Rafael Benitez has been keen to point out that his team are better equipped to land fourth place in the Premier League than the likes of Everton and Aston Villa. That in itself must have been a bitter pill to swallow for the Spaniard, especially after such grandiose ambitions at the beginning of the campaign, where the Reds were actually the bookmakers' favourites for the title after a bright start.

However, Rafa is clearly one to always look on the bright side of life. In the same breath after the recent defeat at West Ham, he was happily dismissing the importance of the Premier League and instead pointing to the fact that Liverpool had been the best English club in Europe since he took over the managerial reins. This is despite the fact that if your team is out of the running as far as the domestic title is concerned, it's far easier to focus and concentrate one's efforts on the Champions League instead.

"How many teams have won the Champions League? That is a massive trophy and it is more difficult to win than any other trophy," Benítez said. "The Premier League is our target because we have won the Champions League. If you ask Chelsea or Arsenal what they would like to win most of all, I am sure they would say the Champions League. After 18 years without the Premier League we want to win it, but we have to be more consistent."

'There's no doubting that the quality of football in Europe is generally far superior to what you would see on most Premier League football pitches every weekend'


Is Benitez right to say that the Champions League is the hardest of all competitions to win? After all, it's a cup competition where a reasonable degree of luck is required to go all the way. The sheer range of teams that have triumphed in the past few seasons suggest there is a random element in predicting the winner, while the draw obviously has a big say in determining which teams progress. Teams can rely on no such luck in their respective domestic leagues, where they have to deliver the goods every week, playing fantastically or otherwise.

There's no doubting that the quality of football in Europe is generally far superior to what you would see on most Premier League football pitches every weekend. However, in order to make the Champions League final, you have to beat three teams (each over two legs) which is a format that often suits teams with strong defences (Liverpool and Porto are good examples of this in the past few seasons). At the moment, Benitez cannot even be confident that his previously-stubborn rearguard will be anywhere near solid enough to contain Italian champions Inter next week.

What shall we hear from the beleaguered Spaniard if defeat occurs in Europe? That the FA Cup is a treasured competition and that his team have done well to overcome the might of Luton, Havant and Barnsley in successive rounds? At least their fans can draw comfort from the fact that one of Manchester United or Arsenal will bow out at the next stage, but can Liverpool be consistent enough to take this consolation prize?

Where will it all end at Anfield? Surely another Champions League final, let alone a victory, is far too much to ask from a Liverpool team seemingly devoid of confidence. Post your comments below or submit an article to Sportingo.