The no-nonsense Kyrgiakos was bought by Benitez precisely for games like this and, some understandable teething troubles aside, the Greek international should take encouragement from a competent first outing.

As with Villa on Monday, Liverpool enjoyed the greater possession and created the better chances, their opponents producing little from open play. Reina’s only save of note, albeit a very good one, was to turn over Taylor’s venomous 25-yard free-kick. But they laboured during the first half until being shaken into life by Bolton’s opener.

Glen Johnson has enjoyed a hugely impressive start to his Liverpool career and continues to justify the big-money outlay for his services.

His equaliser on 41 minutes – a left-footed rarity driven low from 20 yards – means he has now scored as many goals in four games as predecessor Alvaro Arbeloa.

Johnson’s constant raiding from full-back, allied to that of Emiliano Insua on the opposite left flank, eventually helped break down a Bolton defence that battened down the hatches after the dismissal of Davis on 54 minutes, the undoubted turning point of the game.

The Bolton midfielder had already been needlessly booked for kicking the ball away when he clipped the heels of Lucas while in pursuit of the Brazilian.

It was a foul deserving of a caution. Davis was incensed and, while Lucas made sure referee Alan Wiley was made aware of the Bolton man’s earlier yellow card, had only himself to blame.

Lucas may not be a replacement for Xabi Alonso, but he has at least assumed the departed Spaniard’s mantle of being the subject of red-card offences.

Given such a niggly encounter, the sending-off wasn’t a surprise. What was, however, was Megson’s laughable claim that Liverpool’s players were “chucking themselves all over the place” while ignoring the fact they were being put there by Bolton’s roughhouse approach.

The visitors took just two minutes to make the most of their numerical advantage and again draw level with the best goal of the match. Gerrard, who had seconds earlier struck the bar, lofted a pass forward for Dirk Kuyt whose brilliant chested lay-off was controlled by a previously frustrated Torres before being swept home.

Albert Riera was quiet on his first start of the season before being replaced by the busy Yossi Benayoun, while Benitez again turned to Andriy Voronin with the game in the balance was a further reminder of how tomorrow’s transfer deadline passing without major incident could yet prove costly.

Liverpool’s resilience dug them out of many a hole during the first half of last season, and Benitez will have taken heart from the manner in which his team twice came from behind to win.

Certainly, that quality will be tested to the full if they are to emerge as serious title contenders once again.