Portsmouth 0 Liverpool 0: Jose Reina's first half penalty save from Kanu and let Liverpool off the hook in a scoreless scrap at Fratton Park.

Alvaro Arbeloa was adjudged to have tugged at the jersey of Kanu inside the area resulting in referee Mike Riley awarding a penalty in the 31st minute. Kanu picked himself up to take the kick but Reina guessed right and managed to keep the penalty out.

Although dangerous Ukrainian Andriy Voronin hit the bar and then was inches from a winner late on, it was Pompey who spurned the biggest opportunities. After taking just one point from meetings with Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal this was their chance to pull down a top-four giant but their finishing let them down.

Despite the 6-0 destruction of Derby which put Liverpool top of the division, manager Benitez swapped over his main strikers, going in with former Pompey star Peter Crouch's first league start of the season alongside Voronin.

With only three minutes on the clock, Pompey keeper David James had to be alert to go down and turn away a fierce shot by Yossi Benayoun for a corner. At the other end, Pompey's new signing Papa Bouba Diop was head and shoulders above all challengers to meet Sean Davis's free-kick with his head but could not direct his effort on target.

Muntari appeared to be fouled by Xabi Alonso when Liverpool broke up a Portsmouth attack and pressed forward in the 10th minute. Voronin battled for possession and squared his pass for Alonso to drive not far over from 30 yards.

But it needed another fine save by James to keep out Liverpool seven minutes later when Mohamed Sissoko's pass put Crouch in for an angled shot which the keeper stopped with a strong left wrist.

Pompey were relieved when Alonso's free-kick from 25 yards crashed into their defensive wall after Mali midfielder Sissoko went down too easily from a tangle with Muntari but Liverpool looked full of scoring options in the first 25 minutes.

Liverpool might have been expected to push on from there and take the game by the scruff of the neck but they failed to make another worthwhile chance before the break and after Crouch brilliantly back-heeled a Steve Finnan pass just over James's bar.

First, Utaka with all the goal to aim at after Diop forced the ball through, slashed his effort wide with only Reina to beat in the 52nd minute. Then the goal was gaping again when the energetic Muntari hooked Kanu's lay-back off target. In between, Voronin's half-volley clipped the bar when Pompey were caught napping at the back.

Liverpool brought in captain Steven Gerrard and striker Fernando Torres but this failed to breakdown the Portsmouth defence.

The pace was unrelenting and just before the end, Voronin was inches away from converting a Torres cross but defeat for battling Pompey would have been a sad injustice.