Off-field issues cast long shadow over Anfield campaign

On the pitch, that statement could readily be argued. Off the pitch, however, there have been times when few would have blamed Benitez from walking away before he was seemingly pushed.

Overhauling the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal is difficult enough without Liverpool having to also contend with the enemy within.

The civil war between American co-owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks has simmered for much of the past nine months and cast a huge shadow over the season.

Indeed, that Benitez managed to guide Liverpool to within one goal of a third Champions League final in four years under such circumstances should be considered a significant achievement.

It had all started so well. Following Benitez's post-Athens outburst, the Liverpool owners stumped up the cash to facilitate his summer rebuilding plans. Ryan Babel, Lucas Leiva and Yossi Benayoun were brought in while the club transfer record was smashed to sign Fernando Torres from Atletico Madrid for £21million.

If that proves the Americans' legacy to Liverpool, at least their controversial stay has brought some good, Torres already etching his name in Anfield folklore with a magnificent 33-goal debut campaign.

Expectations were high in August, but the first blow arrived with the surprise departure of Benitez's right-hand man Paco Ayesteran.

Benitez soldiered on regardless for the rest of the season but, with Sammy Lee set to be appointed as his assistant, the manager has effectively admitted taking on such a huge burden of responsibility was becoming impossible.

The bare minimum of Champions League qualification may appear the sole league claim, but anyone who believes Liverpool are as far away as ever to launching a genuine title bid is misinformed.

Benitez's side recorded only four league defeats - their least amount since last winning the league in 1990 - and the quality and strength in depth of the squad has improved once more.

The championship challenge faltered on two counts. Liverpool were debilitated by a run of damaging draws during the winter months and they failed to win any of their six league games against their top-four rivals.

Significantly, that mid-season wobble came shortly after Benitez blew the lid on the discord behind the scenes with his infamous "as always, I am concentrating on coaching and training my team" media briefing in November.

It was a result of the Spaniard learning of Liverpool's meetings with Jurgen Klinsmann, talks that would recur again in January when Hicks admitted the approach and again in April when, in an attempt to push Rick Parry through the exit, the American revealed the chief executive was present, much to Benitez's chagrin.

The relative peace now is surely only the calm before the storm with Hicks and Gillett almost certain to air their dirty linen in public again before the new season kicks off.

Benitez admits mistakes were made during the season. The decision early in the season to take Torres out of the firing line may have been a little misguided, but the main crime was to unnecessarily fiddle too much with the starting line-up against supposedly inferior opposition.

It was a lesson learned during the run-in, when Liverpool lost just two of their final 19 games after the FA Cup humiliation at home to Barnsley in February.

Torres struck up a telepathic partnership with Steven Gerrard, pushed forward into a more central attacking role as Benitez settled on a 4-2-3-1 formation.

Sparked by Torres, Liverpool rattled up 119 goals in their 59 games while at the back, Pepe Reina wore the Premier League's Golden Gloves for a third successive year.

The simmering tension behind the scenes didn't prevent the club from subsequently backing Benitez, sanctioning the £6m arrival of Martin Skrtel and the £18m to make Javier Mascherano's loan deal permanent.

After a nightmare debut against Havant & Waterlooville, the Slovakian has grown in stature to relieve pressure on a defence that was shorn of Daniel Agger for all but the first five weeks, Sami Hyypia's reliable performances earning him a new deal.

Of the other newcomers, Babel showed glimpses of promise but remains chronically short of self-belief - particularly on the big occasion - while Lucas and Benayoun have proven sound squad acquisitions.

Dirk Kuyt worked his way back into form through sheer endeavour while Mascherano has become one of the first names on the teamsheet.

Another summer of change is anticipated, even if Benitez will most likely have to wheel and deal rather than be handed further substantial handouts.

Peter Crouch, Jermaine Pennant, Scott Carson and John Arne Riise can expect to be elsewhere next season, while Harry Kewell has already been shown the door.

The interest in Aston Villa skipper Gareth Barry has called the future of an under-whelming Xabi Alonso into question while a fading Steve Finnan and frustrating Alvaro Arbeloa may also be moved on.

Free transfer Andriy Voronin, whose bright start eased the pressure on Torres, struggled badly after suffering injury in January - unfairly making him a scapegoat with the less forgiving sections of the Anfield support - and he may also be on his way.

What of arrivals? Swiss international defender Phillip Degen is imminent and, while Barry would be a solid purchase, more match-winners can help Liverpool challenge United and Chelsea over the course of a nine-month campaign.

Gerrard stated this week the spine of the team is in place. Benitez's job now must be to fill in the gaps around it with sufficient quality.

Full-backs on both flanks, a reserve goalkeeper, a right winger and a frontline striker to join Torres are high on the wanted list, with names such as Athletic Bilbao's Fernando Amorebieta and Wigan Athletic's Luis Antonio Valencia.

But no matter who comes in, the most important man to any title challenge will once more be Benitez himself.

GOAL OF THE SEASON

FERNANDO TORRES v NEWCASTLE

GIVEN his magnificent 33-goal haul in his debut campaign, it's almost inevitable that Fernando Torres will claim this award.

From his debut strike against Chelsea all the way through to his record-breaking effort against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, the Spaniard has fully justified the huge outlay to bring him from Atletico Madrid last summer.

The slaloming run and clinical finish against Marseille springs instantly to mind, but his best must be the effort against Newcastle United that showcased his partnership with Steven Gerrard, Torres running on to the skipper's sublime pass, selling Steve Harper a dummy to leave the goalkeeper on his back, then slotting home.

GAME OF THE SEASON

LIVERPOOL 4 ARSENAL 2

ONCE again, Liverpool reserved their best performances for the Champions League.

The record-breaking 8-0 thrashing of Besiktas and the decisive 4-0 win at Marseille in the group stage were fine displays, as to were the two triumphs over Inter Milan.

But the manner in which Liverpool twice fought from being behind in the 4-2 quarter-final second leg win over Arsenal was perhaps their greatest achievement of the campaign.

It also laid down a possible marker for next season that Benitez's side have the capability of taking on and beating their top-four rivals.

DISAPPOINTMENT OF THE SEASON

JOHN ARNE RIISE

EVEN before his calamitous own goal against Chelsea in the Champions League semi-final, the shine had begin to fade from the Norwegian.

The shots that would rain down on the goal during the earlier years of his Anfield career instead this season left the supporters in the stands cowering for cover.

By his own admission, Riise struggled for form earlier in the campaign with perhaps only the fragility of Fabio Aurelio saving him from a lengthy spell out of the team.

The own goal at Luton Town in the FA Cup in January was just a rehearsal for the main event three months later.

It may well be Riise's last significant contribution for Liverpool.