Ahead of tonight's Champions League qualifier against Standard Liege, Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has insisted he is much more concerned with collecting silverware than topping up his transfer kitty...


The Reds will pocket some £16million if they can down their Belgian visitors to earn their spot in the group stages of Europe's top club competition.

Such a windfall could provide a huge boost for Benitez as he attempts to wrap up his summer business before the transfer window closes on September 1.

And while the Spanish tactician admitted the financial bonus is certainly a plus, he insisted that winning titles is the primary focus at Anfield.

He was quoted in The Sun as saying: “The first thing for me is the silverware. I like to talk about trophies.

“After that comes money. You have to put both things together but for me, we are here to win titles.

“But the one thing we know is we need to win for different reasons. I am not thinking about losing.”

And Benitez has sought to instill a similar view in his players, with a message along the lines of 'to the victors go the spoils'.

He added: “I spoke to my players and told them if you win games and trophies, you will have more money. It’s the same for the club.

“We know the money is really important but it won’t make a difference now we are so close to the transfer window closing.”