RAFA: IT'S IN OUR HANDS NOW

Lee Brown 05 March 2008

Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez was delighted after Fernando Torres' second hat-trick in consecutive home games helped his side seize the upperhand in the race for fourth place with an emphatic 4-0 win over West Ham at Anfield.
Torres made it 24 for the season with a superb treble, before Steven Gerrard capped a fine win with a superb fourth goal close to the end to take the Reds back above Everton into fourth place.

"We are playing with a lot of confidence now," said Rafa. "We started the season well, but at this crucial stage of the season we are playing really well and you can see the team operating as a team, that is really important.

"It was important to win tonight because we have been talking about this game in hand for a long time, but now when you see the points on the table it is much easier and better for the confidence.

"We have three more points and we are closer now, it depends on us. If we can beat Newcastle we will approach the Inter game with a lot of confidence."

Liverpool's run of form has coincided with Rafa turning to a 4-2-3-1 system that sees Gerrard, Babel, Kuyt and Torres in a four pronged attack, but Rafa thinks there is more to the improvement than the system alone.

"It is more than the system because we have used it in some games before," said Rafa. "We were talking the other day about Ryan Babel and how he needed to settle down, and also Torres is on fire. Some players are playing really well now and that is the difference for the team because everyone has confidence that we will score."

Torres was again the hero, becoming the first Liverpool player to score a hat-trick in consecutive home games in over 60 years, and Rafa revealed that El Nino almost never made the game and then was almost substituted before completing his treble.

"He had a small problem and our first thought was to rest him, but he was ok," said Rafa. "Just before he scored his third and I had told Crouch to get ready to go on and maybe Torres saw him and pushed himself harder.

"If he continues scoring goals I'm sure he will be a threat for all defenders, but he can give us more than that because the defenders might be thinking about him and give a chance to Babel, Gerrard, Kuyt or another."

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