Ahead of Liverpool's crucial cup week, manager Rafael Benitez has urged for his players to put the club's league troubles behind them and prove their worth in the FA Cup ahd Champions League.
It has been far from a season to remember for Liverpool as we are now fast approaching March and the beginning of what is known as the 'business end' of the season.
Liverpool have been in woeful form in the league — even at home, to the shock of many — and are well off the pace for the coveted Premier League title, which they have yet to win in the competition's 15-year history.
The worries do not end there, as they are now underachieving to the point that their place in the top four is under serious threat and as a result, so is their Champions League future.
However, it's 'business' that Rafa Benitez handles best. Come what may, the man produces results and has the trophies to prove it. Nobody will be counting Liverpool out; though they were knocked out of the Carling Cup by Chelsea (who play Everton in the final in just over a week) they remain outside contenders for both the FA Cup and the Champions League.
The outside is where Benitez prefers to be; too often he has come into games the favourite and been embarrassed, while making misery for Europe's more glamorous clubs has been his fore in his tenure at Anfield and indeed before then at the Mestalla with Valencia.
So despite the fact Liverpool almost suffered incredibly embarrassing exits from both of these competitions — with Havant and Waterlooville giving them a first-half scare at Anfield in the FA Cup and Marseille being within 90 minutes of sending them crashing out of the weakest Champions League group of the lot — they are still in with a chance, something Benitez is only all too aware of.
"We know we are not doing as well in the league and we must improve, but the FA Cup and Champions League are different competitions and we can beat anyone," declared Benitez.
With Championship side Barnsley being Liverpool's fifth round opponents in this weekend's FA Cup tie, Benitez is confident there will be no element of complacency amongst his men, and that lessons have been learned from previous somewhat unpleasant experiences.
"We have a difficult game, and I say difficult because we have some experience in the Cup," he said. "Everybody says that we'll beat Barnsley but we must be careful and do the right things.
"Always when you play a team from another division you must still do your jobs properly. We have the game against Havant and Waterlooville as experience. We were thinking about scoring goals and we conceded.
"We knew before that game about the dangers, and if you remember we had a chance to score first with a Yossi Benayoun header. In this game we must not give the other team any options.
"Clearly this is a cup final for them, so it's a tough game. We also know they are physically very strong, so we must be careful. We have to give them a lot of respect.
"We have to score first and everything will be okay."
Following Barnsley, Serie A reigning champions, runaway leaders and unbeatable machine Inter will be Liverpool's next encounter, and quite how Benitez expects to come away from that with a good result yet remains to be seen.
It has been far from a season to remember for Liverpool as we are now fast approaching March and the beginning of what is known as the 'business end' of the season.
Liverpool have been in woeful form in the league — even at home, to the shock of many — and are well off the pace for the coveted Premier League title, which they have yet to win in the competition's 15-year history.
The worries do not end there, as they are now underachieving to the point that their place in the top four is under serious threat and as a result, so is their Champions League future.
However, it's 'business' that Rafa Benitez handles best. Come what may, the man produces results and has the trophies to prove it. Nobody will be counting Liverpool out; though they were knocked out of the Carling Cup by Chelsea (who play Everton in the final in just over a week) they remain outside contenders for both the FA Cup and the Champions League.
The outside is where Benitez prefers to be; too often he has come into games the favourite and been embarrassed, while making misery for Europe's more glamorous clubs has been his fore in his tenure at Anfield and indeed before then at the Mestalla with Valencia.
So despite the fact Liverpool almost suffered incredibly embarrassing exits from both of these competitions — with Havant and Waterlooville giving them a first-half scare at Anfield in the FA Cup and Marseille being within 90 minutes of sending them crashing out of the weakest Champions League group of the lot — they are still in with a chance, something Benitez is only all too aware of.
"We know we are not doing as well in the league and we must improve, but the FA Cup and Champions League are different competitions and we can beat anyone," declared Benitez.
With Championship side Barnsley being Liverpool's fifth round opponents in this weekend's FA Cup tie, Benitez is confident there will be no element of complacency amongst his men, and that lessons have been learned from previous somewhat unpleasant experiences.
"We have a difficult game, and I say difficult because we have some experience in the Cup," he said. "Everybody says that we'll beat Barnsley but we must be careful and do the right things.
"Always when you play a team from another division you must still do your jobs properly. We have the game against Havant and Waterlooville as experience. We were thinking about scoring goals and we conceded.
"We knew before that game about the dangers, and if you remember we had a chance to score first with a Yossi Benayoun header. In this game we must not give the other team any options.
"Clearly this is a cup final for them, so it's a tough game. We also know they are physically very strong, so we must be careful. We have to give them a lot of respect.
"We have to score first and everything will be okay."
Following Barnsley, Serie A reigning champions, runaway leaders and unbeatable machine Inter will be Liverpool's next encounter, and quite how Benitez expects to come away from that with a good result yet remains to be seen.
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