90 seconds remaining and it looks like the 3 points are heading Villa's way

Liverpool's corner comes to nothing with this game coming to a disappointing close for the home side

Davies heads the ball behind for a corner after Kuyt fails to connect with a cross

Another awful shot from Babel from 30 yards out. Babel certainly hasn't impressed since coming on for the home side

Gerrard moves towards the right and plays the ball to Mascherano, who sends the ball into the box for Torres but the striker's header is saved by Friedel

Liverpool's midfield has looked lethargic tonight and has certainly lacked cohesion and mutual understanding

Carragher is flagged offside for Liverpool. Villa will be happy with the way the last ten minutes are going

Babel shoots woefully wide for Liverpool

Heskey defends well at the back to prevent Johnson sending in a cross

Petrov blocks a shot from Gerrard as the captain attempts to make up for giving away the penalty. Not a great game from the England man

Penalty to Villa after Gerrard fouls Reo-Coker in the area

Sidwell heads the ball wide of the Liverpool goal but attention switches to Milner, who is down after a clash of heads in midfield

Friedel saves a stinging shot from Gerrard. Chances are mounting for Liverpool but Villa look fairly comfortable at the back

Johnson is providing good width for Liverpool but the home side is still finding the congested midfield hard to cope with

Johnson moves infield and plays the ball in for Torres. The striker collides with Davies in the box and the home fans scream for a penalty. The referee blows the whistle for a foul on Davies

Reina makes an easy save from Agbonlahor

Plenty of passes across midfield from Liverpool but the players are finding it difficult to make incisive forward passes, with Villa defenders crowding Torres

Liverpool have managed to raise the tempo during the last ten minutes but their attacking efforts have come to nothing so far. Villa look dangerous on the break so Liverpool must be careful to balance attack with defence

Shorey gets his body in the way to distract Kuyt, who sends his shot from inside the area well wide

Kuyt, who is making his 150th Liverpool appearance tonight, hits the post from another Liverpool corner. Great headed effort from the striker from close range

Gerrard's corner is headed away by Davies. Villa had all their players back to defend that corner

Milner gives away a free kick on the left but Gerrard's free kick is saved well by Friedel

Liverpool are starting to press Villa when they are in possession now as they try to claw a goal back early in the half

Great run by Johnson again but Villa break from the home side's attack. Mascherano wins the ball back for Liverpool

Emiliano Insua squares the ball to Mascherano, who plays the ball to Kuyt. Liverpool need to start taking chances by playing the ball forward

Liverpool have had one great opportunity at the start of this half but they still haven't picked up the pace adequately. Rafa Benitez will be looking for further improvement from his team

The ball almost falls for Agbonlahor but Reina races to the edge of the box to clear

Gerrard scored a hat trick in the corresponding fixture last season and he could have had a couple of goals tonight. Friedel has been in fine form though

Friedel makes a fine save from Gerrard after some good work from Johnson, who cut inside Shorey with ease

The fourth official indicates one minute of added time at the end of the first half

Milner plays the ball to Agbonlahor but Mascherano makes a good challenge to win back possession for the home side

This is a great spell for Villa, who look full of confidence after opening the scoring

Reo-Coker cuts out a Liverpool attack in midfield. He's having an excellent game for Villa after a slow start

Friedel saves comfortably from Javier Mascherano

Reo-Coker shoots from just outside the box but ends up sending the ball left of Reina's goal

The game has gone flat for Liverpool now, who look like they miss the creative edge provided by Xabi Alonso

Reina takes a free kick after a foul by Ashley Young on Skrtel

Johnson bombs forward for Liverpool before passing the ball to Gerrard. The captain's ball to Torres draws a foul and a free kick for the home side

Lucas Leiva plays the ball forward but it rushes straight through to Friedel

Reo-Coker is caught offside but he's starting to grow into this game

Liverpool are letting Villa dictate the pace of this match, which doesn't suit their style of play. Rafael Benitez will be looking for his side to press the Villa players more when they have the ball over the next fifteen minutes

Gerrard plays a great ball in for Torres to attack but a good defensive header from Cuellar neutralises the danger

A mistake from Cuellar allows Torres in but the Liverpool striker fails to take advantage of this opportunity

Habib Beye plays a poor ball forward which goes out for a Liverpool throw-in

Johnson hasn't been able to get forward too much for Liverpool tonight with Ashley Young a constant menace but he's doing well in defence

Carragher plays a sloppy ball which is intercepted by Nigel Reo-Coker, who has been quiet for Villa so far

Good tackle from Skrtel on the right to dispossess James Milner, who has the ability to hurt teams on the break

Shorey takes yet another free kick, this time aimed towards Sidwell but Reina intercepts once again. Poor free kick in the end from the Villa man

Shorey takes a free kick from a dangerous position but his effort is headed away by Jamie Carragher

Another good chance for Liverpool as Gerrard, who has played well so far, sends a shot just over the bar

Gerrard's free kick comes to nothing on the right hand side

Shorey takes a corner but Jose Manuel Reina intercepts and sends the ball forward for a Liverpool attack. Dirk Kuyt is pulled down cynically by Ashley Young

The Liverpool players will be scratching their heads wondering how they aren't 1-0 up. Torres' shot is blocked by Friedel, who manages to recover in time to make a save from Gerrard

Nicky Shorey takes a corner for Villa but Fernando Torres clears well

Good start from Liverpool who look hungry for another win

Habib Beye rolls the ball back to Carlos Cuellar before the ball is played forward to the midfield players. Steve Sidwell gives the ball away before Skrtel sends it back into Villa's half

Glen Johnson, who seems to have settled in at Anfield nicely, sends the ball forward from defence but some promising touches in midfield come to nothing

Steven Gerrard takes a free kick from the left but Friedel punches his effort away strongly

Yossi Benayoun should have scored in the first minute after beating Friedel in the air from a great cross from the left