Benitez asks Liverpool to win every game to grab a Champions League spot

London, Apr 5 (ANI): Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez has asked his players to win every game left this season to grab a Champions League spot.

His Reds only drew with Birmingham and are four points adrift of Manchester City in the race for fourth spot, with five matches remaining.

Benitez, who famously guaranteed his men would finish fourth, made it clear to his sixth-placed side that only a 100 per cent run-in will do.

But the Merseysiders have played a game more than both City and fifth-placed Spurs, who they trail by three points, The Sun reports.

Benitez said: "It's not a good point, we deserved to win. Fourth place will be very difficult now but we have to keep going.

"We talked with the players and thought we needed six wins, maybe with one draw. So now we have to win five. We didn't have much margin for error before the game, now we have less."

Benitez also explained his decision to replace Fernando Torres with David Ngog just after the hour was a precaution, with the striker nursing an injury.

He added: "The ice was just to protect his knee but Fernando was really tired." (ANI)