Houllier said: "It's good we have a week without two games for the first time since October. We are going through a bad period and maybe the break will be good for us.
"The players were a little tired at times against Aston Villa but I felt we showed a great spirit and attitude.
"I liked the last 20 minutes when we took the initiative and took more risks. At times we showed some good stuff but at times we were nervous and too uptight."