Source: Daily_Mail
Steven Gerrard is OUT of Liverpool's do-or-die Champions League clash in Lyon
Out: Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard[LNB]Liverpool talisman Steven Gerrard is out of Wednesday's crunch Champions League clash against Lyon.[LNB]Gerrard's spell on the sidelines with a groin injury has coincidedwith the Reds' sorry spell that has seen them lose six of the lastseven in all competitions.[LNB]And underfire Rafa Benitez will go into the do-or-die clash in Lyon without his talisman, the Spaniard confirmed: 'Gerrard won't travel to Lyon. He has no chance. [LNB]'He is improving but wehave to wait. He has had an injection but we have to wait two or threedays and see how he reacts.'[LNB]The Anfield club will also be without Albert Riera (hamstring), Martin Kelly (ankle) and Martin Skrtel (muscle), while Daniel Agger (back), Glen Johnson (calf), Fabio Aurelio(calf) and David Ngog (ankle) are all facing late fitness checks.[LNB]But beleaguered Benitez hopes to have big money summer signing Alberto Aquilani available for selection.[LNB]Benitez said: 'Aquilani had a virus. He trained today but was alittle bit weak. Hopefully in two days' time he will be better.'[LNB]The Reds boss believes his controversial decision to take off Fernando Torres at the weekend gives the star striker a chance of facing Lyon.[LNB]Torres, suffering with a groin strain, was replaced by Ryan Babel after 62 minutes of the Reds' defeat 3-1 by Fulham at Craven Cottage on Saturday.[LNB]Enlarge On target: Torres scores against Fulham before being substituted[LNB]The teams were tied 1-1 at the time but conceded twice in the last 17 minutes and also saw Philipp Degen and Jamie Carragher sent off.[LNB]However, Benitez defended the decision to take off Torres and hopes that the prolific goalscorer will be able to line up in France in the crunch Champions League tie on Wednesday.[LNB]'We will see how he is,' Benitez told the Liverpool Echo. 'He needed four days (to recover) the last time, so we knew there would be a problem (for Fulham).[LNB]Playing through the pain: Fernando Torres takes a breather against Fulham[LNB]'We will see in the next couple of days how he is going to react to this. We knew it was going to be difficult for him to play and we had to decide.[LNB]'The other day (against Manchester United), he played 80 minutes but needed four days to recover. He still has some problems but we had to decide whether to start with him (at Fulham) or use him from the bench.[LNB]'We decided that it was better to start with him, so he couldwarm-up properly. It was a difficult decision, as we knew it could be arisk and we might lose him for even more time.[LNB]'We kept him on for 60 minutes then tried to protect the player. I prefer to lose a player for 20 or 30 minutes, not one month.'[LNB]Liverpool are third in Champions League Group E and cannot afford to lose in Lyon.[LNB]Theyare almost certainly going to be without captain Steven Gerrard for thematch, but Alberto Aquilani (virus), Fabio Aurelio (calf) and DanielAgger (back) could be back in contention.[LNB] Rafa Benitez on the rack: Future of Liverpool boss hinges on next three matches Reina backs Rafa to overcome Reds plight as keeper eyes new Anfield dealLiverpool legend Whelan berates Benitez's costly Euro juggling actRoberto Mancini settles Inter severance as Italian's availability increases heat on under-fire Liverpool boss Rafa BenitezJamie Redknapp report: The fans' faith in Rafa Benitez will not last foreverLIVERPOOL FC
