RAFAEL BENITEZ believes Liverpool deserved the fortune of the debatable penalty that salvaged a draw against Birmingham City – as Albert Riera and Yossi Benayoun added to the club’s injury crisis.

Steven Gerrard marked his return by netting a 71st-minute spot-kick to earn Benitez’s side a 2-2 draw against the Midlanders at Anfield last night.

But Birmingham were furious at referee Peter Walton for the award after David Ngog appeared to hurdle the challenge of substitute Lee Carsley before falling to the turf.

Television replays showed there was no contact between the players and while Benitez sympathised with the visitors, he was grateful for a change in his team’s luck.

“It was a pity to score from a penalty that maybe wasn’t a penalty but we deserved to score more goals in the second half,” said Benitez.

“It wasn’t a penalty. But we have had a lot of situations this year against us, and this was one for us from a game where we deserved more.

“It’s important to be honest about these things. If it’s clear, then it is clear. Sometimes you have to accept it. We were attacking and attacking and deserved to win, but maybe it wasn’t a penalty. I haven’t seen the replay. I asked David and he said maybe it wasn’t a penalty. If you analyse the last few games, you can see the team is doing well, creating a lot of chances. Sometimes you cannot do any more.”

Ngog had given Liverpool a 13th-minute lead only for Birmingham to go into the break 2-1 ahead after goals against the run of play from Christian Benitez and a 30-yard stunner from Cameron Jerome. Benitez praised the character of his team for the manner in which they fought back in the second half.

“We have to be disappointed because it’s a draw at home but the performance of the team was again pretty good for me,” said Benitez. “We had plenty of possession and a lot of attempts. We showed character until the end. In the last 15 minutes I think everyone in the stadium thought we’d score the third goal. Sometimes it’s a matter of accuracy, sometimes it’s a matter of luck.