標題: Rafa Benitez: Beating Manchester United ‘key to success next season’ [打印本頁] 作者: puma8811 時間: 2008-5-23 01:43 PM 標題: Rafa Benitez: Beating Manchester United ‘key to success next season’
RAFAEL BENITEZ reckons that just one win against champions Manchester United would change Liverpool’s season next time around.
Such has been Liverpool’s poor recent record against the champions, that even co-owner Tom Hicks suggested after December’s home defeat that Liverpool did not look as if they believed they could beat their rivals.
It is certainly a matter of worry for fans and seeing United win their 17th league title – one short of Liverpool’s record – has heightened the concern.
Benitez accepts the problem and said: “If you beat Manchester United once it results in a six-point swing either way and that can be the difference.”
Liverpool finished 11 points behind the champions this season and Benitez wants his team to be hungrier next term.
He said: “Clearly, just one team can win the league, so it doesn’t really matter if you are three, six, nine or 11 points behind as we are this season.
“It is not a massive difference. It may just come down to one game over the course of a season.
“The key for me is knowing there is a difference between us and the three teams above us and that we must now reduce this gap.
“It was not massive this season. We came closer than last season. Hopefully next season we will be closer again, maybe even on top of them.”
Benitez added: “This club is all about winning things so we are disappointed not to have picked up any trophies this season.
“But we will be hungrier next season. Clearly, we are winners and want to win silverware every year.
“We have not done that for two seasons so we will be looking to improve again in order to try and deliver something for our supporters next time.”
Despite an end-of-season run that saw them lose just two of their 19 games, one of those defeats was a painful 3-0 defeat at Old Trafford in which Javier Mascherano was sent off.
In Benitez’s four seasons at Anfield, Liverpool have lost seven of their league clashes with United, with a 0-0 draw their only point in that time. Benitez’s only victory against them so far has been a 1-0 FA Cup fifth-round success in 2006.
Meanwhile, Lucas Leiva believes his best is yet to come after an encouraging first season at Anfield.
The 21-year-old midfielder, signed from Gremio for £6million last summer, featured in 31 first-team matches games, scoring one goal.
And he said: “I really enjoyed my first season with Liverpool. To play 31 games for a club like this in your first season is something I am proud of because it is not easy to adapt to football in a new country.
“I did not play any games in the first three months because I was still adapting to the style but now I feel much more comfortable on the pitch and, hopefully, next season will be better.”
Lucas has been included in a huge 74-man preliminary Brazil squad for the forthcoming Olympic Games in Beijing, a selection that could see him miss the start of the Premier League season.
The football tournament at the Games runs between August 6 and 23 and, if selected as expected, Lucas will miss Liverpool’s opening league fixtures as well as qualifiers for the Champions League.
He said: “It is very difficult because no-one likes to miss games for their club. But the Olympics is very important in Brazil and if I want to play in the World Cup games then I cannot afford to miss this tournament.”
While Benitez has no option but to release Lucas for the Olympics, the manager is not compelled to do the same with Javier Mascherano.
National squads can take up to three players over the age of 23 to the Olympics, but clubs can refuse under FIFA rules to let the over-age take part.
AC Milan have already indicated they will block any attempt from Brazil to call up Kaka to the squad.
However, Mascherano is keen to play for Argentina having helped them win the tournament in Athens four years ago.
