GORDON STRACHAN always used to say it was irrelevant what formation you play - winning football matches is all about how good the men on the pitch are.

And so it proved on Saturday as Saints romped to a thoroughly deserved win.

After the game, much of the talk was of the new 4-5-1 formation and whether that had made the difference - and whether it could work for the rest of the campaign.

The truth of the matter was that the formation helped a little, but it was the brilliant performances of the Saints team that won the game.

They had the same shirts on as they have worn all season, but it was hard to recognise some of the players within them.

The midfield in particular were the key to Saturday's win.

David Prutton: Played like a man possessed. He looked an absolute world beater.

Jamie Redknapp: Sat in front of the back four, broke up play well and used the ball brilliantly.

Anders Svensson: Recalled to the starting XI, was excellent on the ball.

Rory Delap: His hard running was more directed than ever before this season.

Mikael Nilsson: The other recalled Swedish international produced what he has often promised - a consistent and impressive display.

Liverpool were poor and their inability to be able to change their game to adapt to playing through a five-man midfield was surprising.

But even so, Saints needed to take advantage of that and they did so - emphatically.

Peter Crouch played the role of the lone striker superbly and looks so good right now that, incredibly, his presence meant Saints didn't miss Kevin Phillips.

Crouch was strong in the air but, more importantly, on the ground.

He held the ball up and allowed the midfielders to break forward - and they were more than willing to oblige.

And of course his finish for his goal was as clinical as we have come to expect from the big man.

In fact, the build-up to his goal, Saints' second, was fantastic - probably the best goal scored by any team at St Mary's for quite some time.

From Calum Davenport's cushioned header to Svensson's quick-thinking pass to Prutton's first-time cross straight onto the head of Crouch, it was a joy to watch.

In the long-term, 4-5-1 probably isn't the formation for Saints.

One of the major plusses for Harry Redknapp before Saturday's result had been the blossiming partnership between Crouch and Phillips.

With Phillips injured, the lone striker system was a logical way to play to make Saints difficult to beat.

When Phillips comes back, and that could be against Pompey this weekend in the FA Cup, it's going to be a brave decision to leave him, or indeed, Crouch, out of the side.

But, as we have established, it's more about players than systems.

If the tempo, the work-rate, the commitment and the quality is like it was on Saturday, then Saints could get out of trouble.

Sooner rather than later.