Keegan thinking trophies but trap door looms larger

The small matter of avoiding relegation has to be negotiated first and it scarcely looked any less daunting a task after another crushing defeat that left the Newcastle manager with a record of two points from eight games, with 17 goals conceded, since succeeding Sam Allardyce nearly two months ago.

After arriving as the answer to every success-starved Geordie's dreams, Keegan finds himself three points away from the drop zone and facing inevitable questions about how much more he can take.

Plenty, it would seem, judging by how he not only backed his players to arrest their slide but insisted he still had the appetite to stick around and build a side capable of filling a void that has haunted Tyneside for decades.

England manager Fabio Capello will have noted Steven Gerrard's seamless transition from central midfielder to support striker in a combination with Fernando Torres that prompted Rafa Benitez to shed his usual caution and hail the Liverpool skipper as 'unstoppable'.

Former England boss Keegan was more concerned with sending out a message to anxious Newcastle followers, assuring them his dismay at what he readily described as 'relegation form' would not deter him from pursuing his long-term dream.

He has yet to win a match, let alone a trophy, and his team threatened a goal at Anfield only once, when substitute Obafemi Martins hit the bar with a stunning volley from more than 40 yards. Yet he was adamant there was nothing farfetched about setting his sights so high, after two quick goals just before halftime condemned his side to another morale-sapping setback.

Quizzed at length about his players' mental fortitude, the subject changed to Keegan's own resilience, and there was no hesitation about the response as he said: "Me? I'm fine. It has turned into a bigger job than I thought it would be, but I'm absolutely fine. I'm just doing everything I can to win football matches.

"I enjoy working with these players because they are a good bunch. They feel the hurt like we all do. But I am enjoying it. I go in every day and I have enthusiasm. No problem.

"All that matters for now is winning four of our nine remaining games to get to 40 points. It won't be easy, because the players have taken some hammer blows, but I'm confident they are good enough. After that, I am looking at winning something for these fans.

'They are the reason I came back, not just this time, either. When I was here before, as a player then manager, I said they were the greatest thing about this club and they deserve better than we are giving them.

'I have three-and-a-half years to try and give them a trophy and that is my objective; to turn this club round and give them what we so nearly delivered last time.

'It doesn't matter whether they have been coming 20 years, 30 years or whatever — the level of support they give us demands silverware. It might seem a long way off, but I can see it. Rome wasn't built in a day and it didn't happen as quickly as people might imagine last time I was here.

'It won't be the League title, because the gap is so huge now. The days of paying Scunthorpe £33,000 for the likes of me seem to have gone. It's £20millionplus on a Spain striker now and Liverpool have spent more on two players than we have on the whole team. But this is a big club and once we turn it in the right direction I honestly believe the momentum will carry us back to where we should be.'

Liverpool were helped by a huge slice of luck in the 43rd minute, as Jose Enrique's attempted clearance cannoned into Jermaine Pennant and looped in over keeper Steve Harper, but the rest of a convincing win owed everything to the brilliance of Gerrard and Torres.

Capello will have been an interested onlooker as Gerrard revelled in the freedom of his role, expertly setting up Torres for Liverpool's second on the stroke of half-time and finishing unerringly when the roles were reversed in the 51st minute. Benitez has to brace himself for criticism every time he dares change Gerrard's position, but his latest tinkering will surely win everyone's approval.

The Liverpool manager said: 'It gives him the chance to go forward all the time and with his power and quality, it makes him unstoppable. That is 19 goals this season, which is a really good total and he and Torres seem to bring the best out of each other.

They have a good understanding and there is so much pace and quality there that teams will find it difficult to contain them. 'We will see if it works as well against the top teams. That will be the test. But Steve is enjoying it and playing well in virtually every game. Every manager needs to talk to his players about what to do, but he knows and he is delivering.'