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There is no respite from the early Anfield torment for Joe Cole. His debut against FK Rabotnicki refused to yield a deserved goal, his Premier League bow for Liverpool produced the first red card of his career and last nighttonight he missed his first ever penalty as Roy Hodgson’s team gained a slender advantage over Trabzonspor.

The Liverpool manager took Fulham to last season’s Europa League final largely on the back of resilient away displays, and another will be required on the Black Sea coast next week to qualify this time out. Cole may just be glad of the break.

Hodgson has shown no inclination to alter anything tactically from the Rafael Benítez era during his four matches in charge but, in a radical departure from his predecessor in the Anfield dug-out, the manager was prepared to take a look at Ryan Babel in a forward’s role against the Turkish side. It is now or never for the Dutch international in terms of establishing himself at Liverpool, and it is only because proposed transfers have failed to materialise that he is still present at Anfield.

Whether he offered enough tonight to suggest he could have a future remains to be seen, but for once there was an end product. Babel, still only 23, was signed for £11.5m from Ajax in 2007 on the back of a starring role in Holland’s triumph in the European Under-21 Championships of that summer. His rise to prominence in that tournament, where he was named man of the match in the final against Serbia, came as part of the Dutch attack but that role has rarely been made available to Babel at Liverpool and his confidence, form and contribution has waned as a consequence.

Attempts to mould him into a left-sided forward have failed and only a reluctance to join Birmingham City in January, from both the player and Benítez,a refusal to sanction a loan move back to Ajax by the club and a failure to attract a decent transfer fee have kept him at the club. With Hodgson continuing the search for an affordable back-up option to Fernando Torres, Babel took his one chance to demonstrate he could be the willing reserve if all else fails.

Trabzonspor, who beat Fenerbahce in the Turkish Cup last season to qualify for the Europa League play-offs and lifted the Turkish Super Cup last month, proved awkward opponents and threatened early at set-pieces. Liverpool’s first half display was littered with careless, misplaced passes as a shuffled side – with Steven Gerrard, Glen Johnson, Martin Skrtel and Dirk Kuyt all rested from the team that started against Arsenal on Sunday, plus Javier Mascherano and Daniel Agger injured – understandably struggled to gel. Christian Poulsen, the recent £4.5m acquisition from Juventus, was handed a debut alongside Lucas in central midfield.

With one incisive break, however, Babel rewarded his manager’s faith and Cole demonstrated his value as a number 10 in the truest sense. Collecting possession just inside the Liverpool half, Cole spun into space and dissected the Turkish defence with a well-timed pass that sent the Dutchman clear on the left. Babel produced the finish the move deserved, stroking the ball right-footed beyond Onur Kivrak and inside the far corner.

Babel failed to reappear for the second half but his replacement gave Anfield no reason to dwell on the reasons why. The introduction of Torres lifted the crowd and Liverpool’s performance in tandem. Trabzonspor, like many before them, appeared visibly unnerved by the marauding Spaniard, and his impatience after so long out through injury was apparent.

Torres tested Kivrak with his first touch, a powerful, angled drive, forced another good save with a towering header and helped Liverpool win a penalty in the 51st minute. Serkan Balci, the visiting right back, got a toe in the way of Torres’s run into the penalty area but over-reached for the loose ball and tripped Lucas as the Brazilian darted into the box. Cole was urged forward to take the spot-kick but, instead of making amends for his red card against Arsenal, shot too close to the Trabzonspor goalkeeper and saw his effort saved.

José Reina did get his costly mistake from Sunday out of his system at the first attempt when he denied Umut Bulut a precious away goal when the Trabzonspor captain was unmarked in the area. The visitors continued to threaten, ominously for next week’s second leg, but Liverpool believed they should have had a second when Sotirios Kyrgiakos headed Milan Jovanovic’s corner goalwards, Cole flicked on and Poulsen converted on the goal-line after Kivrak fumbled. Sadly for the Dane, he was deemed offside.

Europa LeagueLiverpoolAndy Hunterguardian.co.uk

• Paul Hayward: Liverpool take first step out of the darkness
• Hodgson signs three-year deal and will be unveiled today

Roy Hodgson has been confirmed the 18th manager in Liverpool’s history this morning, having finalised the terms of his departure from Fulham.

The 62-year-old arrived at Melwood, the club’s training ground, in time to meet the first batch of players reporting back for pre-season training today and will be publicly unveiled at Anfield at 1.30pm. He has signed a three-year contract to succeed Rafael Benítez, not the two-year deal that was originally suggested as Liverpool look for stability following a turbulent period under the debt-ridden regime of Tom Hicks and George Gillett.

• Paul Hayward: Hodgson must purge obscure players
• This will herald a new Liverpool era – Thompson
• From Halmstad to Anfield: a well-travelled manager
• Hodgson is the right man for Liverpool – Murphy

Hodgson was voted Manager of the Year by the League Managers’ Association last season, having guided Fulham to the Europa League final, and had to negotiate bonus payments from the Craven Cottage club before completing his move to Merseyside. Liverpool also had to pay a £2.5m compensation clause to release Hodgson from his 12-month rolling contract with Fulham.

“This is the biggest job in club football and I’m honoured to be taking on the role of manager of Britain’s most successful football club,” said the former Internazionale, Udinese and Switzerland coach. “I look forward to meeting the players and the supporters and getting down to work at Melwood.”

Hodgson’s appointment has not received universal acclaim by Liverpool supporters, although his European pedigree and success in transforming Fulham’s fortunes on a modest budget made him the favoured choice of the Anfield hierarchy.

Liverpool’s managing director, Christian Purslow, who Benítez claimed was behind his departure as manager and who led the search for the Spaniard’s successor, was the target of graffiti found on the walls of the stadium this morning.

The new Liverpool manager faces a difficult task of reviving a club who finished seventh in the Premier League last season and are beset by financial problems, with the American co-owners’ asking price for the club discouraging potential investors. He must also convince Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres and Javier Mascherano, three leading players whose Liverpool futures are uncertain, to resist any rival offers for their services this summer.

Roy HodgsonLiverpoolAndy Hunterguardian.co.uk

• New Anfield contract contains no release clause
• Brede Hangeland may be Hodgson’s first recruit

The Football Association will have to wait until 2012 if it wishes to appoint Roy Hodgson as England manager after the 62-year-old accepted a two-year contract with no release clause from Liverpool today.

Hodgson had been touted as the leading candidate to replace Fabio Capello should Sir Dave Richards, the chairman of Club England, decide to take the expensive option of sacking the Italian following England’s dire World Cup campaign. Although Capello retains the support of influential figures on the FA’s main board, such as Phil Gartside, the Bolton Wanderers chairman who has publicly backed the incumbent, Richards has asked for two weeks to consider whether the 64-year-old should lead England’s Euro 2012 qualifying campaign.

The Fulham manager has made no secret of his desire to lead England but, despite the uncertainty surrounding Capello’s future, has agreed a deal with Liverpool that provides no escape route should the FA make an approach before Capello’s contract expires after the European Championships.

Liverpool’s managing director, Christian Purslow, who has led the search for Rafael Benítez’s successor at Anfield, has finalised personal terms with Hodgson and agreed to meet the £2.5m compensation fee payable to Fulham under the terms of his 12-month rolling contract at Craven Cottage.

The only obstacle preventing confirmation of Hodgson’s appointment at Anfield are issues relating to his departure from Fulham, believed to be bonuses their manager feels he is entitled to after last season’s 12th place finish in the Premier League and run to the Europa League final. Representatives from both sides were working on a resolution tonight and, providing one is found, Liverpool should have Hodgson installed for the start of pre-season training tomorrow. He could then be unveiled as Liverpool manager tomorrow afternoon.

Hodgson faces a major task of reviving Liverpool’s fortunes after the disappointments of last season and amid the £350m debt placed on the club by its co-owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett. The new manager has been promised an initial £15m this summer to revitalise a squad that finished seventh in the Premier League last season, a kitty that includes the profit made on players sold during the January transfer window and may be reduced by the compensation owed to Fulham. Brede Hangeland, whom he brought to Craven Cottage for £2.5m from FC Copenhagen, is one possible target although Fulham’s asking price may prove prohibitive.

The former Switzerland, Internazionale and Blackburn Rovers manager, who has held 15 coaching positions during a 34-year career, faces the task of convincing Fernando Torres, Steven Gerrard and Javier Mascherano, among others, to resist offers to leave Anfield this summer. The Fulham midfielder and former Liverpool player Danny Murphy has given a glowing reference on Hodgson to his close friends at Anfield, Gerrard and Jamie Carragher, but the futures of the captain, a transfer target for Real Madrid, Torres, wanted by Chelsea, Barcelona and Manchester City, plus Mascherano remain in doubt. Yossi Benayoun is likely to be the first player to leave Liverpool once the new manager is in place with a £5m move to Chelsea agreed.

Kenny Dalglish’s position as Liverpool ambassador and at the club’s youth academy has been in question since the search for Benítez’s successor began but he is not now expected to quit Anfield. Dalglish was asked to compile a shortlist of candidates and put his own name forward once he felt that no available managers were better qualified for the task of unifying Liverpool at this difficult time. Hodgson, however, has been the Anfield board’s preferred choice since Benítez accepted a £6m severance payment to leave the club.

One player who is destined for Liverpool is Milan Jovanovic, the Serbia international striker who agreed a free transfer from Standard Liège in January but indicated, during the World Cup, that the deal was not watertight. “I am going to Liverpool. I have signed there for three years. I repeat: no pre-agreement – a real contract,” the 29-year-old said today.”And the departure of Benítez changes nothing. I have maintained contact with the executive board of Liverpool and everything is good. I am working to arrange my visa for England. Next week I go there to collect my work permit. On the 14th or 15th July I will join the squad for a training camp in Switzerland.”

LiverpoolRoy HodgsonAndy Hunterguardian.co.uk