Gerrard: it was a pen

Athletico Madrid were furious when the referee pointed to the penalty spot for a shove on Gerrard in the final minute of injury time last night to rescue a point for the Reds. The Liverpool skipper says he understood Athletico's fury with the timing but says it was still a pen.

"I'll have to have another look at it, but in my mind it was a penalty. I got there first and he came into the back of me. If it had happened anywhere else on the pitch it would be a free kick, so it was a penalty," he said.

"I can understand their disappointment because of the timing of it. If it had happened at the other end we would have been livid. But that's football and we have to move on.

"It was a big result for us tonight and a big point. Good teams usually don't lose two games in a row and so it was important we got something.

"The first half wasn't good enough and we know that. We upped it in the second half, played at a higher tempo and pressed harder. We're still in a strong position in the group now.

"We showed a lot of character tonight and we have to take that into the next league game."