Rangers manager Walter Smith wanted a stern test ahead of Tuesday's make-or-break Champions League qualifier against FBK Kaunas - and Liverpool were happy to oblige by handing out a 4-0 thrashing in a glamour friendly at Ibrox.

David Ngog opened his goalscoring account for the Reds after Fernando Torres claimed the only goal of the first half.

• Torres and Keane impress Benitez

Yossi Benayoun then found the back of the net, before Xabi Alonso completed the rout from the penalty spot.

Rangers failed to score once again after Wednesday's Ibrox stalemate and know an improvement will be needed when they travel to Lithuania for the crucial second leg, as they bid to keep their European hopes alive.

New signing Madjid Bougherra was named on the bench but failed to make his Rangers debut, while Kyle Lafferty made his first home start.

New goalkeeper Diego Cavalieri started between the sticks for the Reds while, at the other end, Rangers faced the daunting prospect of trying to halt a strikeforce worth a combined total of £40million in the shape of new signing Robbie Keane and Torres.

Rangers had the best of the early chances. Lee McCulloch's ferocious long-range shot whistled inches past Cavalieri's right-hand post, before Kenny Miller hooked over after pouncing on a Nacho Novo lay-off.

Torres then came close for Liverpool when he threw himself in front of a cross from the left from Andrea Dossena, only to send his header screaming over the crossbar.

The breakthrough came with 23 minutes on the clock when a powerful Damien Plessis shot was blocked by Allan McGregor - but the goalkeeper could not hold the effort and Torres was on hand to rifle home the rebound.

Steven Gerrard then embarked on a decent run before unleashing a 20-yard drive that McGregor did well to parry but, this time, the danger was cleared with Keane loitering with intent in front of goal.

Then it was Rangers' turn to threaten when Sasa Papac's audacious attempt at lobbing into the top left corner was only just touched out of play by a full-stretch Cavalieri.

A flurry of activity from Rangers followed but the home side failed to restore parity before the half-time whistle.

The best chance came when Miller released Novo into the box, who rounded Cavalieri at the near post, only to somehow be denied from about a yard out by a sliding block from Dossena.

The good news for Rangers was that Torres was one of several players withdrawn at the interval, with both sides making five changes each.

The bad new was the arrival of Ngog, who helped himself to a goal of his own after 57 minutes. The French striker pounced on a loose pass from Kirk Broadfoot and left McGregor with no chance from 12 yards.

Liverpool added to their lead further three minutes later. McGregor managed to swipe at a Christian Nemeth effort only for Benayoun to come racing in at the back post and bury the rebound from close range.

Cavalieri made way for Jose Reina, while McGregor was swapped for Neil Alexander - and he was plucking the ball out of the net with 20 minutes to go.

Broadfoot was deemed to have tripped Nemeth in the box and Alonso stepped up to convert from 12 yards, with Alexander well beaten.

Torres and Keane impress Benitez
Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez declared himself pleased with the first outing of new strike force Fernando Torres and Robbie Keane after the Merseyside club cruised to a 4-0 win over Rangers in their challenge match at Ibrox.

Keane, who cost Liverpool £20million when he moved from Tottenham last week, linked well with the Spaniard in a first half which Liverpool bossed for long spells.

Torres gave the visitors the interval lead from close range after Rangers goalkeeper Allan McGregor had fumbled a long-range drive from French youngster Damien Plessis.

After both sides made five substitutions each at half-time, with Torres staying inside, 19-year-old striker David Ngog struck from the edge of the box for his first goal since signing from Paris St Germain before Yossi Benayoun made it three at the far post on the hour.

More substitutions followed before Xabi Alonso slotted the fourth from the penalty spot after Ibrox defender Kirk Broadfoot had clumsily pulled down Krisztian Nemeth in the box.

Benitez, who declined to comment on the continuing speculation about Aston Villa midfielder Gareth Barry coming to Anfield, was pleased with the way his front two led his side to an easy victory.

'Both players showed good movement and so did (Steven) Gerrard,' he said.

'Dirk Kuyt and Yossi Benayoun were coming inside so I felt we had five offensive players, very clever and with quality so we were a threat all the time.

'Keane is very clever and he worked hard. He is very happy here and hopefully we will see a lot of good movement and also goals from him.

'Gerrard, Torres and Keane playing together was one of the keys to keeping possession.

'But I feel we have some good players in the team, different players with different qualities and a good mentality.'

Despite the scoreline, Benitez, who also straight-batted questions about the continual booing of Keane by the home fans due to the former Spurs player being a Republic of Ireland international, insisted the Ibrox side offered a difficult challenge.

He said: 'The first half was okay but in the second half they needed to go forward in front of their supporters.

'We had more space and we scored the second goal on the counter-attack.

'But from the start of the game we wanted to impress and we wanted to win.

'We worked hard, had plenty of possession and wanted to keep a high tempo with the ball.

'We scored once and had one or two problems near the end of the first half but we controlled it.

'In the second half, with the game more open, it was easier for us to keep the high tempo.'

1:43 PM
Categories: rangers, result. Author: nik