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 Liverpool's Steven Gerrard celebrates after scoring his third goal against Luton. | ||||||
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LIVERPOOL, England : Steven Gerrard brought a rare smile to the face of his beleaguered Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez with a hat-trick in Tuesday's 5-0 FA Cup third round replay win over Luton.
Gerrard, who now has 15 goals this season, scored three times in the space of 20 second half minutes at Anfield as the seven-times FA Cup winners eased into the fourth round.
Cash-strapped Luton, who are two divisions below Liverpool, had held the Merseyside club to a surprise 1-1 draw nine days earlier yet there was never any doubt about the outcome of this replay once Ryan Babel had opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time.
Finland defender Sami Hyypia also found the net to ease the pressure on Benitez whose long-term future at the club appears increasingly uncertain.
There was an overwhelming outpour of support for Benitez before and during the game following revelations that Liverpool's American co-owners had spoken to Jurgen Klinsmann about becoming the club's new manager.
The talks took place in November when Benitez's relationship with George Gillett and Tom Hicks was strained. Klinnsman has since agreed to manage Bayern Munich, but Benitez's treatment at the hands of the Americans has not been well received by the fans.
One banner which was held aloft in The Kop before kick-off read 'thanks Yanks More Friendly Fire' while fans chanted Benitez's name throughout the tie.
Yet supporters might just as well have jeered their players off the pitch after a forgettable first 45 minutes which was punctured by Babel's seventh goal of the season with virtually the last kick of the half.
Despite wheeling out leading scorer Fernando Torres and Gerrard, both of whom were rested in the draw at Luton, Liverpool found chances hard to come by against opponents 62 places below them in the League ladder.
Babel was unfortunate not to open the scoring in the ninth minute when his curling effort struck a post and rebounded to safety after Gerrard had surged through Luton's non-existent defence.
Luton manager Kevin Blackwell has just as many problems as Benitez. His team are facing relegation to the fourth tier of English football after having 10 points deducted for going into administration.
Blackwell has announced his intentions to quit the club in February after being forced to sell a number of his best players to raise funds for the cash-strapped club.
Yet he could be proud of his side's dogged first half defensive display before the floodgates opened in the second half.
Despite the scoreline, it had looked like being a frustrating night for the hosts until Babel broke the deadlock after rounding off a fine move involving Torres and Gerrard.
Liverpool never looked back from that moment as Gerrard turned on the style to sweep his team into the next round.
Renowned for scoring spectacular goals from distance, he used his head to make it 2-0 in the 52nd minute before Hyypia killed off Luton five minutes later with his third goal of the campaign.
Gerrard's second goal of the tie arrived in the 64th minute after Torres's effort had rebounded off a defender into his path while his third, and Liverpool's fifth, was a stunning 30-yard drive which left Luton keeper Dean Brill rooted to the spot. - AFP/de
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