Fulham boss Roy Hodgson was proud of his players after their 3-1 victory over Liverpool.

Bobby Zamora put Fulham ahead and Fernando Torres equalised in a first half in which Liverpool dominated possession.

But when Erik Nevland put Fulham ahead for the second time and Torres had been substituted there was only one winner, Clint Dempsey scoring a late clincher for the home side.

Hodgson said: "We had to work hard to keep them at bay. They had more possession than us and at one stage I couldn't see us holding out.

"But we got closer to them in the second half. We started to create chances and took some of them. We're getting better as a team."

He admitted he had not offered any sympathy to Benitez.

"I would regard that as patronage," Hodgson said. "I just wished him luck for Wednesday."

There is no chance Hodgson, however, will let his Fulham side get carried away with the result.

He said: "We still have got a lot of work to do. I am preaching modesty and humility. To be in the Premier League and to be playing Liverpool and Manchester United and Chelsea is a wonderful achievement for Fulham.

"It is important to keep our feet on the ground and we will have to because this year European competition is a huge stretch on our resources."