Owen goals will come - Houllier

Michael Owen is a “split second” away from his scoring best claims Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier.

The Anfield chief accepts that World Cup fatigue hits strikers harder than anyone else because of the need to be razor sharp in the Premiership.

But as Liverpool return to the scene of one of last season’s setbacks when they lost at Bolton – a defeat which ended Sander Westerveld’s goalkeeping career at the club and led to the signing of Jerzy Dudek and Chris Kirkland - Houllier has no doubts that Owen is on the brink of a goal deluge.

Houllier has felt the need this week to talk to his players and implore that they don’t lose their nerve as Liverpool try to change their style and become an attack-minded team.

A return to goalscoring form by Owen would certainly help the cause after he’s scored just once – from the penalty spot – in seven games for club and country this term.

Now Houllier admits: “Michael just needs to fine tune his sharpness. He’s just a split second away, and once that has happened he will score a lot.

“He has admitted that once he has done that, and maybe it will take a week, that his fitness will be right after the World Cup.

“Apart from Didi Hamann, I have not seen many World Cup players perform well, and that’s because it is the start of the season. It may be just a split second of sharpness that is needed.”

Houllier said: “I’m confident the goals will come from the strike force, no problem. We will score goals, everyone knows that.”

Houllier is determined that his side’s resolve to become more attack minded doesn’t wane in the face of recent set-backs.

A team meeting less than 24 hours after conceding another two-goal lead on Wednesday against Birmingham, was Houllier’s way of working on the team’s confidence.

He said: “What matters is how you react. Only a good attitude can help you get through this kind of period. We have done it often enough in the past. That’s why I wanted to speak to the boys on Thursday morning.

“I said that one of the remedies for adversity is togetherness. I told the players not to indulge in any self-pity or moaning and whingeing.

“They shouldn’t go around feeling sorry for themselves. Instead, they should look ahead and focus on the next target, which is Bolton.”

And that means trying to wipe away the memory of last season’s reverse against a side who have Houllier’s total respect after winning in midweek at Manchester United for the second time in succession.

Houllier said: “This time last season we lost there when we conceded a goal through a stupid mistake, a schoolboy error.

“It led me to take some very harsh and hurtful decisions, but I doubt anyone would argue about that now. But we certainly need to wipe out that memory.”