The Reds manager said that whilst Liverpool eventually got the double signing of Anthony Le Tallec and Pongolle, both players were of great interest to Valencia.
Benitez said:"We tried to sign Sinama and Le Tallec for Valencia. My scout said that he had seen two very good players - but Liverpool paid a lot of money for them so it came to nothing."
He added: "We knew Le Tallec was the best player in the under-17 World Cup, and Sinama was the top scorer. There's definitely the potential there - they are both good players. They need to play at this level and then they will get more confidence."
