WHEN Gerard Houllier was handed sole responsibility at Anfield following the resignation of Roy Evans one of the things he was promised by the Liverpool directors was patience.

Five years and vast amounts of money later and such patience is being tested to the full.

Having already lost to their three major title competitors this season - Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal - Liverpool look no closer to winning the title then they did when Houllier assumed sole control of the Merseyside giants.

If they lose to Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium today the radio phone-ins will no doubt be inundated by disgruntled Liverpool fans calling for Houllier's head.

Just over a year ago it was Liverpool's 1-0 defeat on Teesside that sparked an 11-match run without a win.

It was a miserable sequence which Houllier has never quite recovered from.

Before the 1-0 defeat to Middlesbrough last November, Liverpool were sitting pretty at the top of the Premiership after taking a superb 30 points from the 36 available.

A spring rally - which also won them the League Cup, beating arch-rivals Manchester United in the final - took them back into Champions League contention only to miss out on the final day at Stamford Bridge.

Despite the acquisitions of Harry Kewell and Steve Finnan, and the exciting introduction of French teenagers Florent Sinama-Pongolle and Antony Le Tallec this season, Liverpool appear to have regressed.

A more attacking focus has made the Reds a more palatable watching proposition - Liverpool have had the most shots of any Premiership side - but the Anfield giants are currently eighth and have their work cut out if they are to qualify for the Champions League.

Injuries cannot be used as an excuse.

As one of the biggest clubs in the country, they should be able to cope without the services of players such as Michael Owen, Dietmar Hamann, Danny Murphy, and Jamie Carragher.

Arsenal have already survived without their best players this season, while Manchester United always do.

Houllier can still count on the support of the Liverpool board and the majority of Liverpool fans, safe in the knowledge that only the truly disaffected call in to radio phone-ins.

But Houllier no longer has the luxury of time.

Missing out on the Champions League for the second successive season would surely try the patience of even the most forgiving Liverpool fan.