Liverpool coach Rafa Benitez has revealed that Real Madrid are not interested in signing England midfielder Steven Gerrard.  

The Spaniard admitted he had been concerned when he read reports that Real were interested in adding Gerrard to their trio of English players, David Beckham, Jonathan Woodgate and ex-Liverpool striker Michael Owen.
  
"I have read stories about Real Madrid wanting to sign Steven Gerrard but it is not true," said Benitez.
  
"I have talked with the player and also talked to Real Madrid and they both told me it is not true.
  
"I believe, here at Liverpool, we will have a long time to enjoy watching Steven Gerrard," he added.

Liverpool have got themselves back on the winning track in the Premiership race with a comfortable 3-0 victory over West Brom at Anfield.  
After two consecutive single goal defeats to GAK and Bolton the Reds bounced back in style with a performance and a result to put a smile back on the face of manager Rafael Benitez.
  
Benitez's men were never in danger over the 90 minutes and probably should have won by even more goals. As it was, first half strikes from Steven Gerrard and Steve Finnan and a second half goal from Luis Garcia were more than enough to secure the points.
  
The opener came after 17 minutes when inspirational captain Steven Gerrard, restored to the centre of midfield for this afternoon's game, drilled home a low shot into the back of the Kop net after good work by the lively Luis Garcia.
  
Garcia's performance on his Anfield debut delighted the crowd as he linked the play from midfield to attack, creating a series of openings with his sharp passing game.
  
It came as no surprise when Liverpool doubled their lead three minutes before half time. Having survived a series of near misses inside their own area after Gerrard opened the scoring, with Sami Hyypia and Djibril Cisse both going close, West Brom eventually succumbed to the home side's pressure when Steve Finnan notched his first goal for the club.
  
Collecting the ball on the right side of the area, Finnan drifted past his marker with a neat piece of skill and finished in fine style with a left footed shot into the same corner of the goal Gerrard had found 25 minutes earlier.
  
West Brom rallied for a while after the break as they searched for a way back into the game, but the match was over as a contest after an hour when Garcia deservedly got his name onto the scoresheet for thefirst time as a Liverpool player.
  
Gerrard and Cisse worked Garcia into space down the left and after the Spanish star's first shot was saved by Hoult he was first to react to the rebound to smash the ball home. Game over.
  
Xabi Alonso then joined the action in place of Steven Gerrard for his first experience of playing at Anfield while Milan Baros came on for Harry Kewell, with Benitez perhaps casting one eye towards Wednesday's Champions League opener with Monaco.
  
Considering Benitez has been forced to work with just four players since the defeat at Bolton with the majority of his squad away on international duty, this was an impressive return to winning ways for the Reds.

Rafael Benitez said he was happy with his side's performance against West Bromwich Albion and believes there were clear signs that his players are beginning to play the way he wants them to.  
Benitez was pleased with the movement of his team and said Luis Garcia on his Anfield debut gave the team many options in attack.
  
Benitez said: "We played much better with very good movement in attack and Luis Garcia gave us a lot of possibilities. He is a good player and this was a good game for Liverpool.
  
"We have made a step forward and there are a lot of bigger steps to go."
  
Benitez also dismissed suggestions that captain Steven Gerrard was injured and explained he was taking the opportunity at 3-0 up to rest the player with matches against Monaco and Manchester United next on the agenda.
  
Benitez said: "Steven has just played two matches for England and sometimes you have to give a player a rest. We have some big matches coming up and we need him for these games."

Steven Gerrard has revealed how meetings with manager Rafael Benitez have led to him becoming Liverpool's top scorer this season.  

Gerrard took his tally for the campaign to four with a well taken strike against West Brom as Liverpool collected all three points with an easy 3-0 win.
  
The Liverpool skipper is refusing to set any personal scoring targets for the rest of the campaign, but he is more than happy with his strike rate so far.
  
He said: "I've had a few chats with the manager since the start of the season and he told me he wants more goals from midfield. That's what I'm trying to give him.
  
"It's all about me getting forward at the right times and making the right runs. I don't want to go forward all the time and run the risk of leaving gaps behind me.
  
"I'm happy with having scored four goals so far but I want to score more. I'm not setting any targets though."
  
Gerrard was delighted with the manner of Liverpool's victory as they bounced back from defeat at Bolton last time out to record their second victory of the season.
  
He added: "It was a big game for us today and an important three points at stake.
  
"We got the second goal at just the right time before the break and then the third goal killed them off. It was a good performance and a good victory. We have to take confidence from this game and go into the Monaco match on Wednesday looking for the same level of performance."

Didier Deschamps believes his new-look Monaco have the strength of character to handle playing at what he believes will be a hostile Anfield in the Champions League tonight.  

But he admits he fears Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard, the player he considers "their driving force".
  
The Monaco coach has seen half a dozen of the side that finished runners-up to Porto last season leave the Stade Louis II, but he believes his players will not be intimidated by what he described as one of Europe's "mythical and legendary" stadiums.
  
Deschamps said: "We are here with a positive attitude, they know what is expected of them but they are relaxed at playing in such a mythical stadium.
  
"I know that much of my team has changed since last season when we beat Real Madrid and Chelsea to get to the final.
  
"But we have a lot of ambition and desire for a good future. They know what awaits them from the crowd, but they will be calm and cool.
  
"Playing at Anfield is special, there are only a few stadiums in Europe with such legendary status but I believe the experience will enrich my players."
  
But the former international will clearly pay special attention to Gerrard, who he considers Liverpool's inspiration.
  
He said: "They are all dangerous, but Liverpool depend a lot on Gerrard, he is their driving force. When he plays well, Liverpool play well.
  
"He does everything, tackles, passes long or short, gets forward, scores goals. Above all, I like him because of his spirit. He badly wants to win."
  
Deschamps also hailed striker Djibril Cisse, top scorer in the French League last season before joining Liverpool in the summer.
  
He said: "We know all about the ability of Cisse. Once he settles in England, he will be a big success.
  
"Cisse is a rare talent. Powerful, athletic, quick and skilful and there's more to come from him. He's a confidence player and when he is on his game, he takes a lot of stopping and is a lot like Michael Owen in many ways."
  
Deschamps dismisses the theory that Liverpool's recent decline has made them any less of a danger inthis competition.
  
He said: "Liverpool have been less in the limelight in recent years, but everyone still has a lot of respect for them. They still are a legend as is their stadium."
  
Deschamps is without on loan Javier Saviola, who is suspended, plus the injured Ernesto Chevanton, Shabani Nonda and Lucas Bernardi.

Liverpool return to the Champions League tonight almost two years since they slipped carelessly out of this competition in Basle, with Rafael Ben

Curiously for a coach who came within tantalising reach of the semi-finals with Valencia, Rafael Benitez characterised the opening fixture of a fresh Champions' League campaign as just another game yesterday. No sooner had the new Liverpool manager done so, however, than he conceded that success in the competition, starting against Monaco at Anfield tonight, may help in keeping Steven Gerrard at the club.  

Before committing himself to Liverpool in the summer, Gerrard was a target for Chelsea. Jose Mourinho is expected to return for the midfielder during the January transfer window or next summer. In the meantime, Benitez hopes that progress in Europe's premier club tournament will persuade Liverpool's outstanding players to stay.
  
"The Champions' League is important for us because of our history," Benitez said, responding to a query about Gerrard's future with a nod to the glittering era a quarter of a century ago in which Bob Paisley and Joe Fagan brought four European Cups to Liverpool.
  
"It is also important in terms of money, so we must try to win as many matches as possible. But if we go far in this competition it won't be necessary to start thinking what the future may mean. It's better to do our job properly now. Then it will be easy to keep our best players."
  
The Spaniard was in charge of the opposition when Anfield last staged a game in the competition proper, two years ago next month, Valencia winning 2-0. They were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Internazionale on the away-goals' rule, and the fact that he was still ruefully recalling how statistics showed they had put in 35 shots against Inter somewhat undermined his attempt to pass off Monaco's arrival as "another game to try to improve our level".
  
Benitez argued that the media on the continent view the competition as more prestigious than a domestic championship, going on to venture that fans of English clubs would be "split 50-50" between the two. Liverpool's followers, desperate for a Premiership title, have become accustomed to regarding fourth place as an achievement. Yet the players, past and present, drool about the "special atmosphere" of big European occasions, so this Group A game should provide a reminder of why G

Rafael Benitez will begin to discover at Anfield tonight the wisdom of abandoning a solid set-up in Valencia to embark on a considerable rebuilding operation at Liverpool.  

The team he has reshaped from the one left behind by his predecessor Gerard Houllier take on Monaco, last season's runners-up, in their opening match back in the Champions League with qualification for the knockout stages virtually a must.
  
Liverpool, unlike Spanish champions Valencia, squeezed into the Champions League by finishing a distant fourth in the Premiership and suffered a qualifying round home defeat by the unheralded Austrians of AK Graz before taking their place against Europe's elite by virtue of a 2-1 aggregate score. Benitez is only looking to the future, however. "If we want to arrive [as a major force], this one game is not that important - all the games [in the group] are important,'' he said. "We are now starting to build a new team here and we have to change certain things."
  
Benitez emphasised the need to adapt to the differing demands of the European stage. ``You must change your mindset and also control the pressure that European games bring,'' he said. ``That's the only way that players can do better at the highest level."
  
Benitez was accompanied at yesterday's media briefing by Steve Finnan, the Republic of Ireland full-back who has been utilised lately as a wide midfielder. Finnan, who responded to his more advanced role by scoring his first goal for the club against West Bromwich on Saturday, was unsure whether it would be enough to keep him in the starting line-up. ``I prefer the full-back position, but I don't mind where I play as long as I'm picked," Finnan said, mindful that Xabi Alonso, one of four Spanish signings made by Benitez, is likely to be recalled after being rested at the weekend.
  
Finnan expressed a feeling of "great relief" that Liverpool had clinched their Champions League place. "We may be underdogs when you look at who is capable of winning this competition, but Monaco and Porto proved last season that anything can happen if you get on a good run.
  
"But we'll need to play better than we did against Graz. That was a wake-up call and we must heed that warning.''
  
Monaco's line-up has altered considerably since their 3-0 defeat by Porto in Gelsenkirchen last May. Coach Didier Dechamps has allowed nine of his squad to depart during the summer, including Fernando Morientes who returned to Real Madrid after a season's loan. His replacement Javier Saviola, signed from Barcelona, is suspended.

Didier Deschamps admits Liverpool will face a weaker Monaco side on Wednesday than the one which reached last season's Champions League final.  

The Principality club have seen many of the stars which helped them make it to the final in Gelsenkirchen, where they lost 3-0 to Porto, leave the Stade Louis II over the summer.
  
Ludovic Giuly has joined Barcelona, Jerome Rothen has moved to Paris Saint-Germain, Dado Prso has switched to Rangers while Fernando Morientes, the top scorer in last season's competition, has returned to Real Madrid after his successful loan spell.
  
Deschamps did manage to lure Javier Saviola - also on a loan deal - but his offensive options have still been considerably weakened.
  
"Our number one objective was to qualify for the Champions League again and not doing it would have been a real failure,'' Deschamps told L'Equipe.
  
"In all the competitions we start, our aim is to go as far as possible. My team is talented and our duty is to live up the expectations which resulted from our performance last year.
  
"The players who stayed will have the experience and will know what to expect in terms of determination and commitment.
  
"The new ones are used to high-level matches and came to our club to participate in such competitions as the Champions League.
  
"But it's hard to compare last year's team with the one we have this campaign. They are very different.
  
"The players are not the same anymore, neither is the organisation.
  
"I have no certainties and we need to find the right balance.''

RAFAEL BENITEZ has admitted Liverpool need a good Champions League campaign to silence speculation over Steven Gerrard's future once and for all.  

Liverpool return to Europe's premier club competition against Monaco tonight with Gerrard looking to maintain the superb form that has yielded four goals so far this season.
  
The midfielder's influence at Anfield has been unaffected by the summer offer from Chelsea or reports of a January move to Real Madrid. And though Benitez sought out Madrid to allay fears of a