Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard cannot contain his disappointment and has called for his owners to start acting in order to mount a challenge for the Premiership title next season. He believes that the Reds lost out of the title race not only in form or fixture but because they were unable to mount a challenge even in the transfer market with Man United and Chelsea.

Gerrard has full faith in his manager Rafael Benitez and wants owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett to provide Rafa with the required funds to bring in new players. Benitez, to say the least has not have an easy season considering that there too has been much tinkering in the boardroom.

Gerrard said that “It hurts more and more when we get to November or December every season and have to accept we're out of the title race again. Every year seems to be following the same routine. The manager asks for more support in the transfer market in January, while we're all saying to ourselves this should have happened the previous summer.The time to act is now, not in January when we're already too far behind. The manager knows where we need to strengthen and the players and fans have faith in Rafa - but he needs the backing to act on his plans.When the American owners came to Liverpool they told the players and fans they wanted the same as us.We all believed them when they made that promise and it's been repeated again since, so we're all desperate to see it happen.”

Gerrard is an instrumental figure in Anfield, having won almost every championship there is in club level, except 1. He said “I've won every major honour at Liverpool except one. It hurts more and more not only to have never won the league, but to have never really gone close. It would be bad enough if we only narrowly missed out on the title, but we've never got to March or April recently and thought we were in contention. That's what we want more than anything at Anfield, but we'll only achieve that when everyone is working together for the same goal.”