Rafael Benitez Quotations

The positive things from Wednesday are that we have one more Champions League point, and we were better than Chelsea,

We knew they needed rest to recover but the problem that gave us was they were all missing the Newcastle game.

We know we can win against them, but over a season the differences are more demanding. But compared to last season we now have a bigger and better squad and I believe we can manage the games in a different way.

We know how important the game is for us as individuals and for the club, but we don't have any anxiety,

We know how important the final of this Cup is. The incident is not serious. Both managers had the same idea. Someone must be sensible.

We were trying to protect him and other tired players.

We are all very disappointed about going out of the Champions League but we have to put it behind us and think about going to Arsenal. We still have the league and the FA Cup. The world moves on.

We are hopeful he will come in the summer because he can be an important player for us. He has pace, quality and can score, and he works very hard for the team - all qualities which will help him settle in quickly here. He works very hard for the whole 90 minutes for his team-mates.

We deserved to finish top because we have more points than the other teams. We done a good job, kept another clean- sheet and created some chances on the counter-attack. It was important for us to control the midfield. However, this became more difficult in the second half when Chelsea started playing long ball but the team worked hard in defense and we must enjoy this moment.

We tried our best right up to the end, but you cannot control the market.

We have qualified for the final which means we have done a good job. When you have your supporters behind you, you run a little bit more.

We have signed a player with so much passion for this football club and I think he will act as an example to every player here in how much he loves Liverpool.

When they start talking and talking about us, it shows they are worried about playing Liverpool,

When the technical director at Valencia decided to sign him I gave him every support.

Luis said to me that as he turned away, he was right on the line, and he said the ball was over the line. And after the game my secretary Sheila, who was sitting right in line in the main stand, said to me that the ball had crossed the line. She is a very honest person and that was good enough for me. It was a goal.

My aim is to stay here and continue growing with the team and the board.

Maybe they will have similar possibilities. It depends on injuries and themselves. If they play really well then it will be difficult for me to ignore them,

Maybe they are afraid. I hope they will be after the weekend.

No one will underestimate Liverpool after a result like this,

Now we intend to finish the job with another victory. If we do that we will be virtually through into the knockout stages. We have been very positive in our Champions League matches and I hope that we can continue this now.

I would prefer to work with the players I have at the moment and it's difficult to talk about hypotheses.

I would rather have Steven available for the next month rather than just 80 minutes of this match.

If we finish second it will be fantastic, but very difficult. At the moment I am not thinking about statistics, only that we finish the season well.

If we have new faces all the players think we need to work harder because they want to play,

If we keep winning then we will finish third, with the possibility of maybe second - so we will keep going to the end.

I could show you a list of controversial incidents.

I am happy with the performance of the team but we should have scored more goals and their goalkeeper played very well. I told the players at halftime to finish the game off but we couldn't get the third goal.

I am in no hurry to sell the player,

I am really happy because we played well, scored goals and could have won by a lot more than 3-1 in the end.

I am proud when big clubs talk about me, I must be doing something right. But I want be here and win trophies here with my club.

I am thinking only of winning (against Chelsea).

I am sure Chelsea do not like playing Liverpool. When they are talking and talking and talking before the game it means they are worried, maybe they are afraid. But I hope that is the case after this weekend.

But we have another game on Friday, and this is the time to use the squad to give players some rest and to field a side which will still be strong and do the job for us.

I have a lot of confidence in the team, maybe Milan are favorites -- they have a lot of good players -- but we have confidence and we can win.

If I say 'no' it will be difficult for me, but he will understand, and if I say 'yes' it will be good for me, him and the supporters. I am not in a hurry, but if he continues to score goals then it will be an easy decision. The more he scores, the more he's likely to stay.

I expect we will be able to announce his signing very soon, hopefully before the season starts. But I see no problem.

If you are going to win a game by a single goal, that is the kind of goal you want it to be. It was very important for Harry after all he has been through.

If we win, we will be closer and we can fight for more things, but I don't want to worry the players by saying too much about this. I want them to be focused on what they need to do to win the game. Afterwards we can think about the table.

If we need to score two, or maybe even three, then why not? We will score. With strikers, it is a question of luck. We are creating chances for them and they are creating their own.

He had a problem with his calf so we took him off just in case,

He has done a good job for us. For a striker it is really important to score goals and now I will have more options.

He is improving, he has been training this week and running so maybe we will see him again in a few weeks. I was surprised he was running and he was even using a ball. Maybe a few weeks will see him fit. He certainly has been a major loss for us since he was injured.

He is important to us. He is good in the air, he is a good finisher and can shoot with both feet. He also has the mentality to go straight into a game like Saturday's if necessary.

He is a strong fullback, aggressive and offensive. He can play as a fullback or a wingback.

He has returned happy and he is happy here,

He is a good player and a nice lad, but only he can talk about his future because I only prefer to talk about our own future,

Today, every time we shot it was a goal.

He's a clever player, he plays well between the lines he can play on the right or the left side. He gives us more chances, more opportunities, more space and more game intelligence.

He's a good player and when you play deep with spaces and you have pace and ability it's normal that you can play well. But for me the key was the first 20 minutes.

He's been a good servant, a good player to have around and a good teammate. He can play in several positions for us and has been outstanding in the near two seasons I have been here.

We must enjoy this trophy and we have five more days for talking about these other things.

It is a blow to us because of the big games in Europe that we have coming up, but we have a good squad and we will have to cope without him.

It is not easy. If you have a solution maybe we can see but the solution is very difficult to find.

It is now becoming very important when you face clubs who are round about you in the league.

It is not easy to produce performances like this when we have so many players who are tired after so many games.

It is only a possibility that Steven can play.

It is important for the manager to be able to say to players they want to sign that they will be playing in the Champions League.

I went to Manchester United for one week to watch them train,

It is a pity. It was only a few people and most of them did applaud but it is a pity, you can't say anything else.

It is a pity he has another injury. We are playing well, we have a lot of clean sheets, Pepe Reina is playing well, we have Jerzy and Scott Carson is a very good young goalkeeper.

Last season people said Liverpool was not the best team in the Champions League and that made life easier for us because of the way teams prepared against us.

I saw Sir Alex once to say hello,

I remember they had fantastic players. They played nine against nine on a half pitch and the tempo was amazing.

People are saying that we are not making signings -- but I say we will sign the best. I have discussed the issues with our chief executive (Rick Parry) and we will spend our money wisely and carefully on the best. It is important not to spend a lot but to spend it well.

Pellegrino could play against Watford, but he has only had one training session so it is better to wait and hopefully use him against Manchester United on Saturday,

Our league season was not too good and theirs is the same this season. But we won the trophy when not doing well in England and I believe they can do the same.

Suspending the players for two games and leaving them available for the final would be enough because it was not a serious incident.

Sure, why not? He is a good player and good players are always interesting to other clubs.

My idea is to think about the next game and if you win the next game we can move closer and fight for the second place.

My idea is to have two players for each position. If you have a strong squad you can play all the games with a good team. I am convinced we already have a better team than last season. Yes, we want to fight for the Premiership, but we want to go for all of the trophies. We will not say one trophy is more important than the other, because we now have a squad that can challenge in all competitions.

My idea is to have two players for each position, ... If you have a strong squad you can play all the games with a good team. I am convinced we already have a better team than last season. Yes, we want to fight for the Premiership, but we want to go for all of the trophies. We will not say one trophy is more important than the other, because we now have a squad that can challenge in all competitions.

I think I have the best strike force in the Premiership. But it gives me a selection headache and I will only know who to pick after training.

I think I have the best strike force in the Premiership, ... But it gives me a selection headache and I will only know who to pick after training.

I think he was onside but I don't want to blame the officials.

I think he was man of the match - he kept the ball and gave us time,

I think he'll be in the squad. I don't know if he can play yet but we've been trying all different types of glasses to protect the eye and we'll have to see.

I think he cannot play against CSKA Sofia but I hope he will be fit for CSKA Moscow (in the European Super Cup on Friday).

We never wanted to pay more for a player than his value,

We need a new mentality in the Premier League, especially away from home, and when we have that, things will be much better for sure.

Who else I sign depends on the market, maybe one, maybe two more,

We have some options for this match. We have a lot of competitions to play for and this year we have more players in the first team squad. We will go to Crystal Palace with a strong team, that is the idea.

We can't believe we have already qualified as it will not easy,

We must learn, Steven and all the players, that you can play with the brain as well as the heart. Steven is truly disappointed but happy for the team. He knows it created a difficult situation for the team and we must learn for the future.

We had good chances to win the game and in the end it is two points lost for us,

We have a good offer from Lyon and another from Aston Villa. We must analyze both and while we analyze he will be playing for us.

We have a lot of strikers now and I am not thinking about another centre forward now, only trying to find a new central defender.

We have changed the entire scouting system and replaced some of the old scouts,

We could have scored a lot more goals, it was a good game for us,

We have three or four months to get through. In January we need to reinforce the squad. We were thinking about a right-winger and centre half, everyone knows that, but when people say we left it until the last minute, that's not true,

We need to wait for another opinion but I am positive and I hope he will be in training soon.

We need to analyze a few more things. I am not in a hurry but if he continues to score goals then it will be an easy decision. The more he scores, the more he's likely to stay.

We have nothing to lose and everything to win and will try and do our best.

We are in the final and my players have done a fantastic job. We have shown the people that we can beat them. They are a good team with some good players but our players were amazing.

We are delighted with this possibility. We will try and do our best. People say we will be tired or will not go with the best team, but we will go with the best team and try and be as fit as possible because this is a great challenge for me.

We are really hungry and we want to win,

We played well, created chances and scored goals.

Totten-ham have a good team, a good squad and a good manager. They will fight to be in the top four and we will try to do the same. I don't know if it's possible but we will try.

We were all waiting for Robbie to score his first goal back at Liverpool and it was a reward for his hard work.

We began really well and started controlling the game with good counter attacks and scored two quick goals. After that, we tried to keep the ball but it was difficult,

When the others see how much he runs they will know they have competition.