An early Steven Gerrard penalty and a late Fernando Torres bookended Liverpool’s passage into the Europa League quarter-finals as they overcame a one-goal, first-leg deficit to ease past French side Lille.

It was a more confident Liverpool display than many of late, although it wasn’t without moments of danger from a Lille side who would have won the tie with just one goal right up until Torres’s 90^th minute clincher.

The Reds took the lead from the spot in the ninth minute. A rare forward sortie by Lucas saw him evade three challenges before being felled in the box by Adi Rami, Gerrard easily converting the resultant penalty.

Both keepers were in action before the break, with Lille’s Mickael Landreau far the busier.

And four minutes after half-time, Torres eased Anfield nerves when he latched onto a long ball, shook off the attentions of Aurelian Chedjou and dinked his shot beyond Landreau.

Lille’s best chance came on 75 minutes. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s effort narrowly cleared the crossbar when a goal would have put Lille ahead on away goals.

But Torres rendered such calculations obsolete in the last minute with a close-range finish after a Gerrard shot was diverted into his path.