ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE:ALBERT RIERA has spoken of Liverpool's torment at their failure to arrest a run of one win in nine matches and fears they will have to overcome a mental barrier to revive their faltering campaign.
The Spanish midfielder is braced for another month on the sidelines after aggravating a hamstring injury on his return to the side for Monday’s 2-2 draw with Birmingham City at Anfield. After the game, dominated by the fallout from David Ngog’s dive for the penalty that earned Liverpool a point, their manager, Rafael Benitez, made the surprise admission that his side’s performance was “not as anxious as I was expecting”.
It is a problem he may have to address for Liverpool’s next fixture against Champions League rivals Manchester City, however, with Riera conceding recent events have taken a toll on the players’ confidence.
“We need everybody not just on the pitch but off it, too, helping each other to be stronger because now our problem could be mental, because we – and I don’t like saying this – are untidy,” the Liverpool midfielder admitted. “I don’t like to use this word but it’s true we are not used to being in this position.”
Liverpool host City at Anfield on November 21st and trail Mark Hughes’s team by one place and one point, albeit having played one game more. Their concerns, Riera believes, stem not only from an extensive injury list – with Fernando Torres and Yossi Benayoun already doubtful for the City game – but the inability to turn an otherwise dominant display against Birmingham into victory.
“In this moment we are trying to play like always but you can see it’s not working,” Riera said. “We have plenty of possession, plenty of opportunities, and we are trying to do all you need for winning the game. It’s true that we have to manage conceding goals from free-kicks but if you see the game, it’s clear we should have won it.
“But this year, we are really unlucky. I don’t like saying that either, because it’s not only bad luck in football.”
The return of Steven Gerrard, as a substitute, and Glen Johnson against Alex McLeish’s side provided welcome respite from Liverpool’s injury problems, although the England internationals’ comebacks were offset by the hamstring injuries sustained by Riera and Benayoun, while Daniel Agger was again hindered by a back problem that kept him out for the first two months of the season.
Benitez also confirmed Torres would undergo intensive physiotherapy on his hernia rather than surgery, and it could be three weeks before the leading striker is available.
