Liverpool show the style of champions

MUCH was made of Liverpool topping the table for the first time in five years after this romp, but it was the manner with which Derby were dispatched that does more to suggest they can end their 18-year wait for the league title.

There may seem to have been more false dawns than a branch of Tannerife since Liverpool were last champions in 1990 but there is good reason for the growing optimism that Rafael Benitez, in his fourth season in England, can finally end that fallow period.

While it is accepted that fewer points will be required to secure the championship and 18 better teams than Derby will travel to Anfield in the Premiership this season, it has previously been Liverpool’s failure to pick up three points time and again against lesser sides that has prevented them challenging under Benitez.

They have been easier to cancel out than the attacking options of Manchester United and Chelsea, but there is a new expansiveness and fluidity to Benitez’s side although not at the expense of his defence, which has not conceded a goal from open play in their first six matches of the campaign. Rotation will long out-last the Spaniard’s beard, but Benitez now has the strength in depth to make the policy a success and this result was achieved without the injured Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher, while Peter Crouch did not even make the bench. Benitez believes he can keep his players fresh while maintaining their on-pitch understanding and the fact that Liverpool have managed 11 goals in their opening four Premiership matches with, significantly, six different players hitting the net proves his point at this early stage.

Benitez said: “I would always prefer to have four, five or even nine players scoring than just two. The key is to know where the balance is. You try to keep players in if they’re playing well, especially the strikers but we’ve seen Crouch and (Andriy) Voronin play well and all the other combinations.

“It’s a problem but one I prefer to have rather than having to play with the same strikers all the time, because I have confidence in the others.”

Despite being kept out for 25 minutes on Saturday, that assurance never left Liverpool. The initial breach had a hint of fortune about it, as Xabi Alonso’s 40-yard free-kick evaded everyone in the box to curl into the far corner.

The killer blow came in first-half added time when Daniel Agger picked out an incisive run from Alvaro Arbeloa, who is demonstrating his ability going forward much more this season. The full-back pulled back for Ryan Babel to fool Claude Davis and Andy Griffin before finding the top corner for his first for the club.

As Derby buckled, Fernando Torres grabbed a third after Javier Mascherano robbed the ponderous Bob Malcolm ten minutes after the restart and Alonso added a fourth following a strong run by Jermaine Pennant. Both Spaniards should have had hat-tricks.

Voronin made an immediate impact, stabbing into an empty net after Stephen Bywater had saved Dirk Kuyt’s shot for number five and then knocking forward to Torres, who, thanks to some shocking defending from Andy Todd, made it six.

Only the unemployed Jose Reina, Sami Hyypia and Steve Finnan were not candidates for man of the match.

Liverpool have finally found some width, with Pennant, who is starting to produce consistently, in devastating form on both flanks, and the ability of Agger to carry the ball forward will also be key against sides that attempt to pack the midfield in this arena.

One man likely to escape tinkering, for key games at least, is Torres. Benitez could not have asked for more from his record signing and Alonso has also been impressed with the 23-year-old’s acclimatisation to the English game.

He said: “He has shown he is not afraid of the physical contact here, with defenders trying to put him off, and that is really, really important.

“You can see he is not afraid. He seems to like the challenge of trying to come out on top and he is doing really well for us.”

Derby’s last visit to Anfield saw a 2-0 defeat seal their relegation back in April 2002 and, even though they have 33 league matches remaining, the current campaign looks more than likely to end with the same result. Their opening five outings of the season have brought four defeats and one point, with no goals and 11 conceded in their three games away from Pride Park.

Manager Billy Davies remains defiant, insisting his side’s season starts “officially” after the international break, but there was nothing on show to demonstrate his view that they will stay up.

Liverpool made a mockery of Derby out-numbering them in midfield and Reina’s only toil of the afternoon came in the warm-up.

Davies said: “What they’re saying is spot on. We have come into this with a short rest period after the play-off final, three or four weeks behind everyone else, and we’ve picked up injuries and some people are still like rabbits in the headlights.

“It’s a joy to be here and it’s a joy to take the knocks because I’ve said to the players if they thought we were going to come in here and there weren’t going to be any clouds or any rain at the start of this campaign, then they were joking. The clouds are here and the rain is here, but very soon the sunshine will come out.”

For Liverpool maybe.

Did you know?: Derby have not kept a clean sheet in their last 16 Premier League games dating back to February 2002.

Did you know?: Liverpool have lost just one and won 29 of their last 37 home league games — in those 37 matches they have conceded just 12 goals.