WHAT'S happened to Liverpool? It may only be January but, once again, the Reds can already kiss goodbye to winning the Premiership title for the first time.

Former Newcastle midfielder Dietmar Hamann insists Liverpool can still claw themselves back into the hunt to be champions.

But it is over two months since Gerard Houllier's men last enjoyed the sweet taste of victory in the top-flight - the 2-0 win over West Ham United on November 2.

That success kept Liverpool ahead of the rest, with talk across the country surrounding their impressive championship chances.

They had gone 12 matches unbeaten domestically and were looking genuine pretenders to Arsenal's crown.

However, Liverpool then made the trip to Middlesbrough and were humbled 1-0. This was to prove the start of an alarming drop down the table.

Now they are 12 points adrift of leaders Arsenal after the Anfield club's abysmal run of form - which currently stands at ten League matches without a win ahead of today's clash with Aston Villa.

Last Sunday's win at Manchester City ensured there is always the FA Cup. But this was supposed to be the year that Liverpool claimed the League title for the first time since 1990.

To make matters worse, there was also the defeat to First Division Sheffield United in the semi-final first leg of the Worthington Cup on Wednesday.

So where has it all gone wrong? Is it just simply that they need a wide man, or two?

Football pundits and experts have been suggesting all season that Liverpool are only an exciting winger short of bringing the Premiership title to Merseyside.

Just this week Houllier openly admitted he is on the look out for just that.

In the summer he tried to sign £20m-rated Damien Duff from Blackburn Rovers and Lee Bowyer, who has just moved to West Ham for an initial fee of less than half a million, from Leeds.

Houllier will make moves for more wingers during this month-long transfer window, with Barcelona's Marc Overmars high on his shopping list.

But first and foremost the Liverpool boss needs to sort out his misfiring strikers.

Liverpool - who have lost at Boro, Newcastle and Sunderland this season, scoring just one goal in the process - have a number of strikers on display.

But Michael Owen, Emile Heskey, El-Hadji Diouf and Milan Baros have all struggled to find the back of the net.

The proof of the pudding, or puddings, so to speak, is that Houllier has had to call upon youngster Neil Mellor, who put them all to shame by scoring his side's only goal against the Blades in midweek.

But it is not just in the final third where Liverpool are struggling at the moment.

For a side who have always taken pride in their defensive displays, they have not kept a clean sheet since the goalless draw with Sunderland in mid-November, a game in which the back four were hardly tested.

And it is little wonder when you consider Houllier has had problems with his out-of-sorts goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek, currently playing second fiddle to Chris Kirkland.

However, perhaps the French boss should also look at his back four. His two centre-backs, Sami Hyypia and Stephane Henchoz, are one of the most respected pairings in world football.

But currently Houllier is playing two other middle-minded players - Jamie Carragher and Djimi Traore - as full-backs.

There is a lot for Houllier and assistant Phil Thompson to sort out if he is going to stop this season descending into total chaos.