Liverpool barely had to exert themselves to put pressure on Manchester United. Never before in Rafael Benítez's reign have the Merseysiders been within even 10 points of the league leaders with two games to go, tonight they are top of the table.
Progress on the domestic front is a fact. It is also beyond question, surely, that the title race would have been even closer if Benitez had been able to start with Fernando Torres in more than half of the season's league matches, and if he'd had a better replacement when the striker was missing.
Liverpool scored the bulk of their goals in the first half today but it was only in the second that it was apparent that the manager had got them truly believing they could still be champions this season. Their customary solidity and intensity returned, and they trusted in cutting counters.
In the first period, by contrast, they had been diffident despite effortlessly scoring after 76 seconds. Their full-backs were slack and their midfield was uncharacteristically subdued; Javier Mascherano was not his dynamic self, Lucas Leiva's display was a puff piece for Xabi Alonso and Yossi Benayoun's only contribution of note was the crafty lobbed pass to Fernando Torres that preceded Luis Boa Morte's oafish felling of the Spaniard.
That, and a straightforward run from deep by Steven Gerrard, was enough. A misdirected header by Radosalv Kovac spared Pepe Reina after the goalkeeper flapped at a cross and even when Jamie Carragher managed to be outwitted by the ball just before the break, David Di Michele conjured a blunder even more comical.
Not that Liverpool were laughing. True, today's result means Sir Alex Ferguson will have to warn his players against complacency or nerves ahead of tomorrow's Manchester derby and the impending visit of Arsenal, and also means he will not be able to rest as many players as he might have hoped between now and the Champions League final.
Still, the Scot's superior squad means he will be able to continue varying his selections with more success than Benítez has been able to achieve this season.
In a sense, the ease of today's win for Liverpool was a tease, reminding the visitors that if they had got a similar result on those occasions this season when they only drew despite playing far better than they did today – such as when these two sides met at Anfield – this stroll around Upton Park would have mattered much more. Too many 0-0s explain why Benítez will surely devote the summer to finding a more reliable finisher than Robbie Keane.
