RAFAEL BENITEZ has dismissed suggestions of a dressing room bust-up involving captain Steven Gerrard and is convinced the Liverpool squad remains united.

Rumours in the wake of the FA Cup exit to Reading last Wednesday claimed Gerrard was the centre of an argument among players and staff.

Gerrard was replaced at half-time that night after suffering a hamstring injury which will rule him out for a fortnight.

But that didn’t stop the 29-year-old making the trip to the Potteries on Saturday where only a last-gasp equaliser prevented Liverpool claiming a morale-boosting victory.

And Benitez said: “Steven wanted to show his commitment. He was in the dressing room with me, Sammy, Pellegrino and the rest of the players and staff. There is no problem.

“He is very disappointed that we have not won these games like everyone else but he was here to help. He is the captain and he was here supporting the team. People were asking me about rumours of a disagreement but it is 100% not true. He knows it is important to be with the team.”

A depleted Liverpool had taken a 57th-minute lead through Sotirios Kyrgiakos’s first goal for the club before Robert Huth drew Stoke level in the 90th minute.

The visitors had two clear penalties ignored by referee Lee Mason, and Benitez believes his side responded in the right manner following their dismal FA Cup defeat.

“We tried to do our job and we showed here that the team is full of character,” said the Liverpool manager.

“The effort of players was fantastic. We were so close to winning that you have to be disappointed but the performance was good against a team that is very physical.

“Every ball was in the air and followed by a challenge and a challenge and a challenge. With five or six players out injured I thought we did well.

“The end probably sums up our luck at the moment. But we still should have had two penalties that could have changed everything.”

Benitez added: “In this case you know that with every foul, throw-in and corner the ball will come into your box and it is very difficult against this 100% effectiveness. Sometimes you can make one mistake and you pay for it.

“We have had this problem in a few important games now, two against Lyon in the Champions League and we were out, one in the FA Cup against Reading and we were out. It is difficult to manage. The Reading game was different to this one. We made some mistakes with our positioning against Reading and this one, there are 20 balls into the box every single minute so it is not easy to defend.”