Andrea Dossena Aims To Prove He’s The Real Deal At Liverpool

The last time Liverpool faced Wigan, Andrea Dossena was endeavouring to convince Anfield regulars that he was worthy of a place in Rafa Benitez’s side.

Three months on, last night’s opponents was the same and so is the challenge facing the Italian defender who is yet to make Liverpool’s left back position his own.

A combination of the usual problems associated with settling into a new style of football in a new country, poor form and the odd niggling injury has left many questioning Dossena’s value to the Reds but the man himself is happy enough to allow his manager to determine when he does and doesn’t play.

“I feel good at the moment because I have now recovered from my injury and I want to play,” said the 28-year-old.

“But that will be up to the boss because he makes the decisions.”

With Emiliano Insua still away on international duty with the Argentina under-20s side, the Reds boss had a straight choice to make between Dossena and Brazilian Fabio Aurelio for the Reds left back spot in last night’s Premier League clash with Steve Bruce’s side.

As ever, Benitez is non-committal on whose name will feature on the team sheet he hands in at the JJB Stadium an hour before kick off but he is more than happy to allow the defensive duo to fight it out for a place in his own team.

“Emiliano had been doing well for us and I know people were saying that we were losing something with him going away.

“But we have a lot of confidence in Fabio and Andrea and both players can now compete for the position.”

In a bid to prove that he should win the battle, Dossena has been putting in extra hours at Liverpool’s Melwood training ground in the hope that it will help lift his levels of both fitness and form.

“Like every player, I always want to improve,” said the Italian international.

“To do this you must work hard every day in training and that is why I have been doing some extra work at Melwood.

“I want to improve my level and I think that things are getting better now.

“I have been doing extra running and work in the gym as well as other things that are open to all of the team. I have been staying after training to do this.

“Also, the manager has been helping me by focusing on the details which I need to improve.”

Last Sunday, Dossena enjoyed one of his best outings in a red shirt to date as he slotted in at full back with little fuss.

He was undoubtedly assisted by the fact that visitors Everton did not put too much pressure on Liverpool’s defence but equally the former Udinese man played his part in a team performance which was an improvement on recent displays against the Blues and Stoke.

As far as Dossena is concerned, the experience of being involved in a Merseyside derby at Anfield – even one that Liverpool failed to win – was “beautiful” and now he is hoping that the victory which evaded them against their neighbours will come at Wigan.

“We tried everything to get the win that everyone wanted so badly,” he said.

“We went forward every time we had the chance and we had a lot of shots but we were not able to get the winning goal.

“But this is the nature of football – sometimes you do not get the result that you deserve.

“It was a very beautiful occasion though and it is very special to be able to play in matches of this kind.

“The atmosphere was fantastic and it would only have been better for me if we had managed to win the game.

“Now we have to take the positives from the derby into our next game against Wigan.

Like everyone else at Anfield, Dossena is adamant that Liverpool’s forthcoming replay against the Blues must not become a distraction from their Premier League aspirations.

Having drawn their last three league games, the Reds have allowed Manchester United to take the initiative and Dossena knows Liverpool must now show their mettle if they are to maintain their challenge.

He added: “Because we have to play Everton again in a replay there will be a lot of talk about that game but we have other games before then and we must focus on them.

“Wigan will be tough opponents so we cannot be distracted from this challenge because it will become even more difficult for us if we are.

“We are Liverpool and we want to win – this is the same for every single game.”