Recently by James Pearce

THE Old Lady of Turin may be circling but it was an ageing Texan who was in the spotlight at Anfield on Saturday afternoon.

A surprise visit from co-owner Tom Hicks ensured attention was diverted from Rafa Benitez's admission that he was flattered by Juventus' interest in his services.

On the basis that Hicks only ever turns up for big showdowns in front of the Sky cameras, it's fair to assume he was on Merseyside to conduct some business.

THE fact it brought the biggest cheer of the night simply underlined the miserable lack of entertainment on show at Molineux.

Kevin Foley's flying boot caught Pepe Reina right in the crown jewels and the home supporters lapped it up.

This was a painful evening for Liverpool all-round as they squandered the chance to use their morale-boosting victory over Tottenham as a springboard in their pursuit of a coveted top-four finish.

THIS time it was Fernando Torres' turn to dish out the punishment.

The striker had picked up as many black eyes as goals during the opening month of the campaign.

Roughed up by defenders and warned by his manager to stop taking out his frustration on officials, Torres had at times cut a forlorn figure.

LIVERPOOL have just secured one pot of gold and now the race is on for more riches.

The biggest shirt sponsorship deal in football history will significantly boost the Anfield coffers but even that yearly windfall will be dwarfed if this season's European adventure lasts until next May.

The Champions League offers upwards of £30million to those who stay the distance and the Reds are up and running with their first tentative steps on the road to Madrid.

A FORTRESS? More like a gift shop.

Just when it seemed the fear factor for visitors to Anfield was back, Liverpool shot themselves in the foot spectacularly.

Rafa Benitez had talked about the need to swot all-comers aside at home this season but this was a million miles away from the perfection the Spaniard craves.