There was finally some joy for Roy Hodgson after his Liverpool side gained a potentially vital victory over Blackburn at Anfield. While it might not have lifted Liverpool out of the bottom three, the result will certainly act as a real confidence boost, and will give Hodgson something to build on.

The former Fulham boss recalled all of his big names after making a whole host of changes for Liverpool’s Europa League trip to Napoli. Hodgson came in for substantial criticism for resting the likes of Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres for the trip to Italy, but the win today was the perfect answer to his critics.

Torres looked like a completely different player after his rest as the striker ended his recent goal drought with the goal that proved to be the winner. While Gerrard was once again back to his influential best.

But Reds boss Roy Hodgson was just delighted to see his side finally get a victory. He said: “It was a deserved victory and one that was really needed. If we had come in at half-time several goals up no-one could have said a word.

“So I told them at the break they were going the right way and if they carried on they would be fine, which they were. It’s the three points that count and I’m very happy with that.”

Liverpool fans will be hoping that this result will finally mark the start of their season. By all accounts it’s been a rotten start to the campaign both on and off the field for the Anfield club, but the performance today was much better.

The question that remains is where can Liverpool finish after such a disappointing start? We all know the quality that they possess in the squad and with Torres looking somewhat like his usual self, there is no reason why they can’t at least challenge for another Europa League spot.

But to do that they need to find consistency, one thing that has been desperately lacking under Hodgson so far, and in many ways under his predecessor Rafael Benitez too. However the signs from today are good, Liverpool managed to grind the result out in the second half, and if they can keep doing this on a regular basis the momentum will build. The whole club needs momentum at the moment, now it is up to Hodgson to create it.

What do you think? Where will Liverpool finish this season?