Benitez content after ‘perfect day’

RAFAEL BENITEZ looked a vindicated man as he declared Liverpool’s record-breaking Champions League night the “perfect day” for the under-fire club.

The Anfield boss has been the subject of continued criticism this season as his expensively-assembled team put themselves on the brink of slumping out of Europe’s elite competition, while failing to fire in the Barclays Premier League despite still being unbeaten in domestic competition.

The demands on Benitez and the club to deliver on all fronts even saw talk of him being axed, despite dismissive responses from American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett.