As another European campaign is getting to its climax, in parallel circumstances Liverpool are still in the process of confirming their eligibility for next year’s campaign. A two-nil win at Craven Cottage has moved Liverpool one step closer to such target when realistically they were only a couple of steps away. Next year’s Champions League seems set to have the privilege of having Liverpool F.C. in.

It was a comfortable win, that betrayed any cliché that a side fighting relegation will be fighting for their life as the performance was as dire and reassuring as a Tom Hicks promise. Players who had been on the fringes for most of the season were given their chance, and they replied with an honest contribution, most notably the two scorers Jermaine Pennant and Peter Crouch. Still, I think it is safe to think that both have not yet earned a place in tomorrow’s line-up and will be only savouring the Anfield atmosphere from the bench.

It was a repeat of Anfield’s score-line back in November, but this time it didn’t require the entry of Fernando Torres late in the game to break the deadlock. On Saturday, the deadlock was broken as early as the seventeenth minute and Liverpool just spent the match administering such advantage rather than chasing.

In complete different circumstances Liverpool now face the task of building an advantage at home that can be administered at Stamford Bridge.