Rafa eyes Gerrard impact

19 October 2009 16:39
Rafa Benitez believes the return of Steven Gerrard from injury can inspire Liverpool to turn around their recent poor form. The Reds captain missed the 1-0 defeat to Sunderland at the weekend, along with Fernando Torres, with a groin injury but trained on Monday ahead of the UEFA Champions League clash with Lyon. Liverpool have seen their form dip alarmingly over the last few weeks, with the defeat at the Stadium of Light their third successive loss and their fourth in the Premier League overall. However, Benitez is hoping the return of Gerrard will give the team a much needed lift at a crucial stage of the season, with rivals Manchester United visiting Anfield on Sunday. "With Steven around, it has an effect on the other players. He is an inspiration to them," he said. "Steven is a winner with the right mentality. But we have to see these players on the pitch, they cannot win games when they are injured. "The team knows we are not playing at the right level, but they also know that we are good enough. "They know we must start playing again at that level, their response in training has been positive and we must repeat that on the pitch. One good result will change everything. "It is important to have Steven back, we have had some problems with injuries right from the start of the season so it is a big boost for us to have him back. "Torres is not ready so we will have to wait a little bit longer but hopefully he will be okay for the weekend against Manchester United. "The problems we have had this season have been too many to solve. We have had problems with our centre-backs, then there was Gerrard unfit and now we also have forwards out." The fact that Liverpool saw Darren Bent's effort on Saturday crucially divert off a beach ball, which was ironically bought at the club's megastore, sums up the Reds' season so far but Benitez is confident his side will soon turn the corner. "We have virtually the same group of players as we had last season and that ended up with us finishing second," he added. "We need confidence and some wins, there is no need to start worrying. I believe we are strong enough to compete just as we did last season. "These players have the quality, they need to play one or two good games and everything will improve. "It is not the end of the world, it is a bad position but we will come back and start fighting again."

Source: SKY_Sports