Blackpool double stuns struggling Liverpool

Charlie Adam’s penalty and Luke Varney’s cool finish helped Blackpool pull off a stunning 2-1 Premier League upset win against Liverpool at Anfield here on Sunday to heap more pressure on Reds manager Roy Hodgson.

Liverpool, the 18-times English champions, were outclassed as they fell 2-0 behind although Sotirios Kyrgiakos did pull a goal back in the second half.

That finally woke the relegation-threatened side up but they could not do enough to get back into it as the newly promoted visitors humbled one of English football’s giants.

Defeat left Liverpool in the bottom three while Blackpool — widely tipped as relegation candidates — rose to an impressive ninth place.

The result was made worse for Liverpool by the early loss of star striker Fernando Torres.

Blackpool had the first prime opportunity as Adam rifled a free-kick through the Liverpool wall but Pepe Reina was equal to the task.

It was an electric opening as Jamie Carragher misjudgement allowed Blackpool’s Gary Taylor-Fletcher to get a fine cross in for DJ Campbell but he could not get a decisive foot to the ball.

Liverpool were then rocked by the loss of Torres who passed the ball then immediately called to the home bench to tell David Ngog to warm up.

He walked off and headed straight down the tunnel with a groin problem after just 10 minutes.

That gave Blackpool even more heart in an encounter that was increasingly end-to-end.

Firstly Dirk Kuyt’s brilliant ball back into the box was missed by all of Liverpool’s charging players before Campbell squandered two great chances for the visitors as Reina saved one shot while he steered a further close-range effort wide.

It remained an entertainingly open encounter as Neil Eardley cleared a Kyrgiakos header off the line while the Blackpool defence, led brilliantly by Stephen Crainey and Ian Evatt, denied Liverpool every time they went forward.

Blackpool’s adventurous approach, with manager Ian Holloway deploying a 4-3-3 formation, paid off close to the half hour mark when Varney was clumsily tripped by Glen Johnson inside the box and Adam smashed past Reina from 12-yards to give Blackpool the lead.

Liverpool desperately tried to get back into the encounter but could not find a way through as Kuyt headed straight at Matthew Gilks while a Cole effort from 18-yards also failed to hurt the Blackpool goalkeeper.

And as half-time approached, Blackpool sensationally doubled their lead when Varney made the most of a wonderful move to fire past Reina.

Taylor-Fletcher made the most of Liverpool’s lax defending as he chipped the ball through the static home defence and Varney rushed through to stun Anfield even further.

After the interval, Ngog should have scored a simple close-range header following a Kuyt cross but he steered wide from just six yards.

Teammate Kyrgiakos was more clinical soon after though when he rose highest to head home a bullet header following a Gerrard free-kick.

That goal saw the home side, inspired by a raucous Anfield, press forward in search of an equaliser.

Cole came closest as he raced through on goal but although he slotted past Gilks his effort slide wide of far post when he really should have scored.

It became all Liverpool as Hodgson?s side began to get on top of the visitors who finally seemed to be overawed by the occasion.

However, Liverpool could not get past Crainey and Evatt at the back while Campbell also looked threatening on the brief occasion that Blackpool did try and get forward.

It was tense and nervy in the end and Gilks amazingly saved a last second header by Kyrgiakos to underline it was Blackpool’s day as the Tangerines beat Liverpool and won at Anfield for the first time since 1967.