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Liverpool striker Fernando Torres - Source: Reuters -
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Spanish ace Fernando Torres lifted Liverpool out of the mire and back into the title race on Monday with a performace that even drew praise from United boss Alex Ferguson.
Star striker Torres' appearance on the pitch proved pivotal in the in passionate and intense derby against arch-rivals Manchester United, but the 2-0 win to Liverpool left United manager Alex Ferguson once again questioning match officials.
"We lost out to one or two major decisions. I felt Carrick in the first-half was a penalty kick, but the controversial one that everyone will be talking about is when Carragher brought Michael Owen down on the edge of the box," Ferguson said after his side suffered their second Premier League defeat this season.
"He is their most experienced player, their best defender without question, so if he goes off at that stage of the game it would be difficult for them.
"Liverpool got a wee bit caught up in the atmosphere - the wounded animal aspect of it. Their fans were fanatical and every decision, they put the referee under pressure all the time.
"The crowd got Vidic booked, and that put the ref under pressure, but this atmosphere is hard to handle for a referee. Whether he had enough experience or not, I don't know, but he will certainly learn from it.
"All in all though, Liverpool were the better team. They created more chances and were better than us on the day."
Meanwhile, goalscorer Torres also hailed Liverpool's fighting spirit.
"This was a massive, massive win that can be so important. We knew that we needed nothing less than a win to stay in the title race, and now we are most definitely back in it," the Spaniard told reporters after the clash.
"This team can beat anyone, and this was a fabulous result because it shows we are capable of challenging. We have got to keep playing at this level, and keep playing as a team and we will be right back in there."
But the game could have ended so differently after Reds boss Benitez revealed afterwards that he only decided the Spanish striker would play only on the bus journey to the stadium two hours before the game.
"We decided literally on the journey to Anfield. It was a difficult decision because Fernando had not been training, but after talking with him we thought it was better to start with him," he said.
"I decided that he would play after talking with my staff. I talked with Fernando on the coach and after this I spoke with my staff and we decided to play him from the beginning.
"You could see that he was not 100% and you could see that he was not fresh but still sometimes 80% of Fernando can make a difference, as he did here."
The win now puts Liverpool just four points behind Manchester United on the Premier League table.
