Steaua Bucharest 1-1 Liverpool

Liverpool secured their passage to the last 32 of the Europa League, despite a blunder from keeper Pepe Reina in a draw at Steaua Bucharest.

Milan Jovanovic put the Reds ahead after he found the bottom corner with a header from Ryan Babel's cross.

But Reina let a Eder Bomfim header squirm under him as Steaua equalised.

A Sotiris Kyrgiakos header hit the crossbar for Liverpool before they saw out the game and progressed with a point in their penultimate group game.

It was a workmanlike rather than inspiring performance from Liverpool as they did the job they set out to do with a weakened side.

With eight regular first-teamers missing through injury or being rested, Reds boss Roy Hodgson reshuffled his pack, as he has done in the Europa League this season, to give promising youngsters vital experience and fringe senior players a chance to impress.

Jovanovic and Babel fall into the latter category and they combined to help give the visitors the lead after their first notable attack.

Eric Bicfalvi had just wasted a chance by heading high for Steaua from close range before Jovanovic showed him how to do it by twisting his neck to find the power and direction to send Babel's floated cross into the bottom corner.

Babel was again causing Steaua problems when he seized upon a poor Floring Gardos header before slipping a ball across to leave Cole with just the keeper to beat.

The playmaker's first touch let him down and, after Steaua's defence blocked his clean sight of goal, Cole was forced to pass to Jovanovic before Pacheco drove a shot wide.

The manner of the way Cole squandered a gilt-edged chance epitomised the lack of confidence Hodgson cited as one of the reasons why the 29-year-old's Reds career has yet launch, while it was also evidence of a player missing match sharpness after five weeks out with a hamstring injury.

Cole's struggles regularly resulted in him being caught in possession or failing to find his target with passes as the penchant for the creative and mercurial on which he has based his career looked in desperately short supply.

Liverpool had coped comfortably with Steaua until either side of half-time when the home side should have equalised.

Bogdan Stancu found himself with the Reds goal at his mercy after he came off better after challenging Liverpool central defender Sotiris Kyrgiakos for a cross but the Steaua striker could only shoot horribly wide.

Cristian Tanase's pinpoint cross then found Geraldo Alves unmarked in the Liverpool box only for the Steaua centre-back heading straight at Reina.

However, the home side's efforts were rewarded when Bonfim's speculative header embarrassingly squirmed under Reina, whose view had been blocked by Romer Surdu before he moved out of the keeper's eyeline.

Kyrgiakos crashed a header against the Steaua crossbar from a Fabio Aurelio corner as Liverpool went close to a winner before the visitors held the home side at arm's length to see out the game.

This story has been reproduced from today's media. It does not necessarily represent the position of Liverpool Football Club.