Reds sweat on Skrtel injury verdict

Rafa Benitez is awaiting to hear if Martin Skrtel faces a long spell on the sidelines after he limped off in Liverpool's 1-1 draw in Thailand.

Skrtel limped off 10 minutes after coming on at half-time in Bangkok and while Benitez said it was too early to tell how long the defender could be ruled out for, it was nevertheless an unwanted blow.

"I'm really disappointed because Martin has had a problem with his hamstring and a little bit with the ligaments in his knee, so we have to wait," he said.

Jamie Carragher echoed his manager's disappointment over his centre-back partner's exit.

"That's part and parcel of football. It's disappointing but hopefully he will be ready for the start of the season because he's a top player," he said.

Despite being held by Peter Reid's team and seeing his charges spurn a number of chances, Benitez was nevertheless pleased with Liverpool's performance.

"We had some chances, we were playing against a team that was well organised, and they play quick," the Spaniard said.

"So you come to a new continent and conditions are different, always more difficult, but I was pleased with the performance of some players.

"We knew that physically they are strong, they are quick, and then the pace of the other team is important. So we had to have some really good movement and I was really pleased with them."

Benitez, though, was reluctant to talk up his side's Premier League title chances this term following last season's impressive campaign.

"We have to keep working and try to be contenders," he added.

"I don't think that we need to put any pressure on anyone. So we just keep improving and then we can stay there."