BETTING COUPONS all across the world would have been torn up on Saturday as Liverpool romped to a superb 4-1 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford.
 But Liverpool turning in a superb performance in a one off contest should not be viewed as such a surprise. After all, they have shown in the Champions League that they are more than capable of taking on - and beating - the best over 90 minutes.
It is the long haul of the league championship which poses them a greater problem, one that will not be conquered by wins over Manchester United alone. For as great as Saturday's win was, at the end of the season it will just be one small redeeming factor in their failure to win the title once more.
United may well be the best team in the world just now but even they have days when things don't click for them. There is no doubt that happened on Saturday. Even so, it needed a brilliant performance from Liverpool to take advantage of this and that is exactly what they produced.
Fernando Torres is arguably the top striker in Europe - one even Sir Alex Ferguson would covet – while Steven Gerrard is a midfielder capable of controlling any game.
They are capable of raising their performances for the big occasion and both delivered inspired displays at Old Trafford. But throughout the course of the season, it hasn't been enough.
Torres has been dreadfully unlucky with injury and there is no doubt that has severely hampered Liverpool.
Gerrard, while capable of carrying the team on his own, cannot do it every single week. Along with the recent thumping win over Real Madrid, Liverpool has taken six points from both Manchester United and Chelsea this season.
Arsenal and Aston Villa weren't capable of defeating them when they met either. That means Liverpool have taken 14 points from 18 available against their fellow sides in the top five, a record which is the envy of everyone. And Liverpool has only lost twice this season which is less than Manchester United.
It is the failure to do enough to win games against sides lower down the table that has killed their title chances. Not only did they lose to a terrible Middlesbrough side, they have stuttered to draws against the likes of Fulham, Wigan and Manchester City.
While against Stoke City - a side in the relegation zone - they haven't even managed to score a single goal on their way to dropping four valuable points. That simply isn't good enough for side which claims to have genuine championship ambitions.
Rafa Benitez may have put the Champions League and FA Cups into the trophy cabinet but that was now some years ago and no silverware has been collected since. However, the performance in the knockout tournaments is merely a distraction to where he is really judged, the Premiership.
Liverpool have not won the championship in nearly 20 years and in that arena he has consistently come up short. Under his guidance, Liverpool haven't managed to place in the top two in the league and only on one occasion did they even finish within ten points of the eventual champions.
That is despite Rafa Benitez spending millions of pounds in transfers each season. He still receives backing from a substantial part of the Kop but it is hard to say if that would still be the case had he not become a rallying cause against the Americans who took over the club.
But his dramatic outburst against Sir Alex Ferguson a few weeks ago caused more supporters to start doubting him. Ferguson may indulge in mind-games but more often than not he gets results; Benitez made the comments as Liverpool hit the skids at a crucial time of the season, losing ground in the league and crashing out of the FA Cup.
He has since turned things around but trailing Manchester United by four points with a game more played, it is not a bold prediction to say that the title will still not return to Merseyside just yet.
The Champions League may yet prove a salvation for Benitez this season but there is no denying the pressure is continuing to mount. If he cannot deliver the Premiership title by next year then surely the patience of the fans will finally run out.
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