Houllier denies a confidence crisis at Liverpool
Liverpool manager Gerard Houllier has scoffed at suggestions his side are suffering a confidence crisis after their Champions League exit.
The English premier league leaders failed to qualify for the second stages of Europe's top tournament this week by drawing in Basel in the wake of losing their unbeaten domestic league record in the 1-0 defeat at Middlesbrough last weekend.
But Houllier has drummed home the message that the Reds are still the team to beat in the race for honours at home.
"I have had to remind my players they are still top of the premiership," the Frenchman told reporters on Friday.
"The way people are talking you would imagine there is a crisis, but if we are having the same crisis at the end of the season when we are still top of the table I will be happy.
"It's just a shame that we lost the game at Middlesbrough when we should not have done, because since then everyone is selling doubts about us.
"All I can say is we know where we are and we want to keep hold of that position."
DIP IN FORM
Houllier went as far as admitting a "dip" in form, saying: "No team goes through a whole season without dips, but a setback is always, to me, an opportunity and a gift.
"The dip was going out of the Champions League, but right now we have played 21 games and scored 39 goals -- not bad for a boring team!
"We have had more shots on goal than any other premier league team except Manchester United and I have been pleased with the attitude again this week because everyone seems to have put the defeat at Basel to the back of their mind."
Houllier has no fresh injury worries ahead of Sunday's Anfield clash with Sunderland, but hinted that influential playmaker Steven Gerrard may be taken out of the crossfire until he regains his flagging form.
The struggling England midfielder was criticised by his manager after being substituted at halftime during Tuesday's 3-3 draw in Switzerland.
Houllier said: "Steven is not going through a good period -- he knows that. We will help him to come through this bad patch and maybe in a month we will laugh at all of this because he will be back to his best, but in the meantime we miss him.
"When we think it is the right time to play him in the team again, we will play him.
"We have given him many chances to get back into the team and show what he can do but it hasn't worked out.
"You give a chance, another chance and another chance (for him) to go one way, but unfortunately it went the other way.
"We rely on him, we like him and we want him in the team as soon as possible, but he knows he is not doing well. "He is an honest player, but we are all here to help him."
