After his side were fortunate to scrape a 1-1 third round draw away to Reading, Rafael Benitez insisted the FA Cup remained a top priority for Liverpool.

When Simon Church gave the hosts a 24th minute lead after Benitez’s side failed to deal with a free-kick, Reading–who sit two points and two places above the second-tier Championship relegation zone–threatened an upset.

On Saturday, Steven Gerrard’s hopeful long shot rescued a draw for Liverpool at the Madejski Stadium in Reading, England to set up a replay, currently scheduled to take place at Anfield on January 12.

If they are to complete the job at the second attempt, Benitez admitted his team must improve.

The Spanish manager said, “I’m relieved. I think it was difficult. I think they (Reading) played really well. To play in front of the TV (cameras) and against Liverpool I think was a massive boost for them and you could see they played really well.”

(article and photo source: AFP)