Liverpool dealt a major blow to the survival hopes of Queens Park Rangers this afternoon as they scored an 87th-minute winner to clinch a 2-1 victory over the Hoops at Anfield.
Philippe Coutinho opened the scoring for the hosts in the first half, but their failure to add a second looked to have proved costly when Leroy Fer hooked an equalising volley home with a little over 15 minutes remaining.
Steven Gerrard then missed a penalty on his penultimate Anfield appearance, but Nedum Onuoha picked up two quick yellow cards to reduce the visitors to 10 men before the Liverpool skipper atoned for his error by heading in the late winner.
Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at whether Liverpool were worthy winners in an entertaining match on Merseyside.
Match statistics
LIVERPOOL
Shots: 25
On target: 8
Possession: 63%
Corners: 9
Fouls: 9
QPR
Shots: 10
On target: 2
Possession: 37%
Corners: 6
Fouls: 18
Was the result fair?
They made it a little harder than it should have been, but there is no doubt that Liverpool deserved to win this match today. QPR started the brighter of the two sides, having a goal disallowed after just 40 seconds and going on to put the visitors under heavy pressure throughout the opening 10 minutes. They had chances to take the lead during that period, but failed to take any of them and Liverpool soon eased their way into the match.
Coutinho's opener was an important moment in swinging the match firmly in Liverpool's favour, and they had an element of control over proceedings from that point until the final 20 minutes or so. Indeed, they should have put the game to bed during that period, with Raheem Sterling squandering the best of numerous chances created. As the stats show, Liverpool peppered the QPR goal with shots, but they couldn't find that crucial second to give themselves a cushion which it would have been hard to see QPR recovering from.
As in the reverse fixture, most of the drama was restricted to the latter stages of the second half today, with two goals, a missed penalty and a red card coming in the final 20 minutes. QPR did come to life a little more in the closing stages, but they were comfortably second best for the majority of the second half and, in truth, are fortunate that the deficit was only one today. Liverpool should have wrapped the victory up sooner than they managed, but they are certainly worthy of all three points.
Liverpool's performance
Following back-to-back uninspiring displays against West Bromwich Albion and Hull City respectively, the performance was almost as important as the result today. In that sense, Liverpool were much improved, although it took a little while for them to get going. They could have been behind inside a minute but for the eagle-eyed officials who spotted that an early corner had gone out of play before being poked in. That proved to be a warning shot that Liverpool did not heed, however, as QPR continued to cause the hosts problems with crosses into the box.
That ultimately proved to be where QPR's goal came from, with the marking for Fer's equaliser being criminal from Liverpool's defence. Before then, however, they weathered the early storm and slowly began to take control of the game. Coutinho took his goal really well, and the only thing that was missing for Liverpool during their time on top was a second. Quite how they didn't double their advantage is a mystery, with Sterling squandering a sitter and a number of other chances going begging.
One goal never felt like it would be enough, and that proved to be the case. Liverpool kept battling, however, something that couldn't be said in their last two matches, and refused to let the setback of a missed penalty get to them. It was an open ending to the game, but Gerrard ultimately decided it with his late header to give the Reds a deserved victory. The gap to fourth-placed Manchester United is now four points and any slip-up from the Red Devils could make things interesting, but that Champions League ship may have already sailed.
QPR's performance
QPR went into this match knowing that the form of teams around them in the table meant that they would most likely need a win from either this outing or their next, away to Manchester City. They certainly began like a team eager to claw back the growing deficit to safety, coming flying out of the blocks and catching Liverpool off guard. A disallowed goal inside 40 seconds and a couple of other chances in the first 10 minutes suggested that they could capitalise on Liverpool's frail confidence, but they struggled to keep that intensity up.
They faded as the first half wore on, and that only got worse in the second as Liverpool looked comfortable for long spells. The visitors rode their luck at times, with some wasteful finishing from the Reds and good goalkeeping from Rob Green keeping them in the game, but as long as it stayed at 1-0, they had a chance. Fer duly took that chance when it came his way, and for a period towards the end of the match it looked like either side could win it.
Gerrard's missed penalty would have given QPR a boost, but Onuoha's red card made things all the more difficult for Chris Ramsey's side, and ultimately they succumbed to the late winner. There was no shortage of desire for the visitors today, but the quality was just not there. They shot themselves in the foot a number of times and were lucky to escape on as many occasions as they did. With other results going against them, this has proved to be a damaging day for the Londoners, who are now seven points from safety with three games remaining. The Championship looms large once again.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Philippe Coutinho: The Brazilian has been Liverpool's best player this season, and he continued his fine form today. He took his goal really well to give his side the lead, and then added an assist late on with the corner for Gerrard's header. He was a little quiet in the second half at times, but always looked the most likely to make something happen for the Reds.
Biggest gaffe
There is plenty to choose from in this category. From Onuoha's reckless challenge for his second yellow card to Gerrard's missed penalty, or Liverpool's marking for the equaliser to a failed back-heel attempt from Emre Can that sent him crashing into the advertising hoardings.
Our gaffe of the game goes to Sterling, however, with the youngster missing a glorious chance to double his side's lead in the second half. Jordan Henderson's pass was exquisite and left Sterling with the simple task of poking it home at the back post, but he somehow put his effort over the crossbar. It was an absolute sitter and certainly not something you'd expect from a player reportedly demanding so much money in his contract negotiations.
Referee performance
Martin Atkinson and his officials had a mixed game today. They missed a stone-wall penalty against Clint Hill in the first half, but did well to spot the ball go out of play during QPR's early disallowed goal. They also got Liverpool's eventual penalty right, as well as the red card, but they were both blatantly obvious decisions to make.
What next?
Liverpool: Liverpool face a trip to Stamford Bridge next Sunday knowing that Chelsea could either already be champions or clinch the league title in that match.
QPR: Things aren't any easier for QPR either as they face Manchester City at the Etihad realistically needing a win to stand any chance of survival.
Barney Corkhill
