Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez has revealed that Steven Gerrard has expressed concern about his own form during the team’s disappointing season.
England midfielder Gerrard was in the form of his life this time last season and had 11 goals to his name as Benitez’s side went into the festive program on top of the table.
Yet the Liverpool captain has looked out-of-sorts during a frustrating campaign disrupted by injury. Gerrard has managed just four goals so far for his club, who start this Christmas in eighth spot, 14 points adrift of leaders Chelsea.
“Steven knows that he has to improve, but that for me is very positive,” said Benitez, ahead of Liverpool’s home game with Wolverhampton Wanderers today.
“He realizes he is a very important player for us and we were analyzing his stats and he was doing much better. The last game he wasn’t at the same level but that can happen in one game,” he said. “He knows he is improving physically and the main thing now is confidence.”
Gerrard has struggled since returning to action after an adductor problem.
He has not scored in his last eight outings while his milestone 500th appearance for the club earlier this month ended in anti-climax, a 0-0 stalemate against Blackburn.
But Benitez is confident that he will quickly rediscover the type of form that saw him score 25 times for club and country last season.
“I feel that he wants to give more,” Benitez said. “I am 100 percent sure that he wants to give more. He is the captain and he is very important for the team and the club. He is someone who is pushing now and wants to improve.”
“Have I had a meeting with him about it? We have a lot of corridors here and we bump into one another. We don’t need to organize a proper meeting,” he said.
“I have a lot of conversations not just with Steven but a lot of players and they know they want to improve. Sometimes they try too hard,” the Spaniard said.
With Liverpool marooned in mid-table, Benitez is testing the patience of the club’s supporters and failure to defeat lowly Wolves would only add to the pressure.
“Our fans are really important to us and we will try to do our best for them on Saturday and for the rest of the season,” Benitez said, who is without suspended Argentine midfielder Javier Mascherano.
“They are always supporting the team and the players know they will be with them against Wolves,” he said. “We had an early kick-off at Portsmouth but we could hear our fans singing at half-time. We were really disappointed with the result and we have to do more for them.”
“To play too many games over Christmas is not the best because of the weather, but the game on Saturday is a good experience and we want to win it for our supporters,” Benitez said.
With Mascherano starting a four-match ban following his dismissal against Portsmouth, injury-plagued Italian midfielder Alberto Aquilani could make his first league start for the club since his £20 million (US$32 million) arrival from Roma.
Japan’s Shohei Ohtani is the record-breaking baseball “superhuman” following in the footsteps of the legendary Babe Ruth who has also earned comparisons to US sporting greats Michael Jordan and Tom Brady. Not since Ruth a century ago has there been a baseball player capable of both pitching and hitting at the top level. The 30-year-old’s performances with the Los Angeles Dodgers have consolidated his position as a baseball legend in the making, and a national icon in his native Japan. He continues to find new ways to amaze, this year becoming the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases
Zhang Shuai yesterday said that she nearly quit after losing 24 matches in a row — now the world No. 595 is into the quarter-finals of her home China Open. The 35-year-old is to face Spain’s Paula Badosa as the lowest-ranked player to reach this stage in the history of the tournament after Badosa reeled off 11 of the last 12 games in a 6-4, 6-0 victory over US Open finalist Jessica Pegula. Zhang went into Beijing on a barren run lasting more than 600 days and her string of singles defeats was the second-longest on the WTA Tour Open era, which
More than 180 years of horse racing came to an end in Singapore on Saturday, as the Singapore Turf Club hosted its final race day before its track is handed back to the Singaporean government to provide land for new homes. Under an overcast sky, the air-conditioned VIP boxes were full of enthusiasts, socialites and expats, while the grounds and betting halls below hosted mostly older-generation punters. The sun broke through for the last race, the last-ever Grand Singapore Gold Cup. The winner, South African jockey Muzi Yeni, echoed a feeling of loss shared by many on the day. “I’d
Francesco Bagnaia yesterday profited from a mistake by rookie Pedro Acosta to win the Japan MotoGP sprint and close the gap on overall championship leader, Jorge Martin. Spaniard Acosta crashed with four laps to go while leading the field at Motegi, allowing defending world champion Bagnaia to take first ahead of Enea Bastianini and Marc Marquez. Spain’s Martin finished fourth and saw his overall lead over Italian Bagnaia in the championship standings cut to 15 points. “I am very happy because with these conditions, it’s not very easy to win and gain points,” Bagnaia said after a sprint race that took place under
RSS