Liverpool stars get Hong Kong all-clear
Friday, 27 July 2007
HONG KONG, Jul 26 (AFP): Liverpool will be at full strength for the Asia Trophy final after record signing Fernando Torres was given permission to play and Steven Gerrard recovered from injury, their coach said Thursday.
Rafael Benitez said Torres and Dutch forward Ryan Babel had international clearance for Friday's match against Portsmouth after a bureaucratic bungle ruled them out of the semi-final.
"Torres and Babel have been cleared and have permission to play," Benitez said, adding that England star Gerrard had recovered from a stomach problem.
Torres and Babel were left out of Tuesday's game because they did not have the international clearance needed to appear in a Premier League-endorsed competition.
The triple absences disappointed thousands of fans at Hong Kong Stadium and forced Benitez to field a makeshift line-up which toiled to a 3-1 win against local minnows South China.
"We had some problems without Torres and Babel," Benitez admitted. "Now we have new options and fresh legs, and maybe we can manage the final in a different way.
Benitez will be anxious to bed in his new players with Liverpool just weeks away from a hotly anticipated Premier League clash with arch-rivals Chelsea.
The big-spending coach side-stepped the latest barbs from Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, who raised the stakes by saying Liverpool were under pressure to deliver this season.
Rafael Benitez said Torres and Dutch forward Ryan Babel had international clearance for Friday's match against Portsmouth after a bureaucratic bungle ruled them out of the semi-final.
"Torres and Babel have been cleared and have permission to play," Benitez said, adding that England star Gerrard had recovered from a stomach problem.
Torres and Babel were left out of Tuesday's game because they did not have the international clearance needed to appear in a Premier League-endorsed competition.
The triple absences disappointed thousands of fans at Hong Kong Stadium and forced Benitez to field a makeshift line-up which toiled to a 3-1 win against local minnows South China.
"We had some problems without Torres and Babel," Benitez admitted. "Now we have new options and fresh legs, and maybe we can manage the final in a different way.
Benitez will be anxious to bed in his new players with Liverpool just weeks away from a hotly anticipated Premier League clash with arch-rivals Chelsea.
The big-spending coach side-stepped the latest barbs from Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, who raised the stakes by saying Liverpool were under pressure to deliver this season.