Thursday, February 05, 2009

Liverpool Must Focus On Premier League & Europe, Fernando Torres Needs Games - Rafa Benitez


The Reds' cup dreams were shattered last night, and Rafa wants his troops - especially the sluggish 'El Nino' - to concentrate unwaveringly on their remaining chances of silverware.

Dan Gosling's 119th minute strike saw Everton dump Liverpool out of the FA Cup last night, thus ending the Anfield side's hopes of adding another domestic knock-out title to their haul.

That leaves the Reds alive in just two competitions: the Premier League, in which they trail Manchester United by two points; and the Champions League, in which they will face Real Madrid in the last 16.

And Rafael Benitez has urged his charges to buckle down and lift their game as they continue their quest to end a two-year trophy less streak.

"We now have to concentrate on the Premier League and the Champions League so there is still a lot to play for," the Liverpool manager told the club's official website.

"They are two massive competitions and we are in a very good position."

Fernando Torres will be vital to Liverpool's chances of contesting each title to the bitter end, especially now that Steven Gerrard looks set to miss a few weeks at least through injury.

However, the Spanish striker is yet to fully recover from his own hamstring problems, and he seemed a yard off the pace at Goodison Park last night.

Benitez conceded that Torres is yet to find his touch, but he is confident that the 24-year-old will back to his very best sooner or later.

"He needs to keep playing games and keep training because his match fitness is not the best but that will come," added the former Valencia boss.

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