Crouch rescues point for Liverpool at home to Aston Villa

 Crouch came off the substitutes' bench to volley the ball home two minutes from time, after Villa had come from behind to lead with two goals in three minutes.

 Liverpool's fourth consecutive draw kept them above Villa in fifth on goal difference, though they do have a game in hand, but they now trail Manchester United and Arsenal by 14 points.

 Yossi Benayoun had put Liverpool ahead after 19 minutes, and it looked as if Rafael Benitez's side would return to winning ways.

 But Marlon Harewood hooked an acrobatic equalizer on 68 minutes, and then Villa took the lead with a massive stroke of luck as Olof Mellberg's centre from the right took a wicked deflection off the hand of Fabio Aurelio and looped over Jose Reina in the Liverpool goal.

 Benitez brought on Ryan Babel to try to force the equalizer, but it took the introduction of Crouch to change the game, the striker latching on to a loose ball in the box and volleying into the far corner.

DPA