Jamie Carragher will arrive at his 100th European appearance for Liverpool at San Siro next month but, even with his vast experience, he is no closer to an explanation for his team's regular metamorphoses in the Champions League.

The Anfield vice-captain yesterday proffered Marco Materazzi's sending-off and an arcane spirit for Liverpool's victory over Internazionale, though a gentle rebuke for rotating in the wrong places revealed frustration at Rafael Benitez's methods.

"There is just something about us that we are always confident in Europe," said Carragher.

"We fielded our main players as well, which makes a difference, and the sending-off did help us."

Tuesday night provided another example of Liverpool's improved concentration, sense of occasion and, ultimately against the 10 men of Inter, penetration, as they rebounded from their FA Cup defeat by Barnsley.

Four days earlier Benitez omitted Steven Gerrard, Javier Mascherano and Jose Reina from his starting line-up and invited further pressure on his job as the club's last chance of a domestic trophy went begging (Fernando Torres had been unfit).

Even before graffiti appeared outside Melwood demanding Benitez select his strongest side, the manager admitted to a team meeting on Sunday that rest was no longer necessary in the pursuit of fourth place and a sixth European Cup.

"We've got four league games before the return and we have to reproduce this level of performance because we want to be in this competition next time as well," added Carragher, whose last performance on Italian soil will encourage Liverpool's hopes of finishing the task in Milan on March 11th.

Of the defender's 99 European appearances, a club record, few have surpassed the night in April 2005 when he defied a Juventus attack containing Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Alessandro Del Piero. Fabio Capello's side needed to beat Jerzy Dudek only once to capitalise on their goal scored at Anfield - and this against a Liverpool starting XI including Djimi Traore, Antonio Nunez, Igor Biscan and Milan Baros - but Carragher is not about to invite complacency.

"Even when they went to 10 men Inter impressed me, so I expect a very different game over there.

"The sending-off had an impact on the game but they defended brilliantly, even though we ended up getting those two goals.

"Before the game we would have been delighted with that result, and I must admit I did believe we were going to get a breakthrough. We created loads of chances, kept plugging away, and we got them in the end.

"It does put pressure on them now. It was very important not to concede a goal at home - that was the big thing in the minds of the lads at the back. I think 1-0 would have been a great result, and the second was just the icing on the cake."

The cake decorator, Gerrard, missed that goalless draw in Turin, Liverpool winning the quarter-final 2-1 on aggregate en route to victory in Istanbul, and Carragher believes his captain's performance against Inter demonstrated that he is warming to the competition once again.

"Stevie is one of the best players in the world," he insisted. "There are a lot of world-class players in the big teams in the Champions League but Stevie's the one who makes the decisive impact in the end. He stole the show again."

Dirk Kuyt's role in Tuesday's win should not be overlooked, however, nor Benitez's faith in a player whose father died following a long battle with cancer last year and who has endured a poor campaign since then.

"I have put a difficult period behind me and I only want to look forward now," said the Dutch forward, scorer of the first goal against Inter. "It was a great moment for me when I scored. It was so important. It's funny because I said to Stevie that maybe we should now just keep the ball and get a clean sheet. He said, 'No, we want another goal', and he was right."

Benitez said: "This lead now is a big boost. We have confidence, because Inter are at the moment the best in Europe.

"They are top in Italy and have now lost just two games all season.

"If you can beat teams like that and play well, it gives us a high level of confidence in the squad.

"Now we have another important league game at the weekend at home to Middlesbrough. What we need to be is more consistent now."