GERARD Houllier was on borrowed time the day he decided not to pursue Damien Duff.

The Blackburn winger had been a Liverpool target for 12 months leading up to the summer of 2002, but Houllier was only willing to pay up to £10 million for the Irishman.

In reality, it would have taken in excess of £15m to wrestle Duff from Ewood Park - a price the Reds boss thought was well over the top.

It was a decision most Liverpool fans disagreed with, especially as the money was already in place to make a bid.

And to rub salt into the wounds, what did Houllier do to appease his critics? He bought El-Hadji Diouf, Bruno Cheyrou and Salif Diao for a whopping £18.7 million. Three players with the equivalent talent of Duff's toenail.

It was the beginning of the end. It was the moment seeds of doubt began to germinate in the minds of the Anfield faithful.

When Liverpool should have been building on their second-placed finish to Arsenal by signing a world class player, Houllier made a backward step by bringing in three average players from his native French league.

Two seasons on, Duff is now worth £20 million-plus in a deflated market. Diouf, Cheyrou and Diao combined would fetch only a quarter of that.

During the 2003 season, Liverpool finished fifth, their worst position since 1999. Blackburn, inspired by a superb Duff in the latter half of the campaign, were just one place behind.

By that time, Liverpool had been priced out of any bid for Duff, who had an £18m price tag. It was a year too late, and the only other option was second-best Harry Kewell at £5m.

Houllier was seen as the Messiah when he took sole control at Anfield in 1998. Six years later, blind faith had been replaced by frustration and anger.

Houllier spent more than £128 million in the transfer market - and failed to deliver the Premiership title because he failed to deliver the right players.

If Damien Duff had been bought two years ago, Houllier might still be in a job.

HERE'S a Liverpool team made up from some of Gerard Houllier's buys:

GOALKEEPER

Sander Westerveld (£4m)

DEFENDERS

Rigbert Song (£2.7m), Igor Biscan (£5.5m), Jean-Michel Ferri (£1.5m), John Arne Riise (£4m)

MIDFIELDERS

Bernard Diomede (£3m), Salif Diao (£5m), Bruno Cheyrou (£3.7m), El-Hadji Diouf (£10m)

STRIKERS

Nick Barmby (£6m), Titi Camara (£2.8m)

TOTAL...£48.2m