Thursday, April 09, 2009

Benitez Fans Flames In Fergie Row


Rafael Benitez insists he does not care if his war of words with Sir Alex Ferguson continues to grab the spotlight.

The Liverpool boss, on the eve of Wednesday night's Champions League quarter-final first leg with Chelsea at Anfield, refused to step back from the ongoing verbal confrontation between him and the Manchester United chief.

"If he (Ferguson) talks about Liverpool, then I will say what I feel," said Benitez. "He talks too much about other clubs."

Earlier Benitez had responded to claims from Ferguson that the team which lost out in the all-English Champions League tie between Liverpool and Chelsea would become the greatest threat to United's Barclays Premier League defence, because they would not have the European distraction.

"I think he is a little bit scared of us," said the Spaniard. "If we continue in the Champions League, he will think that we will lose something in the Premier League.

"He obviously feels that if we are not thinking about both trophies, then we will be able to concentrate harder on just one.

"So he will support us (against Chelsea) because he wants us to stay in this competition because he thinks we are the bigger threat and beating Chelsea will make it harder, he feels, for us in the league."

Wednesday night's tie has become something of a regular fixture in the Champions League in recent seasons, and the two sides have clashed 22 times in all competitions since Benitez arrived at Anfield.

"I am not tired of playing Chelsea," Benitez insisted. "It means we are doing well in this competition because we are both good sides.

"It is hard to find anything different to surprise them. The players know each other really well. I do not see a big difference between this game and the others.

"We seem to thrive on matches against the top sides. It is easier to motivate yourself when you are playing the best because you want to be successful.

"The team at home in the second leg has so far always won these meetings with Chelsea. But we can change that. We have won at Chelsea and Manchester United so we know we can win tough matches away.

"We have enough confidence to know that we can beat anyone. We are handling pressure better now because we have better players."

Benitez will have Steven Gerrard, Sami Hyypia and Yossi Benayoun in his squad after injuries, while Javier Mascherano is suspended.

Although this tie is nothing new for the majority of Liverpool's players, it is a new experience for Spanish winger Albert Riera.

He said: "When I arrived here this is what I wanted to experience, to be at a really big club. I wanted to fight for the title and in Europe and that is happening for me.

"We are fighting for two trophies. It is what every footballer wants and that is beautiful pressure."

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