FORGET the hype and flannel about Roy Hodgson and his former club, Albion needed this victory for all sorts of reasons.

Given the perception of Hodgson among Liverpool fans you’d be forgiven for thinking that Saturday’s game was the first time one man had orchestrated the victory and defeat of two clubs in one game.

Hodgson can do little wrong at The Hawthorns right now – rightly so, too, he remains unbeaten – while at Anfield any poor performances are attributed to the legacy he left behind.

They wanted a scapegoat and the man who wasn’t Kenny Dalglish has always been an easy target.

Shame, because Hodgson is a better manager than that.

But while Liverpool might not be too concerned about their managerial loss, Albion can only gain from the current boss.

The Hodgson effect cannot be downplayed. Firstly we have the discipline. Both on and off the ball.

There was a time under Roberto Di Matteo where Albion players were seeing red and yellow way too often. This side is well-behaved.

And what of shape? It would be best to picture Albion’s movement without the ball as that of players being connected by a drawstring.

When a full-back or wide midfielder is called into service the rest follow suit symmetrically. There is little scope for leaving holes.

It gives Albion more definition. Imagine the defence being controlled like a Fussball table. One moves across, they all move across. The structure never creaks. All four defenders were brilliant. Nicky Shorey – acrobatic clearance included – was close to perfect. Did he give the ball away once? I’m not sure he did.

In front of the back four Paul Scharner and Youssouf Mulumbu continue to covet praise. The Austrian was energetic and robust. His only failing was to watch the ball when Martin Skrtel scored – although the Liverpool man’s powerful jump and header would have taken some stopping.

It would be harsh to pick Scharner out for blame when pretty much everything he did was tidy.