Past heartaches spur on Robben for Liverpool test
Tuesday 24 February 2009
Real Madrid's in-form winger Arjen
Robben is determined to avenge two Champions League
semi-final defeats against Liverpool.
The former Chelsea player, who
has flourished under former Tottenham Hotspur coach
Juande Ramos, was rested at the weekend but returns
to the team for their first-leg last 16 tie tomorrow
night anxious to make amends for past disappointments.
"I want to beat them because
I have lost against them in two semi-finals and [José]
Reina saved my penalty. I want the chance to take another
one against him and score it," he said.
"They are very strong. The
coach [Rafael Benítez] is tactically excellent.
He knows exactly how to play these matches. The most
important thing is to score goals in the Bernabéu.
We have to beat them by more than two goals at home.
"The way Juande wants to play
the game really suits me," Robben continued.
"He wants to play with wingers
and get the ball out wide. Now things are very clear
in terms of how we are trying to play. Ramos gives me
a lot of freedom and not only me but also the other
strikers Raúl and Higuaín. I can play
on both wings or through the middle and that enables
me to surprise the opposition defences more.
"I'm enjoying it in Spain. They play a little
bit more football. Maybe I am a little bit more protected
as a winger. It is slightly more physical in England
and sometimes more direct with the long balls and for
that reason maybe La Liga suits me a bit better."
There is just one regret for the
Dutchman: that he never had the chance to say goodbye
to his Stamford Bridge team-mates.
"I feel really disappointed
that I never went back to Chelsea just to say goodbye
to everybody there," he revealed.
"The programme was too busy
to go back. It is a pity because I had a very good time
in England. I enjoyed playing for Chelsea. I made good
friends there but was never able to see them off."
Meanwhile a former Liverpool European
hero and former Feyenoord player , Jerzy Dudek, has
urged Liverpool to give Benítez a contract extension.
Benítez, he insists, is
the right man for the job and he believes that any further
delay in negotiations could derail the club's ambitions
for the rest of the season as the focus is drawn from
the pitch to the boardroom.
The Polish keeper, who faces his former club for the
first time at the Bernabéu tomorrow, has also
promised to help Liverpool's push for a first league
title in 19 years – by knocking them out of the
Champions League.
Benítez publicly admitted that he had turned
down an offer of an extension at Anfield and revealed
that he wants the freedom to run the team as he sees
fit, hinting at a difficult relationship with chief
executive Rick Parry and fuelling suggestions that Liverpool's
owners George Gillett and Tom Hicks are reluctant to
allow him control of the club.
As negotiations have rumbled on,
Liverpool's form has dipped.
And although that may be coincidental,
Dudek believes that the uncertainty can only harm the
club.
"These things do not help
the concentration of the team and I hope they sort out
a deal as soon as possible," he said.
"It would be a mistake not
to give him an extension.
"He is doing a great job at Liverpool; he is the
one that has given the fans the hope of trophies. He
is very close to winning the Premier League, which they
have not won for 19 years and that shows that he has
Liverpool on the right track. Rafa plans everything
brilliantly, the players go out onto the pitch so well
informed on the opposition. He really improves any team."
"Liverpool's fans want the
league more than anything else, more than the Champions
League. If we can knock them out in Europe and help
them in England, then great," Dudek added.
Having won nine consecutive games,
Madrid are the example.
"Not playing in midweek really
helps," said Dudek.
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