LFC no goals in europe for 11 months

html Ben’tez aims to rediscover Reds' goalscoring touch Rafael Ben’tez is looking for goals against Galatasaray, but will a different lineup for the 93rd game in succession help or hinder his players?

September 27, 2006 01:00 AM

"Liverpool have little reason to recall Djibril CissŽ's goalscoring prowess on Merseyside with much affection, though the memory of one of his relatively rare contributions hounds them still. Last November Harry Kewell slipped the Frenchman through Anderlecht's defence for CissŽ to clip the ball beyond Sylvio Proto.

Yet 11 months on that remains the last goal Liverpool scored in the Champions League proper. These days the likes of Kewell and CissŽ almost conjure images of a bygone era, though the current crop must attempt to rediscover some of that swagger if they are to dismiss Galatasaray this evening.

"I'd prefer to be positive," said Rafael Ben’tez yesterday. "We've scored in our last two home games and we're creating plenty of chances now in the Premiership. I hope to see the same in Europe."

There is little reason to suppose that the attacking zest will not return against the Turks tonight. Eric Gerets' side were humbled 3-1 at Trabzonspor at the weekend, beaten by a pair of goals from a beanpole striker in Ersen Martin to suggest Peter Crouch may prosper against the likes of the former Red Rigobert Song in the visiting defence. Moreover they arrive as a squad divided by the manager's insistence on a rotation selection system, which might appear ironic given that Ben’tez will surely change his own starting line-up for the 93rd game in succession.

The Spaniard will expect his side to be confronted by a blanket defence, which is likely to offer Luis Garc’a a route back into the starting selection given his propensity to unlock the most stubborn of rearguards. "It's difficult to analyse the Turkish teams," said Ben’tez. "They're always dangerous at home. But when they play away you never know what might happen. They've got players with ability but you need to put them under pressure, at a high tempo and regain the ball because if you grant them time they counter.

"Luis is important because he's a player who can change games, do different things, find a clever pbutt. He's capable of the best and, sometimes, the worst. He's scored a lot of very good goals in Europe and is a special player. He's a good option for us to have. Against Tottenham it was a really difficult, tough game and Alex Miller, Pako Ayestar‡n and I were saying we had to change something. All three of us said Luis was the best option."

The Spaniard duly conjured a neat, slipped pbutt for Dirk Kuyt to convert and ease the hosts clear and, even if Garc’a has endured something of a bit-part role this term, his unpredictability remains a potent weapon upon which Liverpool can fall back. "I don't like playing against a packed defence but I'm used to doing the things you need to do against it," he said. "You have to find a difficult pbutt between defenders and I've managed to create a few goals this season already like that. Sometimes those pbuttes work, sometimes they don't but I like to try.

"The manager doesn't like it when I try things in our half but if I do them closer to their box then he is happier. It's the same with the fans. On the pitch I try the kind of things that people like to see if they work but if they don't work then they don't like them so much. That's what my game is like."

Liverpool may be reliant upon a flash of the Spaniard's brilliance tonight to edge them clear in what appears likely to prove a tight group. Ben’tez spoke of achieving "the English average" yesterday, apparently a common phrase in Spanish football referring to gleaning two points per match. "Our draw in Eindhoven will only be a good draw if we win our home match," he added. To do that they must exorcise the memory of CissŽ's goal and plunder reward once again."