Memories of Argentinians in the FA Cup are inevitably dominated by images of Ricky Villa slaloming his way around a string of Manchester City players to score one of the competition’s most famous goals.
To this day, Villa’s name still resonates thanks to his Wembley wonder strike in 1981 and now one of his fellow countrymen is hoping to carve out his own niche in FA Cup history.
Having recently earned himself a place in Liverpool’s starting eleven, Emiliano Insua can now allow himself to dream of running out in the shadow of the twin towers where Villa made his name in the white shirt of Tottenham Hotspur.
Today, Insua will travel to Preston with the rest of the Reds squad as Liverpool enter the FA Cup at the third round stage and though he dreams of Wembley, for the time being he would be more than happy just to be involved against North End at Deepdale.
“I have never played in the FA Cup before but it is a competition I know a lot about because it is famous all over the world,” he said.
“I have played in the Carling Cup and I know that the cup competitions in England always produce special games and big occasions so it would be nice for me if I could play in the FA Cup also.
“Everyone at Liverpool has told me how important the FA Cup is and we must try to win it.
“It is very difficult to try and win three different tournaments but this is what you must try to do when you are at a club like Liverpool.
“It would be a dream for me to play at Wembley. It is a stadium that I have never been to but it is one which every player would love to play at.”
Before anyone at Anfield can even think about playing at Wembley though, Liverpool must first find a way past a Preston side which currently finds itself on the fringes of the play off places in the Championship.
Insua may only have been in this country for two years following his move to Anfield from Boca Juniors but in this time he has seen enough of the English game to know that teams from the tier just below the Premier League can cause problems for even the biggest of guns.
But with the tie taking place just four days before he turns 20, the left back is hoping to receive an early birthday present in the form of qualification for the next round.
“All teams in the Championship are very strong and very difficult to play against,” he said.
“We are playing away at Preston’s ground so we know it will be a tough game for us because they will be looking to try and knock us out.
“But we have to concentrate on our own game and try to play like we have been doing in the last couple of games and hopefully that will be enough.”
Those last couple of games have been hugely promising for Liverpool with a pair of impressive back to back wins against Bolton and Newcastle providing the perfect end to 2008.
The standard Rafa Benitez’s side set for itself in the 5-1 hammering of Newcastle at St James’ Park is one which Insua believes Liverpool must try to reach in every single game they play, even though he knows it is a big ask to do so.
He said: “I really enjoyed the game against Newcastle because the team played really well. We scored five goals and created a lot of chances so we could have won by even more than we did.
“We kept the ball really well and even after conceding a goal just before half time we kept pushing forward and looking for more goals so it was really good for me to be part of a performance as good as this one.
“It is not always possible to play to this level but this is what we must try to do.”
Since coming into the side at Blackburn a month ago, Insua has impressed everyone with his performances at full back.
So much so that he is now seen as a genuine contender to become Liverpool’s long term solution in the left back position which has been such a problem for so long.
In games against Arsenal, Bolton and Newcastle, the Buenos Aires-born youngster has won plaudits for his displays and now Insua is determined to get better still as he bids to nail down a regular starting place.
He said: “I am trying to do the same things in every single game – to work hard, do the simple things and defend well.
“The manager has given me a lot of confidence and I will keep training hard in every session and always give my best, because when you get your chance you have to take it.”
Not only has Insua received support from Benitez, he has also been given the total backing of his more senior team mates in Liverpool’s back four and he believes the advice and guidance he has been afforded by his colleagues has been a massive help.
“The senior players have helped me a lot,” he admitted. “They give me a lot of confidence by telling me I am doing well and supporting me on and off the pitch.
“I feel good about this because it means a lot for a young player to have such support from players like Sami Hyypia, Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger.
“I am learning from them all the time. I watch them and try to copy the good things that they do because they are such good players and I know that if I can learn from them then I will become a better player.”
To this day, Villa’s name still resonates thanks to his Wembley wonder strike in 1981 and now one of his fellow countrymen is hoping to carve out his own niche in FA Cup history.
Having recently earned himself a place in Liverpool’s starting eleven, Emiliano Insua can now allow himself to dream of running out in the shadow of the twin towers where Villa made his name in the white shirt of Tottenham Hotspur.
Today, Insua will travel to Preston with the rest of the Reds squad as Liverpool enter the FA Cup at the third round stage and though he dreams of Wembley, for the time being he would be more than happy just to be involved against North End at Deepdale.
“I have never played in the FA Cup before but it is a competition I know a lot about because it is famous all over the world,” he said.
“I have played in the Carling Cup and I know that the cup competitions in England always produce special games and big occasions so it would be nice for me if I could play in the FA Cup also.
“Everyone at Liverpool has told me how important the FA Cup is and we must try to win it.
“It is very difficult to try and win three different tournaments but this is what you must try to do when you are at a club like Liverpool.
“It would be a dream for me to play at Wembley. It is a stadium that I have never been to but it is one which every player would love to play at.”
Before anyone at Anfield can even think about playing at Wembley though, Liverpool must first find a way past a Preston side which currently finds itself on the fringes of the play off places in the Championship.
Insua may only have been in this country for two years following his move to Anfield from Boca Juniors but in this time he has seen enough of the English game to know that teams from the tier just below the Premier League can cause problems for even the biggest of guns.
But with the tie taking place just four days before he turns 20, the left back is hoping to receive an early birthday present in the form of qualification for the next round.
“All teams in the Championship are very strong and very difficult to play against,” he said.
“We are playing away at Preston’s ground so we know it will be a tough game for us because they will be looking to try and knock us out.
“But we have to concentrate on our own game and try to play like we have been doing in the last couple of games and hopefully that will be enough.”
Those last couple of games have been hugely promising for Liverpool with a pair of impressive back to back wins against Bolton and Newcastle providing the perfect end to 2008.
The standard Rafa Benitez’s side set for itself in the 5-1 hammering of Newcastle at St James’ Park is one which Insua believes Liverpool must try to reach in every single game they play, even though he knows it is a big ask to do so.
He said: “I really enjoyed the game against Newcastle because the team played really well. We scored five goals and created a lot of chances so we could have won by even more than we did.
“We kept the ball really well and even after conceding a goal just before half time we kept pushing forward and looking for more goals so it was really good for me to be part of a performance as good as this one.
“It is not always possible to play to this level but this is what we must try to do.”
Since coming into the side at Blackburn a month ago, Insua has impressed everyone with his performances at full back.
So much so that he is now seen as a genuine contender to become Liverpool’s long term solution in the left back position which has been such a problem for so long.
In games against Arsenal, Bolton and Newcastle, the Buenos Aires-born youngster has won plaudits for his displays and now Insua is determined to get better still as he bids to nail down a regular starting place.
He said: “I am trying to do the same things in every single game – to work hard, do the simple things and defend well.
“The manager has given me a lot of confidence and I will keep training hard in every session and always give my best, because when you get your chance you have to take it.”
Not only has Insua received support from Benitez, he has also been given the total backing of his more senior team mates in Liverpool’s back four and he believes the advice and guidance he has been afforded by his colleagues has been a massive help.
“The senior players have helped me a lot,” he admitted. “They give me a lot of confidence by telling me I am doing well and supporting me on and off the pitch.
“I feel good about this because it means a lot for a young player to have such support from players like Sami Hyypia, Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger.
“I am learning from them all the time. I watch them and try to copy the good things that they do because they are such good players and I know that if I can learn from them then I will become a better player.”
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