Benitez: Reds on right track

Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez believes he finally has his team playing the way he wants but it may have come too late for them in the Barclays Premier League title race.

The Spaniard has built a reputation of being cautious and unadventurous but in their last eight matches in all competitions they have scored 27 goals.

He said: "For me we have the same mentality, the difference now is we play better. We have more confidence and we can score more goals."

Uncharacteristically they have conceded 12, with successive 4-4 draws against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League and Tuesday night's epic against Arsenal at Anfield which handed the initiative back to arch-rivals Manchester United in the championship run-in.

After Liverpool's 4-0 Champions League victory over Real Madrid in mid-March - which signalled the start of their goalscoring run - captain Steven Gerrard claimed the "shackles were off".

However, Benitez insists he has not switched tactics and their recent form is merely a result of months of hard work finally paying off.

"There is not really [a change of emphasis]. The understanding between the players is better," said the Liverpool boss.

"This week we were talking in training sessions and we could see the team were playing with a lot of confidence.

"We didn't need to say anything because they knew what to do.

"Because we have been practising so many times during the season the players know now what to do.