Liverpool.

Superlative, a fitting word in all aspects to describe Liverpool's travels to Old Trafford. A 4-1 defeat of Manchester United that leaves ajar the door to the Premier League title, ensuring that the Reds of Merseyside are still contenders to the English title although Sir Alex Ferguson and his men are still the favourites to equal Liverpool's long standing record of 18 league titles. This week has been an absolute fairytale for Rafa Benitez and his players. First the merciless shredding at Anfield of arguably the most successful football club in European club competitions, Real Madrid, led by the all time Champions League top-scorer Raul Gonzalez up front. Taking a deserved 0-1 away lead from the Bernabeu, many expected Liverpool to sit back and defend the reverse fixture at home. They were to be sorely disappointed if that was the expectation they had of the Reds because the 11 man squad led by influential midfielder and skipper Steven Gerrard started the match with all guns blazing. Running wild on the pitch and cruising to a 2-0 lead at half-time that all but put to bed Real's hope of qualifying for the Quarter-finals ; something the 9 time champions of Europe have failed to achieve for the past 4 seasons. The decisive blow was struck 2 minutes after the restart, with the skipper volleying past Real's Iker Casillas to make the score 3-0. Prior to the matches against Liverpool, Real Madrid under new coach Juande Ramos had won nine consecutive matches on the trot, reviving their hopes of retaining the Spanish title. There was to be no sign of that revival at Anfield as Benitez' men picked Real to pieces, adding the finishing touches on a historical night as the most unlikely of scorers, Andrea Dossena, came off the bench to make it 4-0. Had it not been for Real's goalkeeper and Spanish international Iker Casillas in goal, the victory could have been the most remarkable in the history of the Champions League.

No hangovers were evident from that extraordinary night at Anfield as Liverpool replicated the feat at Old Trafford, destroying the red devils with the same efficiency and eye-for-goal that saw the Merseysiders collect all three points and their biggest win over their bitter rivals since 1963. The Red Devils went infront courtesy of Jose Reina who brought down Park Ji-Sung, leading to a penalty which the iconic Cristiano Ronaldo duly dispatched of. But some slack defending from Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra gifted Liverpool's men 2 goals before the interval. Goalscorers from 4 days before, Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard scored the first and second respectively. Victory was sealed with Brazilian Fabio Aurellio's left-footed free kick that hit the back of the United net with Van der Sar rooted to the spot on 76 minutes. Once again, Andrea Dossena added icing on the cake with a sublime lob shot that beat Van der Sar and capped off a wonderful week for Liverpool, much to the dismay of their bewildered opponents. Though some might claim that the manner of the goals Liverpool scored were due to uncharacteristic errors from United's players, the spirit and work ethic of Rafa's men were definitely in play, thus leading to a win.

Liverpool displayed an attacking prowess in these two matches that was unmatched and unrelenting, something which has come under much criticism of late because many claim Liverpool lack the confidence to commit men forward. Having completed the double over both Chelsea and Manchester United, Liverpool have come up short against many of the "smaller sides" in English football. So you would think for the Scousers to continue along the road of success and triumph, they would need to keep key players like Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard 100% fit all the time.

The chase for the English Premier League is yet to conclude, as is the hunt for the elusive Champions League trophy. Surely the strategic Rafael Benitez will do his utmost best to lead Liverpool to glory once again.

- a proud Liverpudlian, always.