Liverpool	8 - 0	Besiktas
Scorers Crouch 19 Benayoun 32 Benayoun 53 Benayoun 56 Gerrard 69 Babel 79 Babel 81 Crouch 89	Half Time ( 2 - 0 )	Booked Ozcan 11

After suffering their only defeat of the season against Besiktas a fortnight ago, Liverpool finally came to life in the Champions League with a record-breaking victory at Anfield. Yossi Benayoun scored a hat-trick and was one of the highlights of the night in a game which the Reds dominated from the start and set the highest winning margin in the competition’s history.

Rafa Benitez named a strong starting line-up with Steven Gerrard, Andriy Voronin and Peter Crouch as the home side looked to get their Euro campaign back on track.

And they started well with some slick passing and good movement which they maintained all night. Besiktas couldn’t cope with the strength and width of Liverpool as the Reds controlled the game from early on.

Crouch gave them the lead with 19 minutes on the clock when the goalkeeper could only parry his shot and he followed up to slot the ball in to the back of the net past the despairing Arikan.

Liverpool continued to dominate as Besiktas couldn’t get into the game. Their moves broke down, they looked weak going forward and lacked passion for the ball, which saw them being pounded at the back.

But it took the hosts until 32 minutes to get another goal and give themselves some breathing space. A quick throw by John Arne Riise on the left released Voronin down the left and his cross into the centre was met by the unmarked Benayoun who volleyed home.

Besiktas couldn’t get back into the game before half-time and must only have held out hopes for a draw with the way that Liverpool were playing in the first 45 minutes.

But no-one could’ve expected what was to happen after the interval as the Reds went on to score another six goals and haul themselves back into qualification from the Champions League group stage.

Eight minutes into the second-half, Benayoun scored his second when the keeper could only parry a shot from Riise across the face of the goal into his path as the holes in the Turkish defence were exposed again.

And he completed his hat-trick just three minutes later when another shot from Gerrard almost mirrored Riise’s effort by being pushed to Benayoun to volley another goal.

Liverpool were rampant and looked dangerous at every opportunity. Voronin still looked strong on the ball – although maybe not as much as in the first-half – and Benayoun appeared to enjoy the game more and more as the game progressed by exploiting the space he found on the right. Gerrard made a number of foraging runs forward which helped to contribute to the hosts’ growing number of shots during the game, which totalled nearly 30 by the end of the match.

Another couple of shots from Riise could’ve extended the lead as Liverpool felt able to shoot from anywhere on the pitch. And Gerrard threatened to get his name on the scoresheet as the second-half progressed but continued to be thwarted the closer he got. That was until a sublime backheel from Voronin as part of a one-two allowed the midfielder to stride forward and finally get his goal with just over 20 minutes to go.

Substitute Ryan Babel’s late brace helped seal an emphatic victory and he was inches away from grabbing one of the quickest Champions League hat-tricks on record. His first goal was a superb backheel from Benayoun’s cross on the right. And two minutes later, some poor defending saw an attempted clearance deflect off the Reds’ player and loop over the keeper for Liverpool’s seventh. He was denied a third, not only when he was caught offside from a through-ball but also when his header smacked against the crossbar.

The attacking force of Besiktas was almost as sparse as their defence, partly due to Liverpool’s complete dominance but also because they just didn’t get to grips with the pace of the game and were clearly second best from the start.

They managed to force Jose Reina into his only save of the game with about seven minutes to go as they marked their only shot on goal during the course of the game.

Their goalkeeper also looked decidedly weak at times and, although he made some good save from Gerrard and Riise in the second-half, he was beaten in the last minute by Crouch’s header as the tall striker rose high in the box as he had done all night, to the constant dismay of the defence who were pulled out of position all game.

The win might’ve claimed three points for Liverpool but it was worth far more than just that. It moves them off the bottom of the Champions League group and should give them some much-needed confidence in the Premier League as well.

They were bound to bounce back from their recent indifferent form and unfortunately for Besiktas, they took the brunt of Liverpool’s wrath. They certainly weren’t the same side from a fortnight ago but it’s really the hosts who deserve the credit for their performance rather than the visitors being chastised for theirs.


Liverpool: Reina, Aurelio (Babel 63), Hyypia, Carragher, Arbeloa, Riise, Mascherano, Gerrard (Lucas 72), Benayoun, Voronin (Kewell 72), Crouch.

Subs Not Used: Martin, Finnan, Torres, Kuyt.

Besiktas: Arikan, Uzulmez, Toraman, Diatta, Kurtulus (Higuain 62), Sedef (Ricardinho 78), Cisse, Avci, Ozcan (Tandogan 46), Delgado, Bobo.

Subs Not Used: Rustu, Yozgatli, Kas, Karadeniz.

Att: 41,143

Ref: Markus Merk (Germany).

By Ben Hughes