It has, on more than one occasion, looked as if things have been happening far too fast for Maxi Rodriguez.
Signed from Atletico Madrid during the January transfer window, he was thrust into Liverpool’s squad during a time when they were struggling for form and needed to fight their way out of a tight spot.
For someone whom Rafa Benitez described as being a “great technician” when unveiling him at Melwood, the agricultural style favoured by Stoke City – the side who provided the opposition for his debut – would have come as a big surprise.
Nowhere near as much as a shock, though, as a bitingly cold night in Wolverhampton, when the Argentine midfielder appeared frozen to the core and unable to move during a bore draw, or the helter-skelter of a Merseyside derby.
The last named game, in particular, was a real eye opener for the pint-sized Rodriguez who looked as if he was trying to cross the M6 in rush hour; he knew what he wanted to do but, in the madness, simply didn’t know how to do it.
There is reason for thinking, however, that all of a sudden the penny is beginning to drop; Rodriguez might have took another buffeting at the hands of Blackburn’s hulking defenders last Sunday but it was, without doubt, his best effort in a red shirt to date.
No matter that Pascal Chimbonda left an imprint of his boost in Rodriguez’s midriff or that he took several whacks from Martin Olsson, Rodriguez battled on to play a key role in an important 2-1 win. Indeed, he was responsible for setting up the clinching goal.
His display was enough to get Benitez nodding enthusiastically yesterday when, ahead of Monday night’s trip to Wigan Athletic, the manager was asked for an assessment of Rodriguez’s early progress.
Rodriguez might have some way to go to reach the levels that made him such an influential cog in the wheel for Atletico and Argentina but the more he sets up goals as he did for Fernando Torres six days ago, the quicker Benitez feels he will get there.
“I agree that last week was his best performance,” said Benitez, who has challenged his side to go relentlessly through the gears in the final 10 games as their quest for a Champions League spot intensifies.
“It is important for us to have a player who can keep the ball and understand the game and he knows what it means to play in the Premier League now. He knows all about the challenges!
“We have spoken a lot about the tempo of the Premier League and, in particular, the derby. It was very quick. But he knows now. He feels much better and he realises what it is all about, the tackles and everything else.
“Maxi is learning all the time and the main thing I see is that he is very keen to learn. He has got quality, he has experience and you can see that he is a very good professional. Little by little, he will give more and more to us.”
Little by little is how Benitez was hoping to bring Glen Johnson back into his starting line-up but the manager’s hand could be forced at the DW Stadium, given the fitness concerns surrounding Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel.
Skrtel, of course, is out with a broken metatarsal and will not play again until the middle of April at the earliest, while Agger – who left Anfield last weekend on crutches after damaging his knee – is facing a race to be fit to face Wigan.
Should he miss out, Benitez would have the option of pairing Jamie Carragher and Sotirios Kyrgiakos – available after serving a three-match ban – in the centre of his defence and he could persist with Javier Mascherano as makeshift right-back.
Yet the temptation is there for Benitez to thrust Johnson back into the side for the first time since the 1-0 victory at Aston Villa December 29 – the last time Liverpool won away from Anfield.
Johnson has looked awesome in spells this season but, due to a succession of niggling fitness issues, there have been other times when he has looked considerably off the pace, such as on his return to former club Portsmouth.
Benitez remains in no doubt that Johnson will become a huge success for both Liverpool and England thanks to his outstanding natural talent and eagerness to learn and show those qualities on the training pitches at Melwood.
And that’s why Benitez is tempted to give Johnson the nod at Wigan; his influence on the right has been missed and he is looking to unleash him to enhance Liverpool’s prospects of snatching three points.
“Glen is doing well and I will have to consider if he is going to be in the squad,” said Benitez. “It has been difficult for him this season. He arrived here as a new player with quality but he has not always played.
“We have missed him because he is very good going forward.
“We knew that we needed to improve his defending but when you have these injuries, you cannot spend time together on the pitch with the coaches.
“That makes it more difficult.
“But we know he has got great quality. He is going to make a difference going forward but I felt he was starting to improve his defending before he got injured. But, hopefully, he will be okay from now and he will be a good addition for us.
“We don’t want to take any risks with him but when you have a player of Glen’s quality coming back in, you have to think about it. We have a few more training sessions before we face Wigan, so we will see.”
Signed from Atletico Madrid during the January transfer window, he was thrust into Liverpool’s squad during a time when they were struggling for form and needed to fight their way out of a tight spot.
For someone whom Rafa Benitez described as being a “great technician” when unveiling him at Melwood, the agricultural style favoured by Stoke City – the side who provided the opposition for his debut – would have come as a big surprise.
Nowhere near as much as a shock, though, as a bitingly cold night in Wolverhampton, when the Argentine midfielder appeared frozen to the core and unable to move during a bore draw, or the helter-skelter of a Merseyside derby.
The last named game, in particular, was a real eye opener for the pint-sized Rodriguez who looked as if he was trying to cross the M6 in rush hour; he knew what he wanted to do but, in the madness, simply didn’t know how to do it.
There is reason for thinking, however, that all of a sudden the penny is beginning to drop; Rodriguez might have took another buffeting at the hands of Blackburn’s hulking defenders last Sunday but it was, without doubt, his best effort in a red shirt to date.
No matter that Pascal Chimbonda left an imprint of his boost in Rodriguez’s midriff or that he took several whacks from Martin Olsson, Rodriguez battled on to play a key role in an important 2-1 win. Indeed, he was responsible for setting up the clinching goal.
His display was enough to get Benitez nodding enthusiastically yesterday when, ahead of Monday night’s trip to Wigan Athletic, the manager was asked for an assessment of Rodriguez’s early progress.
Rodriguez might have some way to go to reach the levels that made him such an influential cog in the wheel for Atletico and Argentina but the more he sets up goals as he did for Fernando Torres six days ago, the quicker Benitez feels he will get there.
“I agree that last week was his best performance,” said Benitez, who has challenged his side to go relentlessly through the gears in the final 10 games as their quest for a Champions League spot intensifies.
“It is important for us to have a player who can keep the ball and understand the game and he knows what it means to play in the Premier League now. He knows all about the challenges!
“We have spoken a lot about the tempo of the Premier League and, in particular, the derby. It was very quick. But he knows now. He feels much better and he realises what it is all about, the tackles and everything else.
“Maxi is learning all the time and the main thing I see is that he is very keen to learn. He has got quality, he has experience and you can see that he is a very good professional. Little by little, he will give more and more to us.”
Little by little is how Benitez was hoping to bring Glen Johnson back into his starting line-up but the manager’s hand could be forced at the DW Stadium, given the fitness concerns surrounding Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel.
Skrtel, of course, is out with a broken metatarsal and will not play again until the middle of April at the earliest, while Agger – who left Anfield last weekend on crutches after damaging his knee – is facing a race to be fit to face Wigan.
Should he miss out, Benitez would have the option of pairing Jamie Carragher and Sotirios Kyrgiakos – available after serving a three-match ban – in the centre of his defence and he could persist with Javier Mascherano as makeshift right-back.
Yet the temptation is there for Benitez to thrust Johnson back into the side for the first time since the 1-0 victory at Aston Villa December 29 – the last time Liverpool won away from Anfield.
Johnson has looked awesome in spells this season but, due to a succession of niggling fitness issues, there have been other times when he has looked considerably off the pace, such as on his return to former club Portsmouth.
Benitez remains in no doubt that Johnson will become a huge success for both Liverpool and England thanks to his outstanding natural talent and eagerness to learn and show those qualities on the training pitches at Melwood.
And that’s why Benitez is tempted to give Johnson the nod at Wigan; his influence on the right has been missed and he is looking to unleash him to enhance Liverpool’s prospects of snatching three points.
“Glen is doing well and I will have to consider if he is going to be in the squad,” said Benitez. “It has been difficult for him this season. He arrived here as a new player with quality but he has not always played.
“We have missed him because he is very good going forward.
“We knew that we needed to improve his defending but when you have these injuries, you cannot spend time together on the pitch with the coaches.
“That makes it more difficult.
“But we know he has got great quality. He is going to make a difference going forward but I felt he was starting to improve his defending before he got injured. But, hopefully, he will be okay from now and he will be a good addition for us.
“We don’t want to take any risks with him but when you have a player of Glen’s quality coming back in, you have to think about it. We have a few more training sessions before we face Wigan, so we will see.”
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