This time, there was no great escape for Liverpool

Rafael Benitez has finally lost that magic touch of his. It has deserted him in the most pivotal game of his entire Liverpool career.

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This time, Rafael Benitez's Liverpool team failed to pull off a Champions League miracle

Liverpool entered the game in a state of crisis and they came out with heartbreak after a reasonably good performance came close to getting a deserved victory, as Lyon struggled to break them down.

It's unfair to be too harshly critical of Liverpool after they nearly pulled off a win in Lyon, but once again defensive frailties have cost them dear. And despite all the hot air about how close Liverpool came to pulling off a win, they only managed a draw to follow a run of six defeats in their previous seven games, a woeful run of results, which may defy the logic of optimism in turning their group around, or indeed of pulling out of the current position in the Premier League.

The Spaniard has pulled it out of the fire in the past; twice when his team had made a catastrophic start to the group stage. This time it will take more than that; it will need a minor mathematical miracle.

Once again, Benitez needed a closing three straight wins but failed at the first hurdle of the run required to save Liverpool's Champions League at the group stage. Yet, he came perilously close. Misfit Ryan Babel, a player with talents that have become subdued at Anfield, a player you know Benitez doesn't rate despite what he says publicly (because he so rarely trusts him enough to play him regularly), came off the bench to almost become the unlikely hero with a goal out of the blue with just seven minutes to play. But it was not to be the last word. Instead, Liverpool succumbed with just a minute to go.

All credit to captain Jamie Carragher for refusing to give in, showing the spirit he and the absent Steven Gerrard regularly display, but that's not nearly enough these days. Gerrard is suffering after a series of groin injuries, while Fernando Torres played through the pain with a similar problem.

Benitez took off Torres with just five minutes to go after substitute Babel had blasted Liverpool ahead with that scintillating strike good enough to have won the tie. Benitez thought Liverpool had won. He was wrong.

The baffling part about Torres, is that he has clearly not trained fully, is not fully fit, and yet had lasted virtually the whole of the game, so surely he could have lasted a few minutes more to see out the game. He hardly needed to be protected for much longer.

And, even more baffling, Torres looked sulky when he left, as if he didn't think he should come off, and that he could last the distance despite the handicap of his injury. So what is going on?

But with Torres back on the bench and with Babel's goal looking enough to allow Liverpool's hopes to walk on, up popped the best player on the pitch, Lisandro Lopez, to plunder an equaliser to allow Lyon to ensure their qualification and leave Liverpool in an almost hopeless position.

This time it mattered even more than it has ever done in the past for Benitez, because Liverpool are no longer guaranteed a place in the top four to qualify for next season and questions are being asked about his stewardship of the team. Sometimes a manager, no matter how good or successful in the past, reaches a point where his time has run its course.

I have felt this about Benitez at Anfield since the season got underway and Liverpool, after looking so close to the title last season, looked to have gone backwards instead of progressing from the outset of this season.

Benitez, to his credit, has never hid from the fact that he was facing a tie in Lyon which could determine his position at the club. He has suffered the farce of the beach ball, a succession of crippling injuries to key players, and admitted he has not selected the right tactics at times. Put it all together and Liverpool are in a crisis they show no sign of escaping.

Far from being one of Rafa's great escapes, Liverpool are desperately searching for the get-out-of-jail card before it's too late for their besieged manager.

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Ryan Babel's goal looked to have made him an unlikely hero

Before the tie, the Liverpool fans still trusted the manager, he had "You'll Never Walk Alone" blasting in the dressing room before the game. He understands the club's traditions and its rich history. But he also seems caught in the headlights unable to turn around their fortunes.

It's time for even the American owners to get their heads together before the club's meltdown on the pitch ends up in financial meltdown off it and that could have even far worse repercussions for the club.

When a creditable draw feels like a defeat, you know your time is up. Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal (just about) are through with two games to spare but Liverpool, the Champions League specialists, are virtually out with two games left. They have a dreadful record this season, and though in isolation Liverpool played well enough in Lyon, in the context of the season, it is one set-back too far.

If action is not taken fast, then Liverpool's place as one of the established "big four" may also soon be over.