LONDON: Rafael Benitez has underlined the importance of Fernando Torres to Liverpool's Premier League title bid after the £26.5 million ($60.5m) striker came off the bench to sink Fulham.

The Cottagers came within nine minutes of securing a point with a dogged display at Anfield on Saturday, but their defences were breached by a brilliant solo goal from Torres before Steven Gerrard sealed the 2-0 win with a penalty.

The victory lifted Liverpool into fourth place on the table, three points adrift of joint leaders Arsenal, who travel to Reading on Monday, and Manchester United, who were to host Blackburn on Sunday.

"If you want to stay at the top of the table, you have to win at home," acknowledged Liverpool manager Benitez.

"This was a really important win, with the international break coming up, to keep our momentum."

The Spaniard added: "It is good Fernando is back fit, now I have the sort of problems I like with several fit strikers to choose from.

"It is important that he is back and important that he can score goals like that."

Earlier on Saturday, Sunderland's derby clash with Newcastle ended in a frustrating 1-1 draw after a performance that should have secured three badly needed points for Roy Keane's side.

In the day's only other match in the top flight, West Ham inflict a demoralising 5-0 defeat on the bottom side Derby in front of their own supporters.

Sunderland seemed set to claim bragging rights when Danny Higginbotham headed them into a 51st-minute lead at the Stadium of Light.

But they allowed Newcastle to equalise when James Milner's cross crept in at the far post and they are slipping dangerously close to the relegation zone after going seven games without a win.

Trinidad striker Kenwyne Jones missed a glorious chance and former Newcastle player Michael Chopra hit the bar as Sunderland pushed for victory in the closing stages.

Keane said the missed opportunities should serve as a lesson for his struggling squad.

"The beauty of the premiership is if you don't take your chances it will come back to haunt you and that's what happened," the Irishman said. "We can talk all day about luck but the players had the chances. We keep getting these lessons in the premiership."

Newcastle boss Sam Allardyce admitted he was relieved to have avoided defeat in his first derby in charge of the Magpies.

"It's a big local derby and we haven't lost," he said. "That's very important for the fans.

"Up until the goal Sunderland had out-muscled us and we couldn't get our passing game going.

"Their goal was disappointing. We can't afford to keep giving silly mistakes away."

West Ham took until four minutes before half-time to break down Derby's defence, with Lee Bowyer giving them the advantage. But Alan Curbishley's side was ruthless after the restart, killing the match with three goals in the space of eight minutes.

Bowyer teed up Matt Etherington to fire home six minutes into the half. An unlucky own goal by Eddie Lewis followed and Bowyer finished off a sweeping counter-attack to claim his second of the afternoon.

Nolberto Solano rounded off a win that lifted West Ham into the top half of the table with a superb free kick that found the top corner of the net.

"A crazy 10-15 minutes cost us dearly and at the end it was men against boys," Derby boss Billy Davies admitted.

AFP