Saints gain deserved victory at Liverpool

Liverpool 1 Southampton 2

Flu-victim Gerard Houllier was an unhappy figure as his out-of-sorts Liverpool side slid to a surprise home defeat by Southampton.

Nothing he saw on the pitch would have done anything to improve his health as Brett Ormerod and Michael Svensson scored before Emile Heskey’s consolation proved too little too late for the Anfield faithful, who booed Liverpool off.

Liverpool brought midfielder Vladimir Smicer back into their starting line-up, French teenager Florent Sinama Pongolle dropping to the bench to make way.

Southampton boss Gordon Strachan stuck with the players that beat Charlton last weekend and his side were ahead after just 72 seconds from a cleared Liverpool corner.

Claus Lundekvam cleared the danger from deep in his own half to send Ormerod away. With Liverpool’s central defenders both caught up field from the corner, Dietmar Hamann was exposed and Ormerod raced away to glide his shot past Chris Kirkland from 12 yards.

Liverpool were stunned and their cohesion suffered.

Full-back Jon Otsemobor made some enterprising runs on the right and created headed chances for Smicer and El Hadji Diouf but Liverpool lacked inspiration.

Southampton, bright and quick, exposed a lack of pace in Sami Hyypia and Igor Biscan and every ball went over the top for Ormerod and James Beattie to chase.

Smicer’s surge into the box on 30 minutes ended with him hitting the ground in front of the Kop after colliding with Lundekvam, but referee Paul Durkin waved away appeals for a penalty.

Liverpool began to panic and passes went astray as Southampton’s midfield of David Prutton, Rory Delap and Paul Telfer took control.

Heskey, having to contend with Lundekvam Michael Svensson largely on his own, managed a glancing header from Diouf’s cross that flew over but got little joy elsewhere in the first half.

Liverpool’s best first-half effort came from Otsemobor’s approach play when he produced a flighted ball into the box and Danny Murphy flicked a shot just over.

Southampton lost Lundekvam with an ankle injury, Chris Marsden going on and Danny Higginbotham moving into central defence.

The visitors had a great chance to double their lead on 50 minutes when Beattie raced into space on the left, leaving Biscan stranded. His cross fell to Marian Pahars on the edge of the box but he lifted hs shot wide.

Beattie was lucky not to concede a penalty after flattening Diouf in the box from behind a minute later but the striker should have scored on 55 minutes.

He met a Marsden cross out with a firm header from eight yards but Kirkland palmed the ball away.

On 56 minutes Liverpool threw on both their French teenagers, Sinama Pongolle for Hamann and Anthony Le Tallec for Diouf.

It produced an initial spark. Smicer surged through on the left to see his shot blocked, with the ball breaking to Sinama Pongolle, whose effort was turned away by Antti Niemi.

From the resulting corner, Hyypia climbed to send in a header that was kicked off the line by Jason Dodd.

But as Liverpool thought the tide had turned, Southampton went to the other end to double their lead.

Biscan clumsily gave away a corner under pressure from Beattie and when Jason Dodd’s flag kick soared into the box, Svensson met it with a powerful header that beat Kirkland and cannoned off Smicer and into the roof of the net.

That should have been it but Liverpool poured forward and Otsemobor raced into the box to force Niemi into a flying save.

The Finn then had to plunge to his right to turn away a 74th-minute Gerrard drive, and when the ball spun out Heskey was there to stab it into an empty net.

Danny Higginbotham had to hack a goalbound Sinama Pongolle effort off the line on 79 minutes.

Niemi then saved a Heskey header from Gerrard’s cross, but it would have been an injustice had the Saints been robbed at the death.