Steven Gerrard has revealed his frustration at Liverpool's Jekyll and Hyde form.
The Anfield skipper, who will be delighted by manager Rafa Benitez's new deal, believes the first-half display against Real Madrid was the best the team have played in his 10 years at the club.
But he admits that a failure to consistently repeat that sort of performance has cost the Reds the chance to lift the title they so desperately crave.
Liverpool players will be hoping for more consistency now the manager's future is finally settled. And Gerrard has warned Liverpool must learn the lesson from the past week, even after thrashing Real and league leaders Manchester United.
In a veiled message, he hinted he would prefer the team to follow a more attacking plan, and go out and try to blow some of the lesser sides away, just as they did Madrid and United.
"I honestly can't remember us playing as well as we did in the first half against Real.
"I don't just mean in the Champions League or in Europe - I mean in any competition in all the time I've been playing for Liverpool," he said.
"In a way, though, that's disappointing. If we'd played like that every week, then we'd be five or six points clear at the top of the league. Real couldn't live with us and there's a lesson there for us all."
The lesson is that Liverpool must be more adventurous in their style of play, and take more risks going forward. Too often this season they have appeared to lack the ambition or belief to go out and take chances against some of the top flight's smaller clubs.
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Sides like Stoke, Hull, Fulham and West Ham have stolen points at Anfield, without ever being given a real examination.
Rafa Benitez is a known conservative whose philosophy is not to give the ball away when opponents defend deep - and that means less of an attacking policy.
But 10 draws this season tell their own story, and the Liverpool captain believes his side must recapture the mentality of the last week's huge wins to move forward.
"We've shown - the players, the manager and the fans - that we're a force when we pull it all together," said Gerrard.
Despite their win at Old Trafford on Saturday, Liverpool are surely still too far behind United to overhaul them in the title race.
But after murdering Madrid, Gerrard believes his side are now feared across Europe.
"I think the other seven teams in the quarter-final draw will have concerns about coming up against us after that," he said.
"Everyone who's got to this stage has done well. They all believe in themselves. But we believe in ourselves too." Daniel Agger is finally back from injury and could be included in the squad to face Aston Villa on Sunday.
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