Homegrown Reds shine for Houllier

Gerard Houllier last night hailed his flourishing English contingent after Liverpool brushed Porto aside to march into the last four of the UEFA Cup.

Goals from Danny Murphy and Michael Owen gave Liverpool a 2-0 aggregate victory over a petulant Portuguese side - meaning every one of the Merseysiders' 13 goals in Europe this season have come from English players.

Owen and Nicky Barmby both have four in the competition while Emile Heskey has three and Murphy and Steven Gerrard one each.

It is a statistic that will not be lost on England coach Sven Goran Eriksson, who was watching from the Anfield directors' box last night.

Houllier said: 'When I came here, it took only six months for people to say that all I was doing was flooding Anfield with foreigners.

'But look at us now. We have a British heart. That is what I have always wanted. It has not been cheap because British players cost a lot of money and I have not brought them here specifically because they are British.

'I bought them because they are quality. What is more important than nationality is spirit and togetherness and that is what this game and the FA Cup win over Tranmere have shown us to have.

'But it is very important to keep true to the values of the country you are working in.

'Perhaps in the semi-final I will allow one of my foreign players to score!'

Liverpool's victory has set them up for a tie against Barcelona, Kaiserslautern or Alaves and keeps them on course to add the UEFA and FA Cup to their Worthington Cup win. Last night's convincing victory came in the face of blatant cheating and gamesmanship from a Portuguese side who tried everything they could to knock Liverpool out of their stride.

Owen was hacked to the ground three times in the first half.

Liverpool also had to stomach the spectacle of Porto defender Carlos Secretario rolling around on the ground in fake agony for five minutes as he attempted to avoid a booking for scything down the England striker.

Owen was at the heart of Liverpool's dominance and he said: 'The whole team played well and after we scored in the first half we killed the game. 'We are in the semis now as well as the semis of the FA Cup. We have won the Worthington Cup, so that's not bad. We have a fighting chance to win three trophies but we must qualify for the Champions' League. That's crucial.'

Houllier expressed no preference for a semi-final opponent and added: 'Porto are a good side but we made them look pale and anonymous.

'At the start of the season we couldn't have done that.

'I think it is certainly a sign of our growing maturity.'