Torres brace sinks Hammers

Fernando Torres bounced back to his best by bagging a brace in Liverpool's 3-2 victory over West Ham.

Spaniard nets brace as Liverpool win 3-2 at Upton Park

Liverpool's star striker Fernando Torres bounced back to his best by bagging a brace to sink West Ham at Upton Park. The Spanish sensation, who has been below his top form this term, scored two fine goals in the 3-2 victory over Gianfranco Zola's side. Zavon Hines almost put the Hammers ahead in the second minute when he hit the post. But Torres responded with a stunning individual goal in the 20th minute which saw the Spaniard beat James Tomkins on the edge of the box before firing home. Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher then brought down Hines in the box for a Hammers penalty which Alessandro Diamanti duly despatched, although the Italian appeared to slip before slotting home with his second touch. Dirk Kuyt then restored the Reds' advantage on 41 minutes when getting a touch on Steven Gerrard's goal-bound header. But the Hammers again drew level when Carlton Cole glanced home a header from a corner in first-half stoppage time. Both sides pressed for a winner in the second period before Torres headed home in the 75th minute to seal a vital three points for the Reds. The victory, Liverpool's fourth successive win, lifted Rafa Benitez's side into third place in the Premier League and left West Ham in 14th. The first half was full of incident and it was the home side who squandered a great chance to take the lead in the second minute. Liverpool defender Carragher dithered over Glen Johnson's pass and let Hines in. The striker could not have asked for a simpler chance but although he beat Pepe Reina, his shot hit the near post before the Spanish goalkeeper gratefully gathered the rebound.

Mistake

Another Carragher mistake on the halfway line gave Cole room to run at the Liverpool goal but this time Martin Skrtel made a wonderful saving challenge. In the 15th minute the home team had another chance, Cole bundling the ball to Hines from Julien Faubert's cross but the chance came too quickly and Hines' connection was minimal. Torres, meanwhile, acrobatically volleyed wide after 17 minutes before opening the scoring three minutes later. The Spaniard broke down the left flank, bamboozled Tomkins and poked home at the near post. Matthew Upson was injured as he tried to prevent the goal and was replaced by Danny Gabbidon. Torres was proving to be a real thorn in West Ham's side and was confident enough to try his luck from 30 yards in the 26th minute but his shot was far too high and failed to trouble Robert Green in goal. West Ham's woes continued moments later when Valon Behrami was forced out of the action through injury and replaced by Radoslav Kovac. But the home side were back in the game in the 29th minute when referee Andre Marriner adjudged that Hines had been pushed by Carragher in the box. Diamanti, making his first start for the Hammers, stepped-up to take the penalty and even though he put the ball into the net, the striker appeared to slip as he connected with the ball and touched it twice. Angry Liverpool players protested that the penalty should be ruled out as Diamanti had touched the ball more than once but Marriner rejected their protests. But Liverpool went back in front four minutes before the end of an eventful opening first period. An outswinging corner from Yossi Benayoun was headed towards the far post by Gerrard only for Kuyt to stick out a foot and poke the ball into the corner of the net. But in first-half stoppage time, England striker Cole rose highest in the six-yard box to meet Mark Noble's corner and head the Hammers level for the second time in the game.

Second period

In the second period, Hines was giving Liverpool's defence a great deal of cause for concern. Javier Mascherano could only bring the winger down in the 49th minute and his mistimed tackle earned the Liverpool player a yellow card. A rare West Ham corner in the 59th minute then almost caught the Reds out. Diamanti sent an inswinging corner into the Liverpool six-yard box and Reina had to tip the ball away for another flag-kick as it threatened to end up in the net. Liverpool replaced goalscorer Kuyt with Ryan Babel on the hour as the Merseysiders searched for a winner. A fabulous run into the West Ham penalty area by Benayoun almost brought Liverpool a third but the home defence cleared the ball at the last hurdle. West Ham were suffering from the lack of a killer final ball. Kieron Dyer, on for Diamanti, made a superb run deep into the Liverpool half in the 68th minute but he could not supply the final ball to put Cole clear. Liverpool's Babel tried his luck from 25 yards but his accuracy was found wanting as the ball went high over the bar and into the crowd. But the Reds clinched the game in the 75th minute when Babel's cross was headed into the corner of the net by Torres from eight yards.

West Ham United	Team Statistics	Liverpool
2	Goals	3
2	1st Half Goals	2
3	Shots on Target	5
5	Shots off Target	4
4	Blocked Shots	10
4	Corners	4
15	Fouls	17
2	Offsides	2
3	Yellow Cards	3
0	Red Cards	0
77.9	Passing Success	82.3
23	Tackles	33
73.9	Tackles Success	69.7
41.6	Possession	58.4
42.2	Territorial Advantage	57.8