The final whistle at Anfield was greeted with a smattering of boos.
It was hardly a major public show of dissent in the direction of the manager but this was another uncomfortable afternoon for Brendan Rodgers.
There was no respite for the Northern Irishman, who found himself facing up to another inquest into Liverpool’s shortcomings.
Newly-promoted Norwich City became the latest beneficiaries of the Reds’ malaise as they headed home with a share of the spoils.
It will be lost amidst the growing levels of anger and frustration that this was actually a much improved performance from Liverpool.
This was a world away from the dismal display served up at home to West Ham three weeks earlier.
And Liverpool were certainly unrecognisable from the side who surrendered so meekly at Old Trafford last weekend.
Reasons to be positive
There was a barnstorming cameo from substitute Danny Ings, who endeared himself to the Kop as he opened his account for his new club.
There was also the welcome sight of Daniel Sturridge back in a Liverpool shirt for the first time in five months.
Mamadou Sakho and the impressive Alberto Moreno both justified their selections after catching the eye in Bordeaux in midweek.
Yet once again the Reds’ penchant for self-harm reared its ugly head as they somehow conspired to throw away two precious points.
Once Ings’ neat finish had lifted the anxiety levels inside Anfield early in the second half, the stage was set for Liverpool to go on and deliver the victory Rodgers craved in order to lift the weight of pressure on his shoulders.
But rather than blossom, the Reds shot themselves in the foot.
This time Simon Mignolet presented the gift as his weak punch from Robbie Brady’s corner was hooked in by Russell Martin.
In pictures: Liverpool 1-1 Norwich City
That blunder shouldn’t have cost the Reds. They had more than enough opportunities during a frantic finish to find themselves a winner but they failed to find a way past John Ruddy.
Composure was nowhere to be seen. Philippe Coutinho will be having nightmares about the chance he squandered in front of the Kop.
The statistics make for grim reading. Eight points out of a possible 18 so far this season and just five wins out of the last 18 matches in all competitions.
Rodgers’ Liverpool, once the great entertainers, have only managed to score more than one goal in two of their last 20 games dating back to March.
The scrutiny Rodgers is under is immense after such an unacceptable sequence of results, but the argument that he has somehow ‘lost the dressing room’ just doesn’t stack up with reality.
The effort and commitment levels were there against Norwich but confidence levels have clearly taken a battering and the lack of both fluency and cohesion remain massive concerns.
The sight of those canary yellow shirts provided a painful reminder of just how far Liverpool have fallen since the last meeting between the clubs in April 2014.
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Back then, Rodgers was on the brink of history with a thrilling 3-2 win at Carrow Read leaving the Reds needing seven points from their final three games to be crowned champions.
Rodgers was close to achieving legendary status, 17 months on he’s fending off brickbats as support for him ebbs away. That fearless brand of attacking football is now a distant memory.
These days just winning by any means is proving beyond them. The Reds had won the previous five games with Norwich by a combined score of 21-5 but there was never any prospect of a similar hiding dished out.
The presence of Sturridge’s name on the team sheet lifted the mood inside Anfield before kick-off as Rodgers opted to start the England striker alongside Christian Benteke on his comeback after five months out.
Restricted to just 12 starts in all competitions last season, his absence was held up as one of the key reasons behind Liverpool’s alarming decline.
If he can get back to the heights he hit in 2013/14 he has the potential to save Rodgers’ Anfield reign but there was no dream return. There were some neat touches, the odd classy turn but for the most part he was predictably rusty.
During an instantly forgettable first half, Liverpool toiled in search of a breakthrough.
Left wing-back Moreno, who earned a first league start of the season ahead of Joe Gomez, was their brightest performer.
Liverpool v Norwich City
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Having a genuine left-footer in that role made a big difference as the Spaniard surged down the outside and made a menace of himself.
The problem was that there was too much mediocrity around him.
In the wake of the crushing blow of losing Jordan Henderson for two months with a broken foot, Liverpool needed stand-in captain James Milner to take on greater responsibility.
It didn’t happen as Milner endured the kind of afternoon which made a mockery of all the back-slapping that went on when the Reds won the race to secure his signature.
Booked for a stupid foul early on, Milner struggled throughout. There was no dynamism, no creative spark. His corners made Iago Aspas look like a deadball specialist.
Wasteful Coutinho
Similarly, Coutinho only briefed came to life and when the little Brazilian got into dangerous areas his finishing was woeful.
For half an hour, Liverpool moved the ball too slowly. It was all too predictable.
Belatedly, they came to life. Lucas Leiva pounced on a defensive mistake to put Sturridge through but he opted to hit it first time and John Ruddy kept it out.
A tight hamstring meant Benteke didn’t emerge for the second half and Ings’ entrance transformed the contest.
The former Burnley striker had been on the pitch less than three minutes when he expertly controlled Moreno’s inviting pass and coolly beat Ruddy.
Ings’ energy, desire and intelligent movement caused Norwich real problems but Mignolet’s careless error killed the Reds’ momentum.
The Belgian keeper did make a fine save to thwart Matt Jarvis from close range but the damage had already been done.
Adam Lallana replaced the tiring Sturridge, while Lucas, who put in a real shift, could count himself incredibly unfortunate that he was hauled off to bring on Roberto Firmino.
Moreno and Firmino were both denied by Ruddy before Coutinho fluffed his lines in front of the Kop. It all got increasingly desperate late on with wrong options being taken and blind alleys being run down.
At the final whistle, Ings applauded the Kop and they returned the gesture with interest.
But most of those in red simply sloped off, heads bowed, knowing they had fallen short once again.
MATCH FACTS
Liverpool: Mignolet, Sakho, Skrtel, Can, Clyne, Lucas (Firmino 72), Milner, Coutinho, Moreno, Sturridge (Lallana 63), Benteke (Ings 45).
Not used: Bogdan, Lovren, Gomez, Ibe.
Norwich: Ruddy; Whittaker, Martin, Bassong, Brady, Redmond, Dorrans (O’Neil 85), Tettey, Jarvis, Howson; Jerome (Grabban 71).
Not used: Rudd, Mbokani, Hoolahan, Olsson, Bennett.
Referee: Anthony Taylor
Attendance: 44,072
Goals: Ings 48, Martin 61.
Bookings: Milner, Tettey, Dorrans.
Man of the match: Danny Ings. Made an instant impact with his goal after coming off the bench and caused problems throughout the second half.
Source: http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/