Category
- LFC News ( 713 )
- Transfers - Rumours ( 110 )
Popular Posts
-
Samuel Eto'o was undergoing a medical with Liverpool on Friday afternoon ahead of signing a one-year deal The 33-year-old was ...
-
After defeat to Manchester United in the champions cup, most Liverpool fans are wondering where would the goals come from after the ...
-
Manchester City, preseason title favorites, remain on top of that list, while Liverpool, who didn’t even finish high enough last season to r...
-
Liverpool proved they are not ready to be replaced in the top flight elite by Manchester City just yet as Yossi Benayoun's equaliser sec...
-
LIVERPOOL have opened talks with Monaco over a stunning move for striker Radamel Falcao. Sources in Italy claim the Reds are set t...
-
Liverpool produced a smash and grab Merseyside derby victory to claim fifth place in the Premier League on a day of raw tension at Goodison ...
-
"Foul Play: The Seven Deadly Sins of Football" have been put together by a team of the Guardian and Observer's award-winning s...
-
Rafael Benitez praised Liverpool's character and refused to criticise his side's performance, despite the Anfield club throwing away...
-
Arsenal and Liverpool have both been linked with mega-moves for Edinson Cavani of PSG. The Liverpool Echo quoted the striker's...
-
The Metro has suggested that Borussia Dortmund’s star winger Marco Reus could be leaving the club, with his agent hinting at the pos...
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Aquilani finally to make his Anfield Debut
Liverpool's fans will finally get the chance to welcome £20 million Alberto Aquilani to Anfield on Monday.
The Italy international, signed in August, has been recovering from a knee operation since. Now, having also overcome a recent virus problem, the 25-year-old seems certain to make his Premier League debut for the club against Birmingham.
The fans have waited so long to see the man bought to replace Xabi Alonso, so he can expect a hero's reception. Certainly his appearance in the squad will give Liverpool's worried support something to cheer with fitness doubts surrounding Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard.
Manager Rafael Benitez looks likely to name Aquilani on the bench, and give him the opportunity of a cameo appearance in the second half.
Benitez said: "It could be the time to let the Anfield fans see Aquilani at last. He has been getting fitter and had a short spell in a reserve game and then a few minutes at Arsenal in the Carling Cup.
"We had him with us in Lyon last week and I did want to bring him on. But Lucas and Javier Mascherano were controlling the game. So we waited a bit, we did not want to change they way the side were playing, even though he could have come on. Then we scored and there was no need to use him, it was just a shame we conceded so late.
"He was almost over the virus and he will certainly be much better on Monday. He has trained well. He does not have match fitness, but the only way to improve that is to play him in games.
"We have more players available now, so maybe he can be on the bench and then come on to change the game if necessary. He will certainly be involved.''
Torres has the better chance of being involved against the Midlanders as he struggles with a groin problem.
Gerrard has barely trained for a fortnight, but Benitez was pleased with his involvement in a training session yesterday and his chances of facing Birmingham improved.
Fabio Aurelio, Martin Skrtel and Albert Riera are also likely to return from injuries. Glen Johnson has also improved his after training this weekend, but he and Martin Kelly are still struggling.
Benitez at least needs Torres on the pitch for a game Liverpool must win to keep themselves in contention for a top four place.
He said: "We hope to be able to keep going with Fernando. Maybe he can be available for Birmingham, we will see how it goes. It was a risk to play him against Manchester United, but he scored a fantastic goal and everyone was saying what a massive difference he makes.
"He played, and scored, at Fulham and I was criticised by a lot of 'experts' because he was taken off in the second half. They can see that he has a problem, but the same thing happened in Lyon when I took him off.
"You cannot win. It does not matter what you do, someone will always criticise you. It is too easy. Fernando will play if he continues to have less pain than before. Does he need an operation? Nobody really knows, we'll wait and see.
"I have had many players with this problem under my management over the years. They carried on, and sometimes you can play for the whole season with such a problem.
"But I have been surprised at what some critics have said about Torres' involvement. People who have played football for years seem not to understand that the manager has more information.
"So when they are on TV, they just talk and they do not really know the situation. I have enough experience to cope. I understand how our club is treated by the pundits in England, and the things that critics say and why.
"Hopefully people who do understand the game will know how difficult it is to manage a team like ours. I hope they can be more respectful and know we are trying to do our job here in a difficult situation.
"We have a lot of confidence in our team, our squad, our staff and especially our fans to understand what we are doing.''
Labels:
LFC News
Subscribe to:
Post Comments
(
Atom
)
Contact Us
Please Feel Free to Give Comments Or Suggestion.Mail us at
liverpoolfc4ever10
@gmail.com
liverpoolfc4ever.blogspot
@gmail.com
No comments :
Post a Comment