THE Spanish tourism board may have been match sponsors at Anfield, but the best advert for their country in these parts was conspicuous by his absence yesterday.
After the feast comes the famine. Having thrillingly thumped Benfica only three days earlier, Liverpool ran up against the brick wall of Fulham's defence resulting in a goalless draw that all but extinguishes lingering hopes of Champions League qualification.
And as against the Portuguese, the importance of Fernando Torres to Rafael Benitez's side was emphatically underlined.
This time, instead of impressively leading the line, the striker was en route to Barcelona and specialist Ramon Cugat who will this morning assess his worrying knee problem.
News from that trip could well determine Liverpool's chances of securing the silver lining to a miserable campaign of a Europa League triumph. After all, it will take something miraculous for Benitez's men to salvage a top-four berth, Liverpool six points adrift of current incumbents Manchester City having played a game more with only four matches remaining. Indeed, work still needs to be done to ensure European football next season, even though as low as seventh is likely to now suffice.
Benitez had suggested over the weekend that, with no fresh investment forthcoming, he may have to cash in on some of his most saleable assets to fund future squad restructuring.
It immediately raised the spectre of Torres being sold. And while very much a drastic last resort, particularly in light of the latest developments in the Anfield boardroom, losing the Spain international in the summer is a price that would simply not be worth paying.
Fulham's own European adventure means the two teams could meet in the Europa League final next month. But if yesterday's encounter is a dress rehearsal for Hamburg, expect it to end in penalties.
This was effectively attack against defence, Benitez's men dominant in terms of possession with Fulham happy to lean on their European experiences by sitting back and soaking up the pressure.
That it took the Londoners until the 90th minute to have a first shot at Pepe Reina's goal said everything. But of equal relevance, however, was the fact Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer was rarely pressed into any important saves.
Benitez's men had scored in the previous 37 home games since West Ham United kept a clean sheet to earn a point back in December 2008, a stalemate that came just a week before Fulham's last visit to Anfield had resulted in a similar scoreline.
There was a real end-of-season feel to much of this encounter, epitomising how Liverpool's Premier League challenge has floundered in recent weeks and that Fulham's focus is unsurprisingly very much on their ongoing Europa League run.
The inevitable changes following Thursday's endeavours meant another chance for Alberto Aquilani. The Italian, making his first start since impressing against Portsmouth a month earlier, worked hard to be involved but too many of his flicks and ambitious passes missed the mark.
Perhaps unsurprising given how injury has continually hampered efforts to build an understanding with his team-mates, Benitez would nevertheless have expected more before withdrawing Aquilani just past the hour.
David Ngog, the lone striker with Dirk Kuyt rested to the bench, also suffered. The Frenchman cannot be faulted for effort and possesses some tricky footwork, but other than a lofted volley that dropped wide following a superb crossfield pass by Steven Gerrard, too much of his play was outside the penalty area.
