By David Hamill

In the euphoria of Liverpool’s resurgent triumph over arch-rivals Manchester United on Sunday, somewhere amongst the shear joy of a jubilant Anfield lingered the sense that this might be as good as it gets for the Reds this season.   By avoiding five consecutive defeats with a deserved win against the side they want to beat the most, Rafael Benitez will have eased the pressure on himself and will earn the backing of some supporters who were beginning to show signs of impatience. It will be interesting to see how Liverpool will look back on this day in a month’s time.

Perhaps shooting yourself in the foot is too strong a term to use, because any win over United will be greeted with the elation witnessed at Anfield, but if Liverpool persist with Benitez and the team return to the mediocrity that is more in keeping with their season, they will be further away from the title than they have ever been in the last 10 years.

The performance didn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know about Liverpool. They will always have the fight and the heart for a battle and no matter what form they’re in, they can raise their game for the big matches.

Whenever Benitez’s position has been under scrutiny in the past, like when they lost at home to Barnsley in the FA Cup a couple of years ago and slipped up at Middlesbrough at a vital stage in the title race last season, the Reds followed up on those dismal occasions with fine victories over Inter Milan and Real Madrid respectively.   So it wasn’t a surprise to see them throw the form book out the window again and overcome a below-par United side after a terrible run of results.

It is a hit and miss cycle that has characterized Benitez’s reign and while everyone at the club will be on the high this week, they can’t ignore the fact it is very possible they could be out of the title race and eliminated from the Champions League in the next two or three weeks.

The problems that have got Liverpool into their precarious position aren’t going to go away just because of one performance and they won’t be the underdogs fighting for every scrap every week.

They suit playing this role because they are not expected to dominate and open up the better sides and they can draw upon their work-ethic and functionality to make it awkward.

But against the lesser sides the onus is on them to be on the front foot from the off and attack with craft and flair, but breaking down stubborn opposition is something they have struggled to do because they don’t have enough quality and Benitez sets them up in a robust, but negative manner.

You don’t go from a manager who has bought too many average players and failed to build a proper team in five years to a tactical genius in the space of 90 minutes and if Benitez wants to prove that he is the right man for Liverpool then consistency is a must.

Sooner or later, fans will get fed up jumping on and off the bandwagon and there is no point grinding out one-off results if it is going to be followed by weak performances.