To recap:

* David Ngog opened the scoring with a stunning volley from six yards after some good Liverpool pressure.

* Liverpool concede the equalizer from a set-piece: Brum get three headers in the box, the last by Chucho Benitez past Pepe Reina.

* Albert Riera aggravated his hamstring injury (again) and had to come off.

Poor run of form, you say? Every team has them. Manager on the brink of extinction? Extinction doesn't exist, just ask Kirk Cameron (who may or may not be batshit crazy). Injuries spreading like chlamydia in Deadwood? Al Swearengen says injuries are for ********** **** (audio NSFW). Bring on Birmingham City.

Another biggie, huh?

"I don't have to win a trophy."

Maybe a bit sensationalist to leave that excerpt as the lead-in, but the overall thrust of an article from the Times(among other sources) is that Rafa Benitez feels that progress alone is an acceptable indicator of success. Since there's plenty of ammo here, I figured it's best digested quote-by-quote:

"I don't agree with people when they say you have to win trophies.

Little to say after what promises to be one of the most surreal thirty minutes in recent memory.

Chronologically:

-Torres off, Ryan Babel on. Apparently uninjured. Maybe with the midweek Champions League fixture in mind...but after that first half stunner, tough pill to swallow.

-Goal Fulham.

I was going to open by stating with a certain level of confidence that should Arsenal and Tottenham draw, Liverpool would leapfrog both in the table with a win today at Fulham. Then Arsenal scored two goals in two minutes. So let's focus on Liverpool, shall we?

The Steven Gerrard groin injury saga spirals further and further down the rabbit hole, with worries now that he'll need surgery to repair his injured man zone.

Well done to Arsenal on Wednesday, a deserved victory in a game that featured a mixture of first-teamers and youth talent for both sides, as well as the highly anticipated debut of Alberto Aquilani for the Liverpool. Emiliano Insua scored his first for the club, hitting a half-volley from about 25 yards out that left Fabianski with no chance.

Seems like there should be a bit of a grace period after Sunday's 2-0 victory over United, but I suppose that's the beautiful, and sometimes maddening, part of football. Fernando Torres admitted what we already knew about his fitness, Glen Johnson was likely less than 100%, and the side in general could use time to soak in the most important victory of the young season.

Liverpool:

-Reina
Johnson-Carragher-Agger-Insua
Mascherano Lucas -
Benayoun Aurelio
-Kuyt -
Torres -

Bench: Cavalieri, Voronin, Babel, Ngog, Spearing, Degen, Skrtel

Manchester United:

Van der Sar
O'Shea Ferdinand Vidic Evra
Valencia Carrick Scholes Giggs
Berbatov Rooney

Bench: Foster, Neville, Owen, Anderson, Nani, Fabio Da Silva, Jonathan Evans

Liverpool v. Manchester United, 10.25.2009, Anfield

After reflection, I realized there is no run-up needed. This reflection mostly involved reading around the Offside. Here, here, and here. Plus, the picture I posted gave me H1N1. Tomorrow, United, Liverpool, Anfield, quest for eternal glory and the possible end of the world as we know it.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Jermaine Pennant has added onto the dogpile, criticizing Rafa Benitez for "restricting his players." Pennant struggled to break into the starting eleven consistently during his time with Liverpool but showed glimpses of brilliance from the wing, and most notably scored an absolute stunner against Chelsea at Anfield in 2007.

Four straight losses in all competitions. One goal in nearly a month. Injuries to four of the first-choice eleven. Fading chances (in October, no less) both domestically and in Europe. Now's as good a time as any to start listening to the Cure.

Already introduced by Rob on the Premier League Offside, the issue of Rafa's job security is one that has gained momentum of late, and if results don't start to go Liverpool's way it's a discussion that will be increasingly serious.

Nothing to see here, just move along.

Lyon travel to Anfield currently on top of Group E for Matchday Three in the Champions League.

Stream Links from LFC Globe

After a poor showing on the weekend against Sunderland, Liverpool are in need of a quick rebound. League standing aside, Liverpool have struggled to produce much in the way of attack in the past month.

But at least it's good business for the club shop, eh?

Obviously the inflatable entertainment will be a talking point for years to come, but it's hard to say that Liverpool deserved much more than they got. In fact, I completely agree with Steve Bruce's assessment:

"I thought we deserved it, I hope that's not just going to be the headline.