Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez claimed on Monday that Jose Mourinho's comments regarding Steven Gerrard prove the Chelsea manager is "worried".

Mourinho said Gerrard would have won more trophies had he moved to the Blues instead of opting to sign a new contract at Anfield.

But Liverpool manager Benitez said: "I like to hear Mourinho talking about us. Maybe they're worried about us and think we'll be dangerous next season.

"As for Steven winning trophies, he will win more for us...maybe soon."

He added: "I like to see people talking about us, it means they are worried and we are an important club.

"I am convinced that we are a better team now than before, and that is why people talk about us. We are stronger than before and we are a more important team than before."

Gerrard seemed to be on the brink of a move to Chelsea this summer - only to sign a new Liverpool deal.

And Mourinho told The Times: "It will be a loss for him, for his career. He can say 'I was European champion at Liverpool' and that is correct.

"But I can say to him in the next 10 years we will compare trophies at Chelsea and Liverpool. And he'll lose."

However, Mourinho admitted the capture of Gerrard would have been a great boost to his team.

"Gerrard is a great player and we want an English core very much," he said.

"We normally play a midfield triangle and you can imagine that Gerrard and Frank Lampard, with Claude Makelele just behind them as protection, could be a very strong team but I think it is Gerrard's loss more than Chelsea's.

"Why? Because Chelsea have good solutions; a good team with the conditions to improve and a club that will be one of the best in the world in a short period of time."

Source: Xinhua