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This was another uncomfortable afternoon for the members of Liverpool’s transfer committee.

A week after seeing the Reds’ dreams of FA Cup glory dashed at Wembley, bullish talk of a late push for Champions League qualification was silenced after a dour stalemate at the Hawthorns.

Once again Liverpool’s lack of firepower cost them dear as they failed to make their dominance count against West Brom. They had 74% possession but were toothless. It was a painfully familiar tale.

The stats make grim reading. With just five matches of the season to go Brendan Rodgers’ side have scored just 47 league goals.

At the same stage last term that figure was 90 with deadly double act Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge tormenting top-flight defenders on a weekly basis.

Gallery: All the pictures from the Hawthorns

How times have changed. Twelve months on top scorer Raheem Sterling boasts just seven league goals and you have to go back a decade to find the last time no Liverpool player reached double figures.

The Reds have lost their thrill factor. They are no longer the Premier League’s great entertainers.

As a result the Europa League beckons. After a brief flirtation with Europe’s elite, the Reds will be relegated back to the grind of Thursday night football.

Liverpool failed to heed the warning signs of last summer as Suarez void was never filled

Denied the £40million windfall from the riches of the new Champions League TV deal, Rodgers’ transfer budget will be dented accordingly.

The immense frustration for Kopites is that it was all so avoidable.

The warning signs were there last summer but Liverpool didn’t take the necessary steps to fill the void left by Suarez’s exit.

Lessons should have been learned from Rodgers’ first season when the Reds failed to replace Andy Carroll, who was off-loaded to West Ham on loan prior to deadline day, and paid the price for being a striker light.

But instead Liverpool went into another campaign ill equipped for the challenges ahead.

An approach which relied so heavily on Daniel Sturridge staying fit to lead the charge always looked doomed. His injury record should have set the alarm bells ringing.

Rodgers was left with a straight choice between Balotelli and Eto'o

Liverpool needed to invest a significant chunk of the £75million from selling Suarez in a genuinely top-class replacement to ease the burden on Sturridge.

Instead they made a hash of their search. Alexis Sanchez spurned their advances and went to Arsenal. They triggered Loic Remy’s release clause but then pulled out of the deal over medical concerns.

Talks were held with the representatives of Wilfried Bony but his wage demands put Liverpool off. Enquiries about the availability of the likes of Radamel Falcao and Edinson Cavani came to nothing.

With deadline day looming, Rodgers was faced with a straight choice between signing Mario Balotelli and Samuel Eto’o.

A fortnight after dismissing all talk of signing the controversial Italian, Rodgers opted for what he described as “a calculated gamble”. It has never looked like coming off.

Balotelli has been unable to live up to the fanfare that accompanied the completion of his £16million move from AC Milan.

Injury and illness have hampered his progress but the truth is he’s simply not mobile enough to fit the style Rodgers demands from his attackers.

At times he has been an easy scapegoat for Liverpool’s troubles. At times he has fallen a long way short of the standards expected of him.

Balotelli showed flashes of his undoubted talent after being handed his first Premier League start since November against the Baggies.

There were moments when he worked tirelessly to win the ball back but when the Reds were in possession he was far too static.

After being placed in the shop window, there will undoubtedly be takers for him this summer but the Reds will have to take a financial hit.

Folly of inaction in January window has been exposed

Liverpool were dealt a cruel hand with the extent of Sturridge’s injury woes with the England frontman making just eight league starts all season.

But the Anfield hierarchy had a duty to ensure the supporting cast was up to the task of deputising.

Instead Balotelli, Rickie Lambert and Fabio Borini boast just four league goals between them and none of them are likely to be at the club next season.

An area of weakness should have been addressed in January and the folly of Liverpool’s inactivity in the winter window has since been exposed.

The arrival of £10million Belgian frontman Divock Origi from Lille will help this summer but he’s a relatively unproven rookie.

Signing Burnley’s Danny Ings would make sense but Liverpool would still need another established marksman. This season has shown there is no substitute for real quality.

For the best part of an hour at the Hawthorns they played like they still had the mother of all hangovers from their wretched FA Cup semi-final defeat at the hands of Aston Villa.

Rodgers rung the changes by bringing in Balotelli, Jordon Ibe and Glen Johnson for Alberto Moreno, Lazar Markovic and Joe Allen but there was no great response.

With the Baggies happy to sit back and contain the Reds, it had a real end of season feel to it with little urgency or energy on display as passes repeatedly went astray.

During an instantly forgettable opening 45 minutes, Boaz Myhill didn’t have a single save to make. Steven Gerrard went close with a curling free-kick from the edge of the box, while Philippe Coutinho and Balotelli fired over from distance.

After the break Liverpool raised the bar. When Coutinho’s low strike was pushed away by the keeper, Jordan Henderson looked destined to score but somehow the Baggies kept it out.

Ibe then played a neat one-two with Balotelli and hammered against the bar.

It was better from Liverpool but at the other end they rode their luck.

James Morrison’s header was tipped away by Simon Mignolet and Dejan Lovren hacked off the line.

Lovren was one of the few to shine as the £20million centre-back produced arguably his most accomplished display for the club.

With 15 minutes to go Rodgers brought on Adam Lallana and Borini for Ibe and Balotelli but the Reds lacked the spark required to find a way through Tony Pulis’ well drilled backline.

They could have nicked it late on when Lovren rose to meet Gerrard’s enticing cross but he nodded wide.

A rollercoaster campaign appears to be limping to a low key conclusion.

MATCH FACTS

West Brom (4-2-3-1): Myhill, Dawson, McAuley, Lescott, Brunt, Yacob, Fletcher, Gardner, Berahino (Ideye 75), Morrison (Baird 81), Anichebe (McManaman 64).

Not used: Rose, Olsson, Gamboa, Sessegnon.

Liverpool (4-1-4-1): Mignolet, Can, Skrtel, Lovren, Johnson, Gerrard, Ibe (Lallana 75), Henderson, Coutinho, Sterling, Balotelli (Borini 75).

Not used: Jones, Toure, Manquillo, Allen, Markovic.

Referee: Roger East

Attendance: 26,663

Goals: none

Bookings: Dawson

Man of the match: Dejan Lovren. The £20million centre-back has come in for plenty of stick this season but he produced a commanding display at the Hawthorns.