IN 2005, a ‘firm’ of West Ham United supporters were depicted in football hooligan film Green Street – but it was Liverpool who turned in the Hollywood performance on Saturday.
Playing their part in an Upton Park thriller, Liverpool had leading man Fernando Torres to thank as the Spaniard headed in a late winner to send Rafael Benitez’s men third in the Premier League table.
If Torres was the man on the red carpet getting all the attention at the end of the match, then he was certainly given a helping hand by comeback kid Ryan Babel in the supporting role.
The much-maligned Dutchman was like the prodigal son, emerging from the bench to supply the pinpoint cross for Liverpool’s number nine to head past Hammers’ goalkeeper Robert Green with 15 minutes of a pulsating match remaining.
Like every good action flick around, Saturday evening’s match had twists and turns, moments of hope and despair followed by the stunning ending – Liverpool did not get the beautiful girl, but the sweet three points instead.
The game panned out as if scripted by the most experienced of screen writers but even though a couple of Liverpool’s A-listers learned their lines, it was far from a stellar cast list throughout with defensive lapses forcing Liverpool to do it the hard way.
West Ham’s sprightly youngster Zavon Hines was turning Jamie Carragher and Martin Skrtel’s first half into something more akin to the Nightmare On Elm Street – or maybe that should be ‘Nightmare on Green Street’.
Within two minutes of kick-off Hines pounced on Carragher’s hesitation to move one-on-one with Pepe Reina only to strike the post as the Liverpool keeper raced from his line.
The Bobby Moore Stand, housing United fans behind the goal, was immediately in good voice after a lightning-quick start to the match as West Ham harassed and hurried Liverpool who took time to settle.
But calm down they did and Yossi Benayoun, the hat-trick hero of the previous week against Burnley, was slid in on goal by Torres but shot straight at Green from five yards out on the left.
Though rarely looking in complete control of proceedings despite the welcome return of Javier Mascherano to the starting line-up, Liverpool fashioned the more meaningful chances and Torres fired just wide on the turn before he showed Hines how it was done, and reminded everyone of his class. Torres was a peripheral figure against Burnley, looking jaded, and has been the subject of bouts of criticism this season, but there was nothing lethargic about the way he left James Tomkins in his wake before prodding the ball past Green for the opening goal on 20 minutes – it was in truth, a classic Torres goal in a typical performance from the striker.
