Liverpool rid itself of unpopular owners but not relegation form as local rival Everton inflicted a 2-0 loss on the side in front of new owner John Henry yesterday.

Goals from Tim Cahill and Mikel Arteta either side of the break left Liverpool off the bottom of the English Premier League standings only on goal difference after eight matches.

Liverpool looked devoid of guile and attacking threat at Goodison Park, quickly banishing hopes that ousting Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr in favor of the owners of baseball's Boston Red Sox would solve its troubles.

While Liverpool's legal team won a week of court battles to oust the previous regime, the players couldn't replicate their success on the pitch.

And the extent of Liverpool's troubles was all too apparent to the watching Henry and New England Sports Ventures chairman Tom Werner.

They saw a side contained inside its own half from the outset as Everton confidently piled on the pressure.

The home side squandered the best of its early chances when Phil Jagielka shot over after Arteta's free kick came off the wall.

Managing his first Merseyside derby was becoming an uncomfortable experience for manager Roy Hodgson as he berated sloppy Liverpool play from the sidelines. Werner had earlier said that Hodgson's job was safe.

It took almost 25 minutes for Liverpool to get sight of goal, with struggling striker Fernando Torres flicking in a header that was turned over by US goalkeeper Tim Howard.

Henry had his head in his hands and the joy from completing the takeover on Friday was fast diminishing when in the 34th minute Cahill broke the deadlock.

Pepe Reina's low diving save had thwarted a Yakubu Ayegbeni shot, but he couldn't stop Cahill from lashing the ball inside the near post.

Liverpool was unable to penetrate Everton and the deficit was doubled after the break when Arteta picked up Leighton Baines' corner on the edge of the penalty area and unleashed a fierce volley past Reina.

While it did rouse Liverpool into a more assertive approach, its attacks fizzled out.

Torres lashed over after latching onto Maxi Rodriguez's throughball, with the Spain striker looking a shadow of the player who netted 34 goals in 2007-08.

Liverpool remains in the bottom three with just one win from eight matches, while Everton moves up to 11th.

Manchester City, which is in the chasing pack behind Premier League leader Chelsea, was visiting Blackpool later yesterday.

On Saturday, Manchester United threw away a 2-0 lead after a Patrice Evra own-goal and an error by Edwin van der Sar saw it held 2-2 by West Bromwich Albion while Chelsea drew 0-0 at Aston Villa.

Chelsea, which hit the woodwork twice late in the evening game, tops the standings with 19 points. United, which started with striker Wayne Rooney on the bench, has now drawn five of its eight league games and is among four teams on 14.

Arsenal, which came from behind to beat Birmingham City 2-1 at the Emirates, and Tottenham Hotspur, which ended Fulham's unbeaten start with a 2-1 win at Craven Cottage, are level with United.