Kenny Dalglish Tells Liverpool To Enjoy Top Spot

While pundits and fans continue to fret over the Reds' stalling form, the man widely regarded as the club's greatest-ever player insists everyone must calm down and look on the bright side.

Liverpool currently sit atop the Premier League with 34 points - and just one defeat - from 15 games, but you wouldn't know it by listening to the media's, or some of the supporters', take on things.

The Merseysiders have gone more than 18 years without a league triumph, and there remains this niggling doubt that, somehow, they will contrive to cock it all up.

But Kenny Dalglish, who was at the helm when the Reds won title No. 18 in 1990, believes the players and fans alike must take joy out of their promising start rather than worry about the chasing pack.

"You always want to play well and you always want to win games, but the big thing is to take as many points from as many matches as you possibly can," he told the club's official website.

"This season there has only been one game where we didn't take anything - away at Tottenham - so clearly the boys are doing their best."

Liverpool's closest challengers are Chelsea, who relinquished top spot last weekend when they lost at home to an embattled Arsenal outfit that holds fourth spot.

Rafael Benitez's men had an opportunity to go three points clear when they faced West Ham United at Anfield on Monday, but they could only manage a frustrating stalemate.

But Dalglish continued: "You want to try and capitalise on any mistakes Chelsea make and, okay, we didn't do that in the way we would have wanted against West Ham, but we still picked up a point and it could prove to be a big point at the end of the season.

"The top of the league is the best place to be, full stop. The players have to enjoy being where they are and get on with the job of staying there. If they keep winning games then nobody will overtake them, it's as simple as that."

'King Kenny' played over 500 games for Liverpool between 1977 and 1990, during which time he won six league titles, three European Cups, four League Cups and one FA Cup.

Liverpool Hit By Torres Setback

Liverpool striker Fernando Torres looks set for an increased injury lay-off because of a damaged hamstring.

Torres, 24, had been expected to be out of action for two weeks but has now been told by specialists that he will be out for at least four weeks.

The Spaniard suffered the injury during the Champions League victory against Marseille at Anfield on 26 November.

"We first said two to three weeks but do not want to put a time on it now," said Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez.

"He will come back when he is ready. We will not rush him back.

"We want to resolve this problem once and for all and we will make sure we do that."

All I want for Christmas is for Fernando to get fit!

SteveFernie
Torres has been plagued by hamstring problems over the past 18 months, suffering the injury five times in that period.

Liverpool are currently analysing his training schedule with both club and country in an attempt to resolve the problem.

Benitez had questioned the Spain training regime and believes it could be the cause of his injury.

"He has been injured now three times while with the national team and it is something we have to analyse," he stated.

"We knew they were doing something that is maybe not the best for the player."

It had been hoped he would return by mid December but Torres will now miss Premier League games against Blackburn, Hull, Arsenal and Bolton and Tuesday's Champions League tie against PSV Eindhoven.

He could return for the trip to Newcastle on 28 December.

Liverpool have struggled in recent weeks in the absence of last season's top scorer, with new signing Robbie Keane still finding his form since his £20m move from Tottenham in the summer.

The Reds currently top the Premier League but have drawn their last two home games without scoring a goal.

Torres himself is committed to returning to the side to boost their title credentials.

He said: "The only thing to do is to get on with the rehabilitation and make sure that I come back when I am ready and not too soon."

Rafa Benitez: Liverpool Team-mates Must Help Robbie Keane

RAFA BENITEZ has urged Robbie Keane’s team-mates to help him end his barren spell.

The £20m signing has hit just two League goals since his move from Spurs. And he looked frustrated at being substituted – for the 15th time in 18 starts – once again on Monday night.

But the Reds boss has stood by him and asked his team-mates to create more chances for him.

“Robbie is a better player than the one we are seeing now,” said Benitez.

“We know what kind of player Robbie Keane is. He needs people around him to pass the ball well.

“I believe he will be okay, he will score more if we create chances for him. But if that does not happen we have to use players with different qualities to open up the game.”

Keane is set to continue at Blackburn on Saturday, but Danish defender Daniel Agger must fight for a return to the starting line-up after Sami Hyypia’s impressive performance on Monday.

Agger admitted he can do better – but reassured Reds fans he was happy on Merseyside after reports claimed Reds officials were stunned by his pay demands in contract talks.

The Denmark defender’s representatives are reportedly seeking to double the player’s wages to more than £70,000 a week.

“It’s difficult to compare to how I was before, and I know there are some things I need to improve, but I can feel myself getting better and better with every game,” said Agger,

“Maybe I am not there yet, but I will be soon.

“Of course sometimes it’s difficult but you have to keep working hard to improve yourself and that’s what I am trying to do.

“It has been difficult with the injury last year but that’s the past. Hopefully I’ll be back to 100 per cent soon.

“Outside of the pitch I’m really happy. I am enjoying everything. The people in Liverpool are so friendly. I was really surprised when I came to the city how friendly the people were compared to other places I have been. I cannot complain about anything. I feel at home.”

Steven Gerrard: We’ll Pay For Lost Points Later

STEVEN GERRARD has warned his team-mates they will eventually pay the price for dropping points at home.

Liverpool have suffered goalless draws at Anfield with Stoke CIty, Fulham and West Ham so far this season but still sit on top of the Premier League.

Their last two league games both finished in home stalemates and cost them the chance to open up clear daylight between themselves and Chelsea.

Liverpool still have a one-point lead following Monday’s West Ham game and Gerrard is enthused about the fact that the club is in the best position to strike for the title in his 10 years as a first team player.

But he said: “At the moment dropping points like we have been doing at home has not cost us anything. But that is not always going to be the case.

“We have got to get better, be more consistent and start killing teams off when we get the chance.

“But what we all hope is that as much success as we have had in the past, the UEFA Cup, Champions League and FA Cup successes, we have still got our best days to come.

“For me this is the best team we have had since I broke through. At the moment we are up there fighting but in this league, as soon as you take your eye off the ball or take anything for granted, you are brought back down to earth with a bump.”

Liverpool go to Blackburn Rovers tomorrow while Chelsea go to Bolton, with both games kicking off at 3pm.

With every point vital in the battle for Premier League supremacy, Gerrard has underlined the team’s desire to keep their points tally ticking over and stay out in front until the end of the campaign.

He says: “This is a hungry Liverpool, a determined Liverpool. In football you are remembered for what you win, not necessarily how you played.

“We want to be remembered as winners, not also-rans.

“In my 10 years in the first team, this is the first time that we have been where we are at this stage of the season with this opportunity.”

Meanwhile, Yossi Benayoun’s agent has confirmed that the player has no intention of moving on in the January transfer window.

The midfielder recently hinted in an interview with Israeli television that his lack of first team opportunities could leave him no option but to seek a new club.

But Benayoun has since insisted he is happy to stay and fight for his place, while agent Ronen Katsav dismissed stories linking the player with Spartak Moscow.

“I don't understand where they’re getting this from,” Katsav said.

“Yossi is happy at Liverpool, he played the full 90 minutes on Monday against West Ham.

“Benayoun wants to remain in the best league in the world with Liverpool, to continue to battle for the title, which this year the club is closer than ever to winning.”

Steven Gerrard: Liverpool Side Is The Best I've Played In

Skipper Steven Gerrard has brushed off the club’s recent poor form by insisting the current Liverpool side is the best he has played in.

Liverpool are still smarting after Monday’s 0-0 home draw with West Ham, which ended with them being booed off by the Anfield crowd despite taking over at the top of the Barclays Premier League.

That one point was enough to overtake Chelsea, but the frustrating draw with the Hammers followed previous lapses at home against supposedly lesser sides Stoke and Fulham, who also achieved goalless draws.

Now Gerrard hopes he can lead Liverpool to a vital victory at Blackburn on Saturday to maintain their slender grip on top spot.

He says: “At the moment dropping points like we have been doing at home has not cost us anything. But that is not always going to be the case.”

But Gerrard is confident the current side can maintain a genuine title chase for the rest of the campaign.

He says: “This is a hungry Liverpool, a determined Liverpool. In football you are remembered for what you win, not necessarily how you played.

“We want to be remembered as winners, not also-rans.

“In my 10 years in the first team, this is the first time that we have been where we are at this stage of the season with this opportunity.

“We have got to get better, be more consistent and start killing teams off when we get the chance.

“But what we all hope is that as much success as we have had in the past, the UEFA Cup, Champions League and FA Cup successes, we have still got our best days to come.

“For me this is the best team we have had since I broke through. At the moment we are up there fighting but in this league, as soon as you take your eye off the ball, or take anything for granted, you are brought back down to earth with a bump.”

For Gerrard, and his colleague Jamie Carragher, the trip to Blackburn gives them a chance of a reunion with former Anfield skipper Paul Ince, now manager at Ewood Park.

Carragher has fond memories of the midfielder, and admits he ’looked up’ to Ince when he was beginning his Anfield first-team career.

But that does not stop Carragher aiming to heap more woe on Ince and Rovers as they sit in the relegation zone.

Carragher, who made his Liverpool debut a few months before Ince joined the club from Inter Milan in 1997, said: “Paul was one of the players in the team when I first started and he was a great help to me.

“He gave me a lot of advice and he was someone I looked up to when I started to become a footballer. Hopefully he does really well, after Saturday.”

Ince is going through a tough baptism in Premier League management with the team sitting in the relegation zone and they were knocked out of the Carling Cup quarter-finals at Manchester United last night.

But Carragher and Liverpool cannot afford to be sentimental over their former captain’s plight, or to slip up at a ground where they have lost just once in the last 12 years - Boxing Day, 2006.

They will be aiming for their 50th victory in league football over Rovers in their 121st meeting.

Liverpool will also have more than 7,000 fans at Ewood Park, their biggest away allocation of the season.

Carragher says: “We normally take a good crowd to Blackburn, which is virtually a local game for us and hopefully we can get a good result.

“They have had a few bad results lately and it is the type of place that we normally do okay. Hopefully that will continue.”

Liverpool will also have reunions with old boys Stephen Warnock and Robbie Fowler.

Striker Fernando Torres is still out, and after visiting a specialist in Spain this week, he may not play again until after the Christmas programme with his hamstring injury, the initial tentative comeback date had been the visit to Arsenal on December 21.

That means Robbie Keane will continue up front, intent on improving a scoring record of just two goals in his last eight appearances.

Javier Mascherano and Daniel Agger, both rested against West Ham, are expected to return.

Liverpool's Daniel Agger Denies AC Milan Rumours And Wants To Regain Top Form

Danish defender Daniel Agger insists he has no plans to swap the pursuit of an English Premier League title with Liverpool for a tilt at a winner's medal in Italy's Serie A or Spain's La Liga.

After failing to make the most of Chelsea's defeat by Arsenal last weekend - they could only manage a goalless draw with West Ham - league leaders Liverpool will seek to consolidate their place at the top of the table by beating struggling Blackburn at Ewood Park.

For Agger, it is an encounter that will take place against a background of uncertainty over his future.

The 23-year-old missed almost the whole of last season with a foot injury and is now struggling to rediscover his best form, and with his contract set to expire at the end of next season, has been linked with a move away from the Premier League.

Real Madrid and Italian giants AC Milan have both been linked with bids in January but despite his deal running down, Agger is adamant he is happy with life at Anfield.

He said: "It's difficult to compare to how I was before, and I know there are some things I need to improve, but I can feel myself getting better and better with every game.

"Maybe I am not there yet, but I will be soon. Of course sometimes it's difficult but you have to keep working hard to improve yourself and that's what I am trying to do.

"It has been difficult with the injury last year but that's the past. Hopefully I'll be back to 100 per cent soon.

"Outside of the pitch I'm really happy. The people in Liverpool are so friendly. I feel at home."

Agger will be hoping to force his way back into the side after he was left on the bench for the frustrating draw with West Ham, while Fernando Torres will again be missing with a hamstring injury.

Torres: I Nearly Joined Milan

Liverpool striking star Fernando Torres has revealed that he was close to joining Milan in 2007.

The Spanish international has been a big hit at Anfield and finished third in the voting for the Ballon d'Or this year.

A number of European sides were in the frame for Torres' signature when he left Atletico Madrid, including Milan.

“I know that Milan were interested in signing me and that the clubs had discussions, but I was never involved,” Torres said.

“When they were talking to the Rossoneri, Atletico never told me that they intended to sell me but I heard rumours. It's always nice when the big clubs are interested in you.”

Torres also looked back on last season's Champions League clash with Inter at San Siro in which he scored the winning goal.

“I was impressed by the atmosphere - I had never played in that stadium,” he explained.

“Everyone had talked to me about it, but playing there is something else. There's a very long tunnel at San Siro and it adds to the atmosphere.

“We were a bit fortunate in that tie in that Marco Materazzi was sent off in the first leg - it would have been harder to play against 11 men for the whole time.”