Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has insisted that the playing surface at Anfield may hinder his side's progress this season if it is not rectified.

The Reds have been in scintillating form since the turn of the year, going 12 games without defeat in the Premier League and winning four on the bounce.

That has left the Merseyside outfit within touching distance of a top-four spot once again, although Rodgers believes that the surface at Liverpool's home ground is proving a real hindrance to their European hopes.

"You can see the excitement we are creating when we go forward and it is not being helped by our pitch, which is not the best," he is quoted as saying by ESPN following last night's 2-0 win over Burnley. "We need to do something about the pitch because we need a better pitch if we are going to play the game we are playing."

Liverpool return to action at the weekend when they play host to Blackburn Rovers in the FA Cup.