Benitez sends troubled captain into the fray
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Your support makes all the difference.Rafael Benitez, the Liverpool manager, has reaffirmed his "trust" in captain Steven Gerrard and insists he never had any doubts about playing his key midfielder in tomorrow's FA Cup third-round tie at Preston.
It has been a difficult week for Gerrard, who on Sunday scored twice in a 5-1 Premier League victory at Newcastle United to keep Liverpool top of the table. Less than 24 hours later he was allegedly involved in a nightclub incident in Southport which has resulted in charges of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and affray, and he is due to appear at Sefton magistrates court at the end of the month.
But Benitez will field Gerrard at Deepdale despite the controversy surrounding the England player. He said: "In terms of football, everything has been normal for Steven. He has received the support of everyone – the players, myself, the club – and he has trained well and is focused on football.
"I do not believe he will be distracted. He wants to play football and concentrate just on that. He will be thinking about playing well, scoring goals and making sure the club progresses.
"He will play, and I have confidence he will be ready. It was a bad situation, but because we know most of the details, maybe not all, we have to support him because we know these things can happen to footballers now because they are very famous.
"If we want to help him, the best thing is to train normally and organise things in the same way. And to give him the opportunity to play football. He will get that chance at Preston. It is the only way to handle things."
In fact, Preston may well find themselves facing a much stronger side than they would have expected. Fernando Torres, Martin Skrtel, Alvaro Arbeloa and Fabio Aurelio – all previously injured – return to the squad alongside Gerrard.
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