Used: Yordi, Unsal, Miller. Booked: Duff. Goals: Duff 28, Cole 49, Jansen 80.
Referee: A Wiley (Burntwood).
Guardian Service
