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Liverpool may end a roller-coaster week back in the Barclays Premier League top four.

Having started with a humiliation at the hands of Barnsley in the FA Cup last Saturday, they responded by beating Inter Milan in a stunning Champions League triumph on Tuesday.

With current fourth-placed club Everton not playing until Monday at Manchester City, if Liverpool beat Middlesbrough at Anfield tomorrow they will go above their Merseyside rivals on goal difference.

They will have to do it without key defender Jamie Carragher, who is suspended after picking up a fifth booking of the season against Barnsley last weekend.

While manager Rafael Benitez has been under fire, so have a string of under-achieving players - one of whom is striker Dirk Kuyt - the Dutchman without a goal since mid-December before his effort in the defeat by Barnsley.

But he followed that up with a cracker against Inter Milan, with Steven Gerrard adding a second to give Liverpool a good chance of reaching the European quarter-finals.

Kuyt certainly understands the tensions of the current Liverpool situation.

"I think there is pressure on all of us, the players and the manager," he said.

"Everybody was expecting a lot from Liverpool this season, but unfortunately we have not played that well the last few months.

"But at least we have shown that we are a better team (against Inter) than last Saturday (against Barnsley)."

Kuyt knows, however, more progress is needed.

"We know we have to keep focused now - because we want to play many more good games, not only in the Champions League but also in the league," he added.

If Benitez is to continue to ease the pressure on himself he must steer a winning course through the tough and important fixtures still looming.

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