This story has been reproduced from today's media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club.
It was fitting that in the company of Austin Powers, Liverpool FC rediscovered their mojo.
Canadian actor and comedian Mike Myers watched on from the directors' box as Brendan Rodgers's side summoned the perfect response to the chastening defeat at the hands of Arsenal.
The lifelong Red, whose father was from Old Swan, was treated to a ruthless demolition of Fulham.Once again Luis Suarez took centre stage as he scored twice and tormented the Cottagers' overworked backline throughout.
Remarkably, the Uruguayan frontman, who sat out the opening five games due to suspension, is now the joint top scorer in the Premier League with eight goals.
Suarez grabbed the leading role in an emphatic triumph but it was an afternoon when the supporting cast all delivered.
Solid defensively, creative in midfield and potent in the final third, Liverpool ensured they went into the international break on a high with hope restored.
If defeat at the Emirates provided a painful reality check for anyone getting carried away after such a bright start to the campaign, Saturday was a reminder of the progress they have made under Rodgers.
The Reds may have come up short against the Premier League's best but belief in their ability to compete for a Champions League spot remains intact.
Rodgers believes his side have restored the Anfield fear factor and the statistics back him up.
Having won just six out of 19 home league games in 2012, Liverpool have already clocked up 10 victories out of 15 in this calendar year.
Modest opposition who once capitalised on the Reds being a soft touch on home turf are now being clinically dispatched.
Top flight wins don't come any more straightforward than this. It was over as a contest inside the opening half-hour.
Once Fernando Amorebieta's own goal broke the deadlock, Martin Jol's strugglers capitulated and were battered into submission.
Liverpool looked a much stronger unit with Philippe Coutinho, Glen Johnson and Daniel Agger back in their starting line up.
Coutinho provided the eye-catching injection of flair as the pint-sized Brazilian continually picked holes in the Fulham rearguard.
Johnson delivered the kind of marauding display down the right flank which underlined his importance to Rodgers, while Agger grasped the chance he had waited six weeks for.
Having lost his place due to a hip injury, the Danish centre-back was forced to sit and watch as the manager favoured a defensive trio of Martin Skrtel, Mamadou Sakho and Kolo Toure.
But Rodgers's decision to revert to a flat back four saw Agger earn a recall and the vice-captain didn't put a foot wrong.
It was no coincidence that on his return Liverpool kept their first clean sheet in nine attempts.
With 67 per cent possession and 32 attempts on goal, this was total domination. The only criticism was that by taking pity on Fulham in the final half hour Liverpool missed the opportunity to give their goal difference an even greater boost.
Much of the post-Arsenal inquest centred around the Reds' lack of control in midfield.
Steven Gerrard and Lucas Leiva have certainly had better days but much of the criticism simply ignored the fact that the way the teams were set up the Gunners simply had a numerical advantage in that area.
That central Gerrard-Lucas axis has successfully provided Rodgers with the platform for some resounding victories and Saturday was another one for the collection.
The skipper illustrated why in the twilight of his career he remains one of the first names on the teamsheet as he showcased his enduring brilliance.
Gerrard and Lucas against Scott Parker and Steve Sidwell was a hopeless mismatch.
It's hard to believe that less than two years ago, Parker was picked as England captain ahead of Gerrard by interim boss Stuart Pearce. It's that kind of error of judgement which explains why Pearce is currently searching for work.
Coutinho and Suarez both threatened early on but Fulham survived until Gerrard's deadball delivery did the trick in the 23rd minute.
He whipped an inviting free-kick into the penalty box and Amorebieta could only divert it past Maarten Stekelenburg.
Three minutes later it was 2-0 with Gerrard once again the provider. His corner from the right was emphatically headed home by Skrtel from six yards out.
It was the Slovakian's first goal for the Reds since he scored in the 4-0 win over the Cottagers last December.
The atmosphere had been subdued but that quickfire double transformed the mood around Anfield.
Coutinho went close with a sweetly struck right-footer which Stekelenburg did well to tip over the bar.
Nine minutes before the interval Liverpool were out of sight thanks to a goal of real quality.
Gerrard nutmegged Dimitar Berbatov before sending a sweeping cross-field pass out to Jordan Henderson on the right.
Henderson looked up and expertly picked out the run of Suarez, who slammed a first time finish past the keeper.
You are always guaranteed a tireless shift from Henderson but this was a display which showed his development as a player as he made an impact in the final third.
Suarez showed his appreciation for the pass by racing to celebrate with Henderson, whose form has deservedly been recognised with an England call-up.
The heroics of Stekelenburg kept the score down before Suarez beat his former Ajax teammate once again in the 54th minute.
Henderson's relentless pressing forced Kieran Richardson to cough up possession and Gerrard pounced. The Reds' talisman found Suarez who made no mistake in front of the Kop.
Jose Enrique made his return from injury in place of Aly Cissokho before Gerrard departed to a richly-deserved standing ovation from all four sides of Anfield. His replacement, Joe Allen, was neat and tidy and Liverpool remained on the front foot against a Fulham side in damage limitation mode.
There was a private plane waiting to fly Suarez to Turkey to link up with the Uruguay squad ahead of their World Cup play-off with Jordan.
But the prolific frontman was clearly in no mood to take a breather. He desperately wanted another matchball for his collection and his work-rate throughout was as impressive as his trickery.
On a weekend when so many of their top four rivals stumbled, Liverpool got back on track in style.
Next stop Goodison.
Source: Liverpool Echo
This story has been reproduced from today's media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club.
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