Brummy Bore Draw

We should have expected it.

Liverpool had drawn their last six matches against Birmingham, and this game showed no signs of breaking that depressing trend as Hodgson's Reds played out a dull draw at St Andrews.

With Tottenham, Manchester City and Manchester United all drawing on Saturday it was the perfect opportunity to make a statement of intent to the rest of the top four challengers, however a limp and lifeless Liverpool churned out another below-par performance and were fortunate to escape with a point.

They had the heroic Pepe Reina to thank for that. The Spanish keeper pulled off a string of world class saves to keep the home side out, atoning for his error on the opening day of the season against Arsene Wenger's Arsenal.

We suffered from the same problems that have plagued us for many seasons now. The full backs were a liability defensively, the wingers failed to get involved in the match, Torres was isolated up front and, most infuriatingly, the midfield lacked creativity, with Lucas and Poulsen obviously lacking the passing range needed to swiftly and effectively turn defence into attack.

This lack of imagination and attacking purpose was reflected in the slow first 20 minutes, in which neither side saw any significant goalmouth action. The first real opening came after 23 minutes when a quick free kick caught the Reds defence off guard, leaving Jerome with a free header on goal.

Jerome's angled downward header seemed destined to hit the back of the net, however Reina made a world class save to turn the ball around the post. It was a fantastic stop from the keeper because the angle of the header meant it was almost impossible to reach in the split second that he had.

Four minutes later James McFadden curled a free kick over from a very dangerous position, before Steven Gerrard blasted wastefully over the bar from 35 yards out on the half hour mark.

Gardner then attempted, and failed, to lob Reina from 10 yards out before the keeper had to make another world class save to keep the scores level. An accurate cross arrived in the box from the right wing, forcing Reina to steal the ball off the head of Larsson, who was setting himself to head home from close range. It was a magnificent interception from the keeper, which kept the visitors in the game.

Only a minute later Liverpool had a good claim for a penalty. Carragher's incisive pass appeared to have played Torres through on goal, however he was taken out by a scathing tackle from a desperate Roger Johnson.

Replays showed that the defender got both the ball and the man, however the excessive force used unfairly denied Torres a shot on goal, and should have been sufficient enough for referee Mark Halsey to point to the spot.

The game had finally sparked into life, as City went close once again immediately after. A searching ball into the Liverpool box gave Gardner a free header, but Reina made a third incredible save to stop the ball, before Carragher scrambled it clear.

Liverpool went into the break relieved to be on level terms. After a terrible first half dominated by the home side we could have been 3-0 down, however, thanks to some great goalkeeping, we had managed to retain parity.

We opened the second half the better side, with Steven Gerrard testing Ben Foster with a snapshot from the edge of the box, however it wasn't long before Birmingham regained the ascendancy.

The influential Craig Gardner dragged a shot wide from 30 yards before Scott Dann's header bounced into the ground and just over the bar. It was a lucky escape for Liverpool, who had somehow let yet another player have a free header on goal.

That close escape provoked a response, as Liverpool controlled the last half hour, and looked more likely to grab a late, and undeserved, winner. After 64 minutes Gerrard threaded the ball through for the unusually quiet Fernando Torres, who smashed a shot at goal from a ridiculous angle. He managed to test the keeper, however the resultant corner was wasted.

After that Konchesky failed to clear properly in the left hand corner, messing around with the ball and only causing more danger for the defence to deal with as Birmingham stole possession and centred the ball in the area. The cross evaded everyone except for Jerome, who fortunately headed wide when well placed.

Liverpool put Birmingham under pressure during the dying moments of the game, however shots from Gerrard, Poulsen and Johnson failed to break the deadlock, as Birmingham's defence remained resolute.

Considering recent results in this fixture, and Birmingham's incredible ability to test any top side that visits St Andrews, we should be satisfied with a draw. It should be seen as a point gained, rather than two dropped.

However, with a visit down the M62 to the theatre of screams coming up next week, I am very worried that we could be given a thrashing. The mancs may have thrown away a two-goal lead at Goodison Park over the weekend, but their performances during the first few games have certainly displayed more potential than Liverpool's.

We must dramatically improve ahead of next Sunday. Joe Cole will be back from suspension, and Raul Meireles surely must start, meaning that the midfield will have more imagination and attacking threat.

However we must also improve defensively, and hope that Torres is on top form, which seems unlikely as he is still nowhere near top fitness.

If not, then I wouldn't be surprised to see Manchester United not only beat us, but humiliate us as well next weekend, leaving Liverpool to play catch-up already.

YNWA