Benitez keeps up Fergie assault

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez stoked his simmering row with Sir Alex Ferguson after his side played out a goalless draw at Stoke.

The Reds passed up the chance to move six points clear of Chelsea ahead of Luis Felipe Scolari’s team’s trip to Manchester United and even though Benitez’s sustained attack on Ferguson on Friday is now being investigated by the Football Association, the Spaniard stood by his claims.

He used his pre-match press conference to claim that Ferguson is never punished over his criticism of referees, was wrong to complain about fixtures and that his staff intimidate referees at Old Trafford.

But despite his team struggling against Stoke, Benitez was happy to re-iterate his view on Ferguson.

He said: “Maybe in 20 years nobody has said these things. Maybe a lot of people are thinking the same but they didn’t want to say it. I don’t regret saying it and I don’t think it had any effect on the players.

“I’ve known him for five years now and people say that he was playing mind games but it’s too early.

“To talk too much about Liverpool isn’t fair so he has to think about his own team, the problems they have and all the things they’ve been doing for the last 15 or 20 years, maybe they will think the same as me.

“He started talking when we won at Chelsea and we’d done a favour to United because we are not contenders so maybe he’s a little bit scared. I have a lot of respect for him because I think he’s a great manager but he was talking too much about Liverpool so he has to stop.

“He started talking a long time ago. It won’t have the same effect on me because if he talks too much and too quickly then I won’t understand so I will be happy.”

Although Liverpool passed up the chance to build a significant lead at the top of the Premier League, Benitez insists he is happy with his team’s position.

“It’s a point, we’re still at the top of the table and in a fantastic position,” he said.

“I’ve said to my players it will be a long race and at the end of the season maybe we will be in a similar situation.”

Stoke assistant manager Dave Kemp admits his side’s home form could be crucial in keeping them in the Premier League.

The Potters’ number two feels the Britannia Stadium is one of the most testing venues in the division.

“No-one coming here gets an easy game. We’ve had Manchester United a couple of weeks ago and they sneaked a 1-0 and it was a similar game,” said Kemp.

“It’s not easy for teams to come here and anyone that comes here gets a decent game. Here at the Britannia we’ve performed well and Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal have all had tough games.

“At Chelsea next week we have to try and play with the same tempo.”

Matthew Etherington had a decent impact and Kemp feels that the new signing from West Ham will continue to improve.

Kemp added: “He did great. He took the ball down the pitch and you can see he’s going to provide us with chances.”

“He ran out of gas in the end and he hasn’t played for a couple of months and getting 65 minutes under his belt, he’ll be a lot better for that now and a lot better next week.”