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Argentina example to Reds - Mascherano Javier Mascherano wants Liverpool to follow Argentina's example, insisting the under-pressure Reds must forget about their four successive defeats and concentrate on beating Manchester United on Sunday.

The midfielder wants Liverpool - in the midst of their worst run for 22 years - to be inspired by Argentina's last-ditch qualification for the 2010 World Cup finals ahead of the Barclays Premier League clash at Anfield.

Boss Rafael Benitez's management has been openly questioned this week, although Mascherano has made it clear that the fault lies with the players, not the manager.

And the Argentina captain can see a parallel between his country's dramatic late qualification for South Africa and Liverpool's current crisis.

He said: "I am relaxed now that Argentina have qualified for the World Cup finals, I can concentrate only on Liverpool.

"I can think of Liverpool and not Argentina. This is not a good situation at the club, and I want to give Liverpool my best.

"I am captain of my country, and we were really under pressure in the final two qualifying games; people said we were out, that was very difficult.

"But we won both those games. We have qualified. Maybe it will be the same for Liverpool now if we start to win, things will start to happen for us like they did for my country.

"We must not think of the past. We must beat United for ourselves, for our supporters, for the team. We must keep going." Liverpool, who suffered a 1-0 Champions League loss to Lyon in midweek, expect to have Fernando Torres and Glen Johnson back from injury, but captain Steven Gerrard is a serious worry with his groin problem.

Mascherano added: "We have a very important game now with Manchester United. We must stop thinking and worrying about what happened against Lyon.

"If we can beat United then the confidence will be back, it is important to do that.

"We beat them twice last season. We know what we are capable of. Hopefully our form will be like that on Sunday.

"We have to do the right things and put away our chances.

"It is a difficult situation, we have lost four in a row. But do not forget that is a team who last season were doing very well, we must keep going and working.

"We must win the next game, against Manchester United. If you have confidence you can do anything.

"The team is not playing well, and a lot of players are not in the best form. That is not good and we are losing confidence, but we have to believe that we can overcome this." United have a doubt over Wayne Rooney.

The striker has been out with a calf injury since England's World Cup qualifier in Ukraine a fortnight ago.

Manager Sir Alex Ferguson is hopeful the former Everton star will be fit to feature on Merseyside but admits it is far from certain.

Veteran Ryan Giggs is poised to return after suffering a knock in last week's defeat of Bolton and Patrice Evra has overcome a heel problem.

Darren Fletcher (groin) is another doubt while Park Ji-Sung (knee) is set for a couple of weeks on the sidelines.

Michael Owen has already secured a place in the affections of Manchester United fans - now Ferguson wants him to earn a place in the history books.

Owen will be centre of attention on Sunday as he makes his first return to Liverpool - the club which nurtured him and for whom he scored 158 goals - as a player for their fiercest rivals.

United's signing of the one-time Anfield hero raised some eyebrows in the summer but the 29-year-old repaid some of Ferguson's faith with a dramatic derby winner against Manchester City last month.

Now United will be hoping he can repeat the trick in a Premier League game which Liverpool, after four successive defeats in all competitions, can ill afford to lose.

"That will never be forgotten," Ferguson said. "I don't know if it puts him in the history books but it will certainly never be forgotten.

"He is only just starting with us. He has only been here a few months and I hope the boy is here for a long time.

Liverpool vs Man Utd

Last modified 11:24 16/04/10

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Reds stop rot in Anfield classic Fernando Torres and substitute David Ngog left Manchester United reeling as Liverpool brilliantly halted their four-game losing streak with a 2-0 win.

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez had said prior to the game that one win would change everything, and what a result his team delivered to ease the pressure on the Spaniard.

The champions were eventually beaten after a stunning performance of defiance that followed days of the worst crisis Liverpool have suffered in decades.

If the critics were to be believed, boss Benitez was for the chop, Liverpool were all washed up and facing financial ruin.

Well not after this cracking Barclays Premier League battle. Liverpool restored their pride with a victory over, for them, the best victims possible.

Torres forced his injured frame through the game and grabbed his ninth goal of the campaign midway through the second half to get Liverpool really firing.

Ngog hit the second in stoppage-time, with the match at boiling point. United had by that stage lost defender Nemanja Vidic to his third red card in successive matches against Liverpool.

Javier Mascherano saw red too, but it was Liverpool who inflicted the second league defeat of the season on United to restore faith among their worried fans.

As expected, Steven Gerrard missed the match with a groin problem, but Wayne Rooney recovered from a calf injury to play for the champions.

Liverpool had Torres and Glen Johnson back after both missed the Champions League defeat to Lyon on Tuesday, while United also had Ryan Giggs, Patrice Evra and Michael Carrick back in their starting line-up. Michael Owen, facing his former club, started on the bench and on his introduction received a punishing reception from the fans who once worshipped him.

United's supporters made the most of Liverpool's recent misfortune. Beach balls, Eric Cantona masks and insulting banners were smuggled into the away section.

The banner that hurt most, no doubt, was "You told us to come back when we'd won 18 titles...well, we're back".

Watching on were co-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett, sitting side by side in the directors' box, but not in the exposed front row.

The atmosphere was electric, the noise deafening, as Liverpool set about trying to restore their battered reputation.

Evra was booked after two trips on Torres in as many minutes, and from the free-kick Fabio Aurelio sent in a curled effort that Edwin van der Sar clawed away. It went straight to Dirk Kuyt, whose follow-up was also saved by his Dutch countryman.

Then Lucas robbed Paul Scholes and gave Kuyt another chance, this one guided wide of the far post.

Rooney, who had seen one effort disallowed for offside, rose to met an Antonio Valencia cross, but his header was held low to his right by Jose Reina.

United had better possession and hit Liverpool with pace and slick movement, but Van der Sar was again needed to plunge to his right to keep out an Aurelio header from Yossi Benayoun's cross.

Then Dimitar Berbatov was booked for a trip on Lucas, with the game finely balanced as the half ended.

Kuyt should have scored early in the second period when he was played in by Johnson, but he chose to pass rather than blast an angled effort, and the chance was lost.

Then Benayoun's touch sent Torres away on the right, but his lack of genuine pace following his groin problem did not see him shake off Rio Ferdinand, and again the opening went begging.

It then needed a block from Johnson on the far post to keep out Rooney's header from Giggs' free-kick.

But Liverpool were growing in confidence and they grabbed the lead after 65 minutes. Benayoun's pass sent Torres beyond Ferdinand, onside only by inches.

The Spaniard was not going to be denied this time. He held off the England centre-back and lashed a shot into the roof of the net. The roof almost came off Anfield too.

Mascherano was booked for a foul on Evra before Anfield had its first sight of Owen in a United shirt as he came on for Berbatov and Nani replaced Scholes after 74 minutes.

Owen's arrival was greeted with jeers and chants of "Where were you in Istanbul?" as well as "Once a Manc, never a Red".

Vidic was booked for a foul on Torres, and then after 80 minutes Torres could run no more and Ngog took his place.

Valencia saw a cross-shot clip the Liverpool bar and Owen was searching for any inch of space. He almost had a chance when he chased a through-ball, only to be hauled down by his good friend Jamie Carragher. The Liverpool skipper was booked.

With just a minute of normal time left, Vidic pulled down Kuyt as the Dutchman raced into an empty half. Red followed a second yellow, and the Serbian was sent off for the third successive game against Liverpool.

Three minutes into added time Mascherano was also sent off for a challenge on Van der Sar, the Argentinian's second yellow-card offence.