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Meireles ruins Torres' big day as Liverpool stun Chelsea

Raul Meireles was the hero for Liverpool © Getty Images

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Premier League gallery

Liverpool had the last laugh over the transfer of striker Fernando Torres after a 1-0 win over champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Raul Meireles scored his fourth goal in five games as the Reds revival under Kenny Dalglish continued, with Torres failing to fire on his Chelsea debut.

All eyes were on the Spaniard, who scored 81 goals in three-and-a-half seasons at Anfield, but he failed to justify his £50 million price tag with a goalless display and was hauled off after an hour.

It was fate that the Spaniard would make his debut against the side he left on Monday, and he nearly made a dream start to his Chelsea career when he latched onto a stray pass from Maxi Rodriguez, but he lashed his strike well over Pepe Reina's goal.

After the goal-fest in the Premier League on Saturday, the match had a lot to live up to, but it was a cagey affair with few clear-cut opportunities in the first half - Branislav Ivanovic's header glanced wide for Chelsea, and Rodriguez missed the chance of the half to put his side ahead at Stamford Bridge.

Finding himself unmarked on the far post, Rodriguez merely needed to stick a leg out to poke Steven Gerrard's searching ball across the face of the goal into the net, but the Argentine managed to hit the bar from three yards out.

Up the other end, Torres was struggling to settle in with his new team-mates, and with Chelsea on the break, his wayward pass out to the left wing went out for a throw-in.

There were signs of dissent in the Chelsea ranks at the end of the first half, with Martin Kelly's ball sparking a heated debate between Petr Cech and Branislav Ivanovic when the pair both went to clear the same ball.

Both sides were reduced to long-range efforts; Glen Johnson unleashed a strike from Dirk Kuyt's lay-off, but his long-range effort was well wide, and Nicolas Anelka's effort at the other end produced a similar outcome.

Having failed to make an impact, Torres was replaced by Salomon Kalou after 65 minutes, sparking a cheer from the Liverpool fans, but they were soon silenced when Michael Essien had Chelsea's best chance, his 25-yard strike zipping just over Reina's crossbar.

But the breakthrough came for Liverpool when Cech failed to deal with Gerrard's cross and Raul Meireles lashed the ball into the Chelsea net. And Liverpool, who were good value for their lead, held on for their fourth consecutive league win to move up to sixth.

Nikola Zigic could barely miss at the back post for the winning goal © PA Photos

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West Ham's relegation concerns deepen after they lost 1-0 at home to Birmingham at Upton Park on Sunday.

Avram Grant was made to endure a nightmare birthday as his side sunk to the bottom of the table after losing a vital six-pointer against their relegation rivals. Nikola Zigic dealt the fatal blow midway through the second half when he nodded home from a Sebastian Larsson free-kick to seal the win and move Birmingham up to 16th.

Substitute Demba Ba rattled the woodwork on his debut but otherwise, the Hammers rarely threatened the visitors' goal and Grant's position will now undoubtedly come under more scrutiny as a result.

Starting the day inside the bottom three, both sides had plenty to lose in east London, and it showed in a tight first half between two teams that have grown to know each other well after Birmingham's recent Carling Cup triumph over the Hammers.

Grant certainly went for the three points with his team selection, fielding Victor Obinna, Robbie Keane and Frederic Piquionne in a three-pronged attack, but once again West Ham's shaky defence creaked at the vital moment.

Defending a second-half free-kick, Wayne Bridge found himself the wrong side of the towering Zigic, who scored a trademark back-post header from Larsson's deep free-kick.

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