Gerrard fear for Reds

09 April 2009 13:25
Liverpool are bracing themselves for bad news as they await an assessment of Steven Gerrard's latest fitness concern. The Reds captain arrived at the club's Melwood training complex for fitness tests on Thursday morning and results are being reviewed by medical experts. Gerrard was a doubt for Wednesday's UEFA Champions League quarter-final first-leg defeat to Chelsea after being substituted late on in last weekend's win at Fulham as a precaution due to an ankle problem. The 29-year-old has experienced a number of fitness problems this season and was sidelined in February with a hamstring injury, and he has also suffered with groin problems. There is now speculation that the England midfielder has suffered a recurrence of a previous groin complaint. As yet a decision has not been made over whether he needs a scan on the injury, which could rule him out of Saturday's Premier League clash with Blackburn and next Tuesday' return leg with Chelsea. Liverpool have not confirmed any injury setback for Gerrard but after the defeat to Chelsea, boss Rafa Benitez alluded to a new problem. He said: "Steven was not 100 per cent - you could see that. It was the same for Fernando Torres, you could see that they were a little tired, not as sharp as before. "But they have been playing well and we felt it was okay to use them both in this game. We need them. "But credit to Chelsea, they were always controlling Steven and making it difficult for him to play. "He was not as mobile as normally, Chelsea made it very difficult for him. "But the difference in this match was that Chelsea played really well and we didn't. "The injury he had on Saturday was not the problem, his ankle was okay. But we do not know how he is, we will see tomorrow."

Source: SKY_Sports