Source: FOOTYMAD
Roy explains duo decision
Roy Hodgson has explained why he left Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres back on Merseyside. The pair won't even be on the subsitutes bench for tonight's Europa League game in Napoli, a suprising decision given Hodgson admitted he made a mistake in having no experience on the bench against Northampton in the Carling Cup. The boss explained his decision to reporters last night. "They are perfectly okay. If I had asked them to play they would have been prepared to do so," he said. "When it comes to Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres, we have an important league game on Sunday. It is my decision and I thought that it would be better to spare them this game and to give the responsibility to other players in the squad tomorrow to show they deserve their place in the Liverpool squad and that they can do the job. "They've done well so far. In the six matches we've played in the Europa League, Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres have only played in a couple. "It was very straightforward for me because it was a question of priority. We've got four points from two games in this group, so we have started well. We have got four matches left to play to get the maybe necessary six points we'll need to qualify. "For me, it was quite simply a priority, after recent events and our very poor start to the season. I totally agree we need a win, but I think we more badly need the win on Sunday than we do tomorrow. "I wouldn't want to be in the situation where I'd played Gerrard or Torres and one of them got injured or was tired come Sunday and our performance suffered. I want to make certain on Sunday our performance will not suffer from tomorrow night. "If we then lose it and people say we chose a weakened team and prioritised Sunday's game over this one, I would have to hold my hand up and say I did."
