Liverpool Echo report

WHEN Wimbledon come to town, you know what to expect.

Goals from set-pieces and danger every time the ball is lobbed into the opposition half. So how refreshing it was yesterday to see the Dons' beaten at their own game!

Liverpool claimed a thoroughly deserved victory thanks to three goals straight from the Wimbledon manual. A Danny Murphy corner, a Patrik Berger free-kick and a Stephane Henchoz hoof up the park were the source of Liverpool's seasonal joy, with goals one and three completed by instinctive finishes by Michael Owen and Robbie Fowler.

The difference between Liverpool and Wimbledon, however, is that in between the more "direct" option which ultimately proved the key to success, the Reds also played plenty of handsome football. The kind of football the Dons' either can't or simply don't want to play.

Allied to this, Houllier's men wore down the opposition's spoiling tactics with their superior skill and, dare one say it even against Wimbledon, aggression.

Liverpool's young midfield duo of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher never lost a tackle all afternoon, and it was a series of crunching challenges by Carragher early in the second half that brought a hitherto subdued crowd to life.

With Dietmar Hamann a victim of flu, the manner in which Gerrard and Carragher dominated the game was another vivid example of the Reds' strength in depth.

The same authority in midfield was matched by the yet again marvellous Sami Hyypia and Stephane Henchoz at the back. These two play so well every week it's now taken for granted, but we'll mention how good they were again anyway because it makes everyone feel good to know there's so much reliability in defence these days.

The first half had been frustrating in some ways, but encouraging in others. The well organised Wimbledon defence stood firm but there were enough flashes of brilliance by Owen and Gerrard to suggest patience would be rewarded eventually.

Owen - as at Newcastle - had the touch and pace on the turn which makes him so difficult to stop, and only a last ditch tackle by Alan Kimble prevented another solo strike midway through the first half. It came at a cost, bringing Kimble's afternoon to a premature end due to injury. f-io

Five minutes before the interval, Owen superbly controlled a Murphy pass but his instant shot was straight at Neil Sullivan.

Apart from a slip by Murphy as he looked set to volley a Berger cross, that was as threatening as Liverpool had been, despite the pattern of play being directed exclusively towards Sullivan's goal.

Wimbledon showed more adventure after the break, but then again if they'd won a throw-in in the Liverpool half it would have been more "adventurous" then they'd`been in the first half. But as the hour mark approached, Liverpool finally built up a momentum that would create a breakthrough.

Within the space of sixty seconds Hyypia and then Berger went close, before finally Owen pounced onto Murphy's 58th minute corner to snatch his fourth goal in three games. Just sit back and watch those goals keep flowing over the next few weeks now.

The noisy celebrations heightened when Robbie Fowler appeared for the final half an hour, but an eventful spell continued with an unexpected Wimbledon equaliser on 63 minutes.

It started with a free-kick - of course it did - as the Liverpool left went to sleep allowing Kenny Cunningham to cross and Marcus Gayle to bury a free header at the back post.

The prospect of a frustrating afternoon looked realistic now, and Houllier took the bold decision to "preserve" Owen after two games in three days and give Vladimir Smicer the licence to roam in the areas where he looks 100 per cent more dangerous - as a forward.

Smicer was involved in everything in the final quarter of the match, showing flashes of the skill everyone knows he's capable of.

But it was his mate Berger who made the second vital breakthrough after Hermann Hrreidarsson handled 25 yards from goal, the midfielder hitting one of his specials into the the top corner beyond a helpless Sullivan.

That was effectively game over and Smicer almost added a third before helping Fowler to his personal landmark of 150 Liverpool goals.

It all started with a Wimbledon style belt up the field from Henchoz, Ben Thatcher fatally let it bounce, Smicer touched it towards Fowler, and his header from 18 yards was powerful enough, accurate enough and high enough to put an extra shine on the proceedings. That's 150 in 260 games. Welcome back, Robbie!

So the good run continues.

Liverpool end the year as clear Champions' League contenders, although Gerard Houllier remains at pains to emphasise that they are still short of the vision he has for the team in the months and seasons ahead.

It's keep your feet on the ground time, but when the team keeps on winning despite not even being at what many must consider "full strength", it's becoming increasingly difficult for the manager to keep the optimists at bay.

Liverpool still promise more. In the year 2000, for the first time in quite a few seasons, they look more than capable of delivering. Happy New Year!

Liverpool (4-4-2): Westerveld, Heggem, Hyypia, Henchoz, Matteo; Berger, Carragher, Gerrard, Murphy (sub Fowler 58); Owen (sub Smicer 64), Camara (sub Song 90) not used: Nielsen, Staunton.

Wimbledon (4-5-1): Sullivan; Cunningham, Thatcher, Hreidarsson, Kimble (sub Cort 31); Euell, Earle, Badir (sub Francis 76), Anderson, Gayle; Leaburn (sub Andreson 64) not used: Willmott, Heald.

Referee: Neale Barry (Scunthorpe).

Bookings: Euell, Badir (ungentlemanly conduct).

Attendance: 44,104.

Man of the match: Sami Hyypia.

Match Rating: 3 out of 5.

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