Aquilani aiming to impress

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE/Liverpool v Fiorentina:LIVERPOOL HOST not another death-or-glory Champions League crusade tonight but a dead-rubber, a witness to underachievement from which there is no hiding. The competition's anthem will sound at Anfield for the final time this season and Rafael Benitez gets to shuffle his pack because the job is gone, not done. A non-event? Not in the case of Alberto Aquilani.

The Italy midfielder will make his full Liverpool debut against Fiorentina almost four months after his €22 million arrival as Xabi Alonso’s replacement.

In that time he has recovered from ankle surgery, contracted a virus in the aftermath of his first senior appearance against Arsenal in the League Cup and, with the exception of one minute in the past four matches since his return to full training, sat on the bench.

His time at Anfield has been one of endurance and frustration so great his father has spoken out on his behalf, with the midfielder’s return too late to save Liverpool in the Champions League.

Aquilani’s story mirrors that of his new club’s season, but Benitez remains adamant the wait will be worthwhile.

“I think the fans will get to see the best of Aquilani this season. It is a question of time,” said the Liverpool manager, who plans to rest Lucas Leiva against the Group E leaders and deploy the 25-year-old Italian alongside Javier Mascherano in central midfield.

“Only yesterday he scored an amazing goal in training. We had two. Fabio Aurelio scored with a volley from 30 metres and then Aquilani scored with a left-footed chip over [Jose] Reina. It was very, very good, and he showed touches of quality.

His movement on the pitch is very clever but there are things he needs to improve, like tackling. We want to use him as much as we can this season, starting against Fiorentina.”

Benitez’s handling of Aquilani in recent weeks, however, has appeared obstinate, not careful, as the manager claimed, with Liverpool not only desperate for results but also inspiration.

The Spaniard has achieved the strange result of dampening initial expectations of the former Roma player while ensuring the spotlight will follow his every touch against Fiorentina. But Benitez will not deviate from that course.

“I think he will show his quality and touch against Fiorentina, but his match fitness will not be the same as the others. Hopefully he can play well. He has good movement and is clever and will take up good positions.

“We understand the fans are frustrated because the staff are frustrated, too. We want to give him minutes on the pitch but when the team is not playing well it is the worst time to introduce a new player. We are trying to do the best for the team but also the best for the player.

“After four months without playing 90 minutes, and just training in the gym, the pool and on the bicycle, it would be a problem to put someone in from the start of a Premier League game. It doesn’t matter about the quality or the value of the player; in this situation you are playing physical teams and so you have to introduce the player little by little.”

While Reina and Emiliano Insua are likely to be rested alongside Lucas against the Italians, Benitez is considering starting Steven Gerrard to sharpen his match fitness and plans to give Fernando Torres a first appearance in five weeks as a second-half substitute. The overall aim of the night, the manager admitted, is to “play well and face Arsenal [on Sunday] with more confidence”.

David Ngog is expected to lead the Liverpool attack once more and the 20-year-old Frenchman, who has improved gradually in Torres’s absence.