Injuries may force Houllier to buy keeper

Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier faces a potential goalkeeping crisis after the victory at Stamford Bridge which put his side back on course for Champions League qualification.

Chelsea’s title ambitions were dealt a serious blow as Bruno Cheyrou struck his first Barclaycard Premiership goal to leave the Blues now a full seven points behind leaders Manchester United.

Liverpool, meanwhile, moved into fifth place with their first league victory at Stamford Bridge for 14 years, although Houllier is hoping that the price of a morale-boosting win is not too high.

For with Chris Kirkland already recovering from a broken finger, Jerzy Dudek was taken off with 14 minutes left at Stamford Bridge with a groin injury.

That left 23-year-old Patrice Luzi in goal and while he made a fine save from Adrian Mutu, Houllier will investigate the possibility of making an immediate signing ahead of Saturday’s game against Aston Villa.

The Liverpool boss revealed: “I may need a new goalkeeper as Jerzy has a groin problem and could be out for a couple of weeks.

“We have a goalkeeping problem if Jerzy is not fit and I may have to bring someone else in as Chris has a broken finger.

“We do still have Patrice though and, if he has to, he will fill the position very well. He made a couple of good saves in this game.”

Houllier may at least be able to reintroduce Michael Owen for the first time since November 27 after cautiously keeping him on the bench at Chelsea.

Instead, the Liverpool boss turned to midfielder Cheyrou for his second start of an injury-hit season, and he came up trumps with the 33rd-minute winner as he converted Emile Heskey’s fine cross.

“It was a great goal with good movement. Bruno has skill and talent, it is just unfortunate that we have not had him available before now this season,” observed Houllier.

The Liverpool boss admitted that it had been an “ugly” victory, but insisted that “it was a very good win all the same”.

Chelsea, who lost Hernan Crespo to injury after just 12 minutes, had threatened first with a volley by Eidur Gudjohnsen just before the half-hour mark.

However, after Cheyrou struck, the home side flattered to deceive until the final stages, when they launched increasingly desperate attempts for an equaliser.

Even after El-Hadji Diouf was dismissed for his second bookable offence, the breakthrough did not come, with Luzi denying Mutu, who also struck the bar with a header as his goal drought continued.

Houllier, who had faced criticism at the club’s annual general meeting earlier this week, insisted that his side’s fortunes would improve in 2004 after putting a “difficult” time behind them.

He added: “I would like to dedicate this victory to the fans and the board, including the chairman and [chief executive] Rick Parry, as they have been very supportive of the boys.”

Indeed, it is now Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri who needs the support of his board after his side’s dip in fortunes.

The Italian nevertheless insisted that he still has no fears for his future even after a lengthy post-match debriefing with owner Roman Abramovich.

“It was the same as after every match, we have a meeting. Don’t worry, you will still see me tomorrow and for a long time yet,” he insisted.

Ranieri added: “This period is not good for us but I said ‘well done’ to my players as they gave their maximum in this game.

“There is not any team that can stay at a high level for 11 months. Is the gap to Manchester United now too big? Why? We must just continue in this way.

“When we were top of the league, I said it was not important, we must continue to build.

“It is easy for me to say that I want to fight for the title but that is not true, I am fighting to build a team.”