Rafael Benitez turned down the chance to manage Real Madrid in the summer because of his commitment to Liverpool

"It was pretty serious and for Rafa it was clearly a temptation because Real Madrid is his club. He has been there as a player and as a coach," said Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry.

"It will always be an opportunity he will have to consider but we sat down for a few hours together and talked about the direction the club was taking.

"He believed in the direction we are taking and he believed in the way we are going about it. We are all passionate to win trophies and the one we would really love to win is the Premier League.

"Rafa is impatient for success, as we all are. He enjoys being in Liverpool and the point is that he believed in the direction we were taking and that our mutual ambitions still matched."