Liverpool's Albert Riera (front) fights for the ball with PSV Eindhoven's Jan Kromkamp during their Champions League, Group D, match at Anfield Stadium, Liverpool, yesterday. Liverpool won 3-1. - AP

LIVERPOOL, England (AP)

Robbie Keane scored his first Liverpool goal in a 3-1 victory over PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League yesterday.

The Ireland striker ended a 10-game goal drought since arriving in the off season by making it 2-0 in the 34th minute after Dirk Kuyt had put the Reds ahead in the fifth.

"It's great. I've got a monkey off my back, it's been a few games," Keane said. "It's always nice to get the first goal but I wasn't too worried about it, it was just people talking. I hope I score a lot more for this club."

Captain Steven Gerrard then put the result beyond doubt with his 100th Liverpool goal in the 76th. Danny Koevermans pulled one back for PSV two minutes later in a rare foray forward, but Liverpool - a five-time European champion - was able to open the group stage with two victories for the first time.

Perfect six points

The win gives Liverpool a perfect six points after two games in Group D while PSV are still without a point.

"If you go so quickly behind, it's always going to be difficult to come back against a team like Liverpool that plays fantastically well," PSV coach Huub Stevens said. "There was a difference in quality. People made individual mistakes and if you do that you will get punished."

Liverpool making their best start to a Premier League campaign in 12 years in the quest for a first English title since 1990.

"It was almost the perfect night," Benitez said. "It was a really good game for us with lots of positive things, a solid performance with balance and quality."

"Now the important thing for the players is to calm down and keep doing the same thing," he said, already looking ahead to Sunday's match at Manchester City.

BARCELONA WIN

Lionel Messi scored two late goals to give FC Barcelona a 2-1 victory at Shakhtar Donestsk and AS Roma also avoided a shock defeat by rallying to win 3-1 at Bordeaux.

Atletico Madrid beat Marseille 2-1, but Chelsea drew 0-0 at unheralded CFR Cluj in another of the day's eight group matches.

Shakhtar looked set to embarrass two-time European Champion Barcelona when Ilsinho scored in the 45th minute, but Messi struck in the 87th and then deep into injury time to take his team clear at the top of the Group C standings.

Roma had trailed to an 18th-minute goal by midfielder Yoann Gourcuff, who is on loan from Roma's Italian rivals AC Milan. But the French team had to play with 10 men after Brazilian defender Henrique was sent off in the 36th, and conceded in the second half to Mirko Vucinic and twice to Julio Baptista.

Elsewhere, Werder Bremen drew 1-1 at Inter Milan, Sporting Lisbon beat FC Basel 1-0, and Anorthosis Famagusta beat Panathinaikos 3-1.