Rafa savours night to remember

Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez believes his side's resounding 4-0 victory over Real Madrid in the last 16 of the UEFA Champions League will go a long way towards silencing the critics. The Reds, who led the Primera Liga champions 1-0 from the first leg - produced a superb display at Anfield to stroll into the quarter-finals at the expense of nine-time winners Real.Fernando Torres opened the scoring and captain Steven Gerrard doubled his side's lead from the penalty spot before volleying a third two minutes after half-time as Liverpool, who won the competition in 2005 and reached the final in 2007, stunned their visitors.Substitute Andrea Dossena slotted a late fourth and Benitez - who left Valencia to take over on Merseyside in 2004 - believes the result demonstrates an ability to produce offensive football and justifies Uefa's No.1 ranking, based on form over the last five years. He said: "Yes, I know people in Spain think that my teams do not attack, but look at this result and look at the 119 goals we scored last season. That says something different."We are ranked the number one club in Europe and a result like this against a great club like Real Madrid is very pleasing."We played really well from beginning to the end, and I am really pleased for the fans.Important"Why are we so good in Europe? I can only say that we approach European games with confidence and in the right way."Torres and Gerrard played very well, but I do not like to talk about one or two players, everyone was very good, from the first to the last on the pitch."They were expecting us to play deep and play on the counter-attack, but we were on top of them right from the start and they never really recovered from that opening spell."The last five years this team has been very good in Europe, we have shown that continually. Our fans appreciate that and understand what we have achieved."Now Liverpool face an equally tough trip to face Manchester United at Old Trafford in the Premier League on Saturday, live on Sky Sports 1 and HD1.Benitez added: "We have an important game next, but we have played well, scored four goals and are very confident. That is the best way to prepare for such a game."It was important for us to play that well, but we are now facing a very good team and we must win to close the gap at the top."We have a few days to enjoy this result and make sure we are positive and prepared properly for the game at Old Trafford."

Source: SKY_Sports