Pennant’s performance drew praise from manager Benitez, who has reiterated his demand for the winger to be more selfish in front of goal.
“He’s been playing really well,” said the Spaniard. “He scored a fantastic goal on Saturday and was working hard against Ashley Cole. I’ve been speaking to him before and telling him to score more goals.
“He needs to be a bit more selfish -– sometimes he tries to assist or cross instead. He has a lot of quality.”
Steve McClaren was in attendance at Anfield on Saturday ahead of naming his squad later this month for England’s friendly against Spain on February 7.
Pennant, who has yet to receive a call-up to the senior national team squad, could be a consideration, but the player said: “All I can do is just keep on playing as well as I can, put the performances in and then we will see what happens.”
Liverpool’s win, the eighth in their last nine Premiership games, moved them to within five points of second-placed Chelsea.
And while Pennant admits it was not a terminal blow to the Londoners’ title challenge, the result shows Benitez’s side can still overhaul their rivals in the table.
“It’s a massive blow for Chelsea, yes, especially as they don’t lose many games,” he said. “United are on a bit of a roll at the moment, but Chelsea can still put together a run between now and the end of the season.
“This result is a massive boost for us. We have some big games coming up, and we can gain confidence from this win.
“Second place is the target now. It’s important we keep the momentum going.”
Meanwhile, left-back Stephen Warnock yesterday completed his move to Blackburn Rovers for a fee believed to be in the region of £1.5million.
Benitez hopes to sign 18-year-old striker Jordy Brouwer from Ajax this week. He would step into the reserve team for now, with Liverpool having to just pay the Dutch team compensation.
Liverpool’s reserves take on Everton in the mini-derby at Wrexham’s Racecourse Ground tonight, kick-off 7pm.
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