Charlie Nicholas pointed the finger at Rafael Benitez as Liverpool's momentum came to a crashing halt at Fulham.
The Reds arrived at Craven Cottage buoyant after an impressive victory over Manchester United last weekend, but were bought crashing down to earth as goals from Bobby Zamora, Erik Nevland and Clint Dempsey sealed a 3-1 win for the home side.
Liverpool were also reduced to nine men following red cards for Philipp Degen and Jamie Carragher, but Nicholas says the Liverpool manager must shoulder the blame following some strange tactical decisions.
He said the removal of Liverpool's goalscorer Fernando Torres on the hour mark when the scores were level was the turning point in the match.
"Stunning," said Nicholas after the match.
"After 60 minutes he took Torres off, the only guy who looked like scoring, the only guy who was interested.
"He took a couple of kicks on the ankle and he was rubbing his knee a couple of times, but what it told me after 60 minutes at 1-1 is that he was already thinking about Lyon."
That game with Lyon is a crucial Champions League encounter in France on Wednesday night, but Nicholas feels Benitez sacrificed Liverpool's chances at Fulham because he was too preoccupied with that game.
Nicholas argued that Benitez has decided to prioritise the Champions League over the Premier League - and that is not good enough for a club like Liverpool.
"Momentum is everything in football," Nicholas continued.
"Rafa, year after year, is taking that momentum away. You get a fantastic and thoroughly deserved win against Manchester United and you think this team, even without Stevie Gerrard, can get a little bit of momentum.
"He's taken it all away from them today, he's taken all of the goodness that you've seen last weekend and he's taken it all back out.
"Even as a neutral we want Liverpool to be in the frame because we need a big Liverpool in there.
"He's going to have to question himself about going to Lyon and trying to find a victory. If he doesn't get that victory, where does it leave him?
"He could be out of the Champions League and he's more or less got one foot out of the door for the Premier League.
"You're sitting there thinking 'this is Liverpool Football Club', you should be going into every game to win the football match.
"It's as if there's an acceptance today that says they're now going to concentrate on the Champions League.
"Not good enough."
Nicholas also had praise for Fulham for their victory and for their under-fire striker Zamora, who troubled the Liverpool defence all afternoon.
"His energy was fantastic," he added.
"He ran into every corner he could, he stretched Carragher as often as he could because he knew Carragher was their best defender. If he could take him out of that central area there would be opportunities.
"He was their outstanding player, he gave every ounce he could and he was a threat all day."
The Reds arrived at Craven Cottage buoyant after an impressive victory over Manchester United last weekend, but were bought crashing down to earth as goals from Bobby Zamora, Erik Nevland and Clint Dempsey sealed a 3-1 win for the home side.
Liverpool were also reduced to nine men following red cards for Philipp Degen and Jamie Carragher, but Nicholas says the Liverpool manager must shoulder the blame following some strange tactical decisions.
He said the removal of Liverpool's goalscorer Fernando Torres on the hour mark when the scores were level was the turning point in the match.
"Stunning," said Nicholas after the match.
"After 60 minutes he took Torres off, the only guy who looked like scoring, the only guy who was interested.
"He took a couple of kicks on the ankle and he was rubbing his knee a couple of times, but what it told me after 60 minutes at 1-1 is that he was already thinking about Lyon."
That game with Lyon is a crucial Champions League encounter in France on Wednesday night, but Nicholas feels Benitez sacrificed Liverpool's chances at Fulham because he was too preoccupied with that game.
Nicholas argued that Benitez has decided to prioritise the Champions League over the Premier League - and that is not good enough for a club like Liverpool.
"Momentum is everything in football," Nicholas continued.
"Rafa, year after year, is taking that momentum away. You get a fantastic and thoroughly deserved win against Manchester United and you think this team, even without Stevie Gerrard, can get a little bit of momentum.
"He's taken it all away from them today, he's taken all of the goodness that you've seen last weekend and he's taken it all back out.
"Even as a neutral we want Liverpool to be in the frame because we need a big Liverpool in there.
"He's going to have to question himself about going to Lyon and trying to find a victory. If he doesn't get that victory, where does it leave him?
"He could be out of the Champions League and he's more or less got one foot out of the door for the Premier League.
"You're sitting there thinking 'this is Liverpool Football Club', you should be going into every game to win the football match.
"It's as if there's an acceptance today that says they're now going to concentrate on the Champions League.
"Not good enough."
Nicholas also had praise for Fulham for their victory and for their under-fire striker Zamora, who troubled the Liverpool defence all afternoon.
"His energy was fantastic," he added.
"He ran into every corner he could, he stretched Carragher as often as he could because he knew Carragher was their best defender. If he could take him out of that central area there would be opportunities.
"He was their outstanding player, he gave every ounce he could and he was a threat all day."
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