RAFAEL BENITEZ admits Liverpool will equal any of their previous Champions League group heroics if they pull off another great escape this season.
The Anfield outfit take on Hungarian champions Debrecen this evening aiming to avoid failing to reach the knockout stages of the competition for the first time under the Spaniard.
Liverpool must win in Budapest and hope an already-qualified Lyon gain a result in Italy against Fiorentina in Group E’s other fixture.
Benitez’s side won their last three games in 2007-08 to progress while they beat Olympiakos by two clear goals in their decider in 2004-05 before going on to win the trophy.
And with Liverpool five points behind second-placed Fiorentina, Benitez accepts it will take something special for his team to extend their Champions League campaign.
“It will be difficult to get through,” said the Anfield manager. “I have said before that it will be a miracle if we do, but it depends on the other teams and if we do our job. We have to win and see what happens in the other games.
“If we can play against Fiorentina with a chance to get through then it would be fantastic.
“The last time we qualified in this manner was amazing so if we can do it now it will also be amazing. It will be at the same level.”
If Liverpool and Lyon draw, then Benitez’s side must beat Fiorentina by three clear goals at home in a fortnight to progress.
Should both Liverpool and Lyon both win, a victory of any sort against Fiorentina would be enough, while any other combination of results would see the Anfield outfit eliminated.
Benitez has dismissed fears of any French conspiracy, and added: “I think Lyon have an incentive to finish top. If you can be qualified first maybe it can be and advantage but it can also help the confidence of the team. Fiorentina are strong at home but Lyon have quality and play well on the counter-attack, so we will see. I’m sure Lyon will try to win, they will be professional. The coach will try to win, because it will give him and the team confidence.
And Jamie Carragher said: “The hardest thing is our destiny isn’t in our own hands. When we have been in situations like this before, we have been able to sort it out ourselves.
“We have the belief we can do special things. We have done it with this team and manager over the last four or five years but it has been part of club for a long time. We have left ourselves a little bit of a hole and hopefully we can get out of it.”
The Anfield budget anticipates qualification to the knockout stages of the Champions League, and it is expected elimination would mean a £2.4million shortfall that could be recouped with progress in the Europa League.
A draw tonight would at least secure a berth in Europe’s secondary competition, and although Liverpool have kept only one clean sheet in 10 away games this season, Debrecen have leaked more goals – 12 – than anyone else in the group stage.
“It won’t be easy,” said Benitez. “They will try to impress and do well and try to win. There are no easy games in Europe, we will have to concentrate on our game. We know they can score goals, but they have conceded a lot too.
“We feel we can do well in defence but we know we have to score goals if we want to win. For us, how we approach the game is the same as all the other games. We are just think about winning. It’s simple for us. We have to go for the win and not think about anything else.”
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