Wednesday, April 06, 2011

Fabio Aurelio In Line For Return From injury

Fabio Aurelio is in contention to ease Liverpool’s defensive headache ahead of next Monday’s clash with Manchester City at Anfield.

The Brazil left-back is on the comeback trail after a month out with a torn hamstring he suffered in the home win against Manchester United.

Aurelio, below, has endured an injury-plagued season and has made just 10 starts in all competitions since re-signing for the Reds last summer.

However, his return to training is timely with boss Kenny Dalglish currently without defenders Martin Kelly, Glen Johnson and Daniel Agger.

Dalglish is still waiting to discover the extent of the damage to Johnson (hamstring) and Agger (knee) who both limped off early on in Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at West Brom.

The manager is also sweating on Steven Gerrard (groin) with a scan set to reveal the severity of the setback the skipper sustained in training last Friday. As well as Aurelio, Dalglish could turn to talented teenagers Jack Robinson and John Flanagan to bolster his back four.

The two reserve team regulars were omitted from the second string’s 3-1 defeat at Aston Villa last night and are expected to train with the first team this week.

Left-back Robinson, 17, is the youngest ever player to feature for Liverpool following his cameo at Hull City in May 2010, while right-back Flanagan, 18, is yet to make his senior debut but has been an unused substitute in three Europa League games this season.

Dalglish has spoken highly of both in recent months and has vowed to give youth the chance to shine at Anfield.

Home-grown talent like Kelly and Jay Spearing have flourished following the Scot’s appointment in January, with his faith in them richly repaid.

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