HE may no longer be in the Anfield hotseat, but clearly Roy Hodgson still possesses the uncanny knack of prompting howls of anguish from Liverpool fans.

All too often this season, the travelling Kop have been left watching the action through their fingers as another away-day calamity unfolds before disbelieving eyes.

But while Hodgson eventually ran out of excuses for such recurring nightmares, at the weekend he didn’t need to find any.

The meeting of Anfield past and present ended with Kenny Dalglish’s predecessor enjoying a modicum of revenge following a tumultuous 191-day reign by further undermining Liverpool’s hopes of European qualification.

Of course, Hodgson would never admit to such base emotions, but it would be understandable for the 63-year-old to glean extra satisfaction in extending his unbeaten start as West Bromwich Albion manager.

His supporters – a number that remained curiously fulsome in certain sections of the media throughout his Anfield reign – will no doubt point to this result as reason why Liverpool should not have been so hasty in wielding the axe in January.

But, in many respects, this outcome completely vindicates those who believe Hodgson is better suited to overachieving with lesser clubs. Indeed, it is hard to shake the suspicion that had Dalglish and Hodgson reversed roles on Saturday, the outcome would have been exactly the same.

Much of what Hodgson said after consigning his former charges to a 2-1 defeat will have sounded familiar to Liverpool supporters. But while talk of a “famous victory” and praising the opposition was never what Anfield followers wanted to hear, such soundbites suit the scrapping Baggies perfectly.

Albion were right to celebrate with such relish at the final whistle. This was their first win over Liverpool since 1981, achieved by ending a 25-year wait to score a goal against the Anfield outfit.