Liverpool dropped Newcastle further into the Premier League relegation mire with a 3-0 victory at Anfield.
Keegan suffers comprehensive defeat at former home
Newcastle boss Kevin Keegan remains without a win in his second managerial stint at the club as Liverpool dropped their visitors further into the Premier League relegation mire with a 3-0 victory at Anfield.
Having endured a torrid run of seven games without a win since his January return to the St James' Park hot-seat, the script appeared to be nudging Keegan - a Liverpool striking great in his playing days and never one to shy away from creating a story - towards the end of his barren spell at his former hunting ground.
However, goals from Jermaine Pennant, Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard allowed Liverpool to reinforce their hold on fourth spot in the table, while also severely ruffling the Magpies' feathers as Keegan's struggling Toon Army stay three points off the drop zone.
Pennant took advantage of a 43rd minute moment of good fortune as he blocked a clearance from Newcastle defender Jose Enrique and saw the deflection open the scoring as the ball looped over stranded goalkeeper Steve Harper.
However, two minutes later there was no luck involved as Torres latched on to a precise through ball from Gerrard to beat Harper with a sumptuous drop of the shoulder before stroking into an empty net.
And after the interval Torres returned the favour to his captain as he slid Gerrard through one-on-one with Harper on 51 minutes and the midfielder dinked over the Newcastle shot-stopper with ease.
Keegan spent 20 minutes before the game signing countless autographs as his team warmed up, with the Newcastle manager looking like he did not have a care in the world - and his team started confidently, with Alan Smith seeing a seventh-minute header from a corner deflected wide.
Freak opener
At the other end Torres - the Premier League player of the month - took on Abdoulaye Faye on the right and fired in a cross-shot which Harper turned away.
John Arne Riise was booked for a high challenge on James Milner but Newcastle were still more than holding their own - until the freak 43rd-minute incident which took the game away from them.
Enrique's attempted clearance cannoned back off Pennant and into the net, giving Liverpool the lead and the winger only his second goal in 71 games for the club.
Seconds before the break Torres rubbed salt into visiting wounds when he cleverly rounded Harper and coolly netted following an outstanding ball from Gerrard.
Newcastle, who had replaced Milner with Geremi just before the break, fell three goals behind in the 51st minute, with Enrique again the man to suffer.
The Magpies defender failed to confront Torres, opting to back away as the Spaniard took possession. That invited Liverpool forward, and Torres sent Gerrard away down the middle to neatly chip Harper for the third.
Shambles
Newcastle were now a shambles at the back, with Torres and Gerrard combining with ease before the latter saw a shot saved excellently by Harper.
Keegan sent on Obafemi Martins for the ineffective Damien Duff, before Liverpool replaced Gerrard on the hour.
Martins hit the bar with a fierce left-footed effort in the 68th minute, before Dirk Kuyt and Peter Crouch formed the home strike partnership.
Harper saved well from a Kuyt flick and then got down to block a Riise drive, before Yossi Benayoun saw a diving header deflected just wide as the Reds finished in confident fashion against a team who are heading in the wrong direction.
| Liverpool |
Team Statistics |
Newcastle United |
| 3 |
Goals |
0 |
| 2 |
1st Half Goals |
0 |
| 9 |
Shots on Target |
3 |
| 4 |
Shots off Target |
1 |
| 7 |
Blocked Shots |
2 |
| 12 |
Corners |
8 |
| 10 |
Fouls |
8 |
| 2 |
Offsides |
2 |
| 1 |
Yellow Cards |
0 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 80.2 |
Passing Success |
59 |
| 28 |
Tackles |
19 |
| 67.9 |
Tackles Success |
89.5 |
| 63.4 |
Possession |
36.6 |
| 53.7 |
Territorial Advantage |
46.3 |
|
