RAFAEL BENITEZ remains confident the Anfield factor can propel Liverpool into the Europa League final despite a disappointing defeat in Madrid last night.

An arduous 1,200-mile journey to the Spanish capital ended with Diego Forlan’s ninth-minute goal earning a 1-0 victory for Atletico Madrid in their semi-final first leg clash.

Without injured striker Fernando Torres, Liverpool struggled to create any chances although they could point to a first-half Yossi Benayoun strike that was wrongly disallowed.

Having already delivered stirring Anfield fightbacks against Lille and then Benfica in reaching the semi-finals, Benitez’s men must now produce another in next Thursday’s return encounter.

The three previous times Liverpool have lost away in the first leg of a European semi-final, they have gone on to reach the final.

And the Spaniard believes his players can draw on that illustrious past and book a place at Hamburg on May 12.

“There are no favourites for this game,” said Benitez. “At 1-0 it’s always dangerous, but we have confidence from what we have done in the past.

“We had the same situation against Lille and Benfica and we could manage it and could win, so I have confidence we can do it again. It will be easier for us to play better and score more goals.

“In the club’s history there have been times where we have lost the first leg but gone on to reach the final.

“I am still confident of reaching the final. I have a lot of confidence in Anfield, our fans and our players. They get behind the players and are always positive for us.”