Rafa, this is a huge game this weekend against Man United - what does it mean for Liverpool fans?
I think it's really important for all of us. For the staff, players and supporters. Everybody's watching this game as one of the most important during the season.
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Benitez is yet to record a Premier League victory over Manchester United and Sir Alex.
What does it mean to play against a team like Manchester United?
I think it's a good team with a lot of players with qualities so you must be aware of all of them. Sometimes you play against a team and they have two or three good players but United, the majority of them are top class players so you really need to concentrate.
Who is the biggest threat?
You can talk about Rooney, Tevez, Ronaldo, Giggs - all of them they are really good players.</B>
After losing against Barnsley in the FA Cup you have won 7 in a row. What has changed?
I think that the team needed to win, and sometimes when you win confidence is high so I think that was the key. We started playing well again and taking our chances. Because against Barnsely we had a lot of chances to.
What changed in the mood of the team?
The atmosphere is really good because we are winning and winning and playing well. If you can keep winning, the people are happier and easier to approach in this game.
How important was the game at Anfield against Inter in regaining that mentality?
It was really important - we knew that Inter Milan was at the top of the table, one of the best teams in Europe so it was really important to show that we could beat them or anyone else.
Is it by design that your team starts to play at the highest level at this part of the season?
I think it was important beacuse we were changing some players and we changed also the position of some players. And the understanding was so good that they started playing really well.
Cristiano Ronaldo - is the key to the Red Devils?
Yeah, I think so. I think he is a player that can beat players, is quick so is always a threat for the other teams. Yeah I think one of the key players is Ronaldo.
How do you halt Ronaldo?
You know, if you want to stop players like Ronaldo you need to work really hard as a team, that's the idea.
We'll try to do the same things that we were doing before but against United, the key is to control four or five players, it's not just one or two. So it's more difficult, you need to work hard as a team.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/feature?id=517942&cc=3436
I think it's really important for all of us. For the staff, players and supporters. Everybody's watching this game as one of the most important during the season.
Benitez is yet to record a Premier League victory over Manchester United and Sir Alex.
What does it mean to play against a team like Manchester United?
I think it's a good team with a lot of players with qualities so you must be aware of all of them. Sometimes you play against a team and they have two or three good players but United, the majority of them are top class players so you really need to concentrate.
Who is the biggest threat?
You can talk about Rooney, Tevez, Ronaldo, Giggs - all of them they are really good players.</B>
After losing against Barnsley in the FA Cup you have won 7 in a row. What has changed?
I think that the team needed to win, and sometimes when you win confidence is high so I think that was the key. We started playing well again and taking our chances. Because against Barnsely we had a lot of chances to.
What changed in the mood of the team?
The atmosphere is really good because we are winning and winning and playing well. If you can keep winning, the people are happier and easier to approach in this game.
How important was the game at Anfield against Inter in regaining that mentality?
It was really important - we knew that Inter Milan was at the top of the table, one of the best teams in Europe so it was really important to show that we could beat them or anyone else.
Is it by design that your team starts to play at the highest level at this part of the season?
I think it was important beacuse we were changing some players and we changed also the position of some players. And the understanding was so good that they started playing really well.
Cristiano Ronaldo - is the key to the Red Devils?
Yeah, I think so. I think he is a player that can beat players, is quick so is always a threat for the other teams. Yeah I think one of the key players is Ronaldo.
How do you halt Ronaldo?
You know, if you want to stop players like Ronaldo you need to work really hard as a team, that's the idea.
We'll try to do the same things that we were doing before but against United, the key is to control four or five players, it's not just one or two. So it's more difficult, you need to work hard as a team.
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/feature?id=517942&cc=3436
