Liverpool suffer crushing Wigan defeat as Dalglish pressure grows

Though Liverpool were hoping to put their midweek QPR defeat behind them at home to Wigan today, a hapless performance has instead piled the pressure on Kenny Dalglish.

Earlier this week, the Reds boss has stated that Liverpool's only hope for a fourth place Champions League spot was to win their final ten games of the Premier League season yet instead the club threw away a 2-0 lead over QPR on Wednesday night and today allowed Wigan their first-ever victory at Andfield with a 2-1 loss.

"I think we looked a wee bit tired," observed Dalglish after the shock defeat. "We had a lot of possession in the game but we gave away the ball quite a lot in vital positions. It's not because they can't play, it's because of tiredness."

The consecutive defeat has caused many to wonder how safe Dalglish's position at Anfield may be, yet the Liverpool legend deflected such criticism by pointing to the team's cup runs this season; a Carling Cup trophy and an upcoming FA Cup semi final against either Everton or Sunderland.

"We'll accept our progress in the cups and we'll have to accept that we're going to be a little bit tired. If we're going to be successful we've got to be able to handle it," he said.

There was a lone bright spark in Liverpool's team performance today - the first league appearance of 17-year-old Raheem Sterling, now the third youngest player in the club's history to make their debut. "It's nice to see the kids get a game but it's also better for us to look after them," added Dalglish. "We're not going to throw kids in and destroy them, but it's nice to see them on the pitch.

Outside of Anfield, Arsenal continued their fine run of form with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Aston Villa, today while Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur played out a keenly contested 0-0 draw in the early afternoon tie. The full results from the Premier League action today are as follows:

Premier League results:

Arsenal 3-0 Aston Villa, Bolton 2-1 Blackburn, Chelsea 0-0 Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool 1-2 Wigan, Norwich 2-1 Wolves, Stoke L-L Manchester City, Sunderland 3-1 QPR, Swansea 0-2 Everton