Steven Gerrard's unforgettable winner against Olympiakos in 2004 200

Gerrard apart, no-one looked like they had the wit or invention to unpick the Spanish defence, and we were reduced to speculative efforts on goal rather than create clear-cut chances. Suggestions that we have not missed Torres are well wide of the mark; though we have managed to win big games without him, the margins of victory might well have been greater with him in the side, and this week’s setbacks would surely not have occurred if he had played. While Dirk Kuyt has struggled manfully to fill his boots, Robbie Keane’s efforts have been frankly frustrating. I’ve been telling anyone who’ll listen that I have no fears for Robbie, and that he’ll soon be banging in the goals and proving his quality. I confess though a slight anxiety has started to make its presence known in my stomach, which I’m hoping will not turn into a full-blown ulcer.

He’s been inhibited by a groin injury of course, and he’s not exactly been helped by Rafa dragging him off at every opportunity. The two may not be unrelated, but Keane’s obvious disappointment at being replaced on Tuesday by an untried 19-year-old can’t have helped his confidence. Perhaps Rafa needs to show some more trust in him, and his confidence may return.

Benitez himself didn’t have the best of games on Tuesday, the use of David Ngog as baffling as his failure to bring on Yossi Benayoun, who might have had the guile to weave his way through to help break the deadlock.

He also apparently forgot, not for the first time, to send on Babel’s left leg, which seems to have been placed in cold storage alongside John Arne Riise’s right. Still, one good leg is better than none – just ask Andrea Dossena.