Premiership: Houllier stands by Westerveld

Gerard Houllier admitted that Liverpool were "let down" by Sander Westerveld's howler which gave Bolton a 2-1 victory.

But the Liverpool boss declined to condemn his stunned Dutch keeper, saying: "It cost my team at least two points, but these things happen.

"Some days Sander has saved us, there's no point in condemning him because it would only add to his sadness."

Houllier had witnessed his side dominate the match for long spells, but they were unable to turn that possession into the goals needed to break the hearts of Bolton's magnificent, battling top flight newcomers.

He added: "I was not disappointed with the display of football but I feel very sad for the players because they were unfairly let down by that blunder."

Houllier was equally candid about the incident that saw Robbie Fowler booked for diving in the first half.

He said: "If the player dived then a booking is normal."

And on Fowler's general play, which ended with a second half substitution, Houllier added: "Robbie could have done better, he was not up to the standard we know of him."

But Houllier defended his team, who slipped to their first defeat since Good Friday.

He added: "I told my team their performance was marvellous, and that they lost because of a huge error.

"It's not often that you play that well in an away match and restrict your opponents to just the two chances they had to score from."