Benitez on Aquilani: He can play anywhere

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Liverpool recruit Alberto Aquilani has blamed former club AS Roma for his constant injury problems.

The Italian international believes the medical staff at Roma were not diligent when dealing with his problems and believes life at Liverpool will be good for him.

“I realise now that the way things were sometimes done in Italy didn’t do me any favours,” he said.

“For example, this latest problem with my ankle was initially overlooked by people at the club.

“They thought it was a minor problem and told me to carry on playing and subsequently it needed surgery.

“The problem there was the doctors changing all the time. I am so happy to be here, from a football point of view but also for my wellbeing, because I have noticed a difference already.

“The doctors here have told me not to rush, because that way we would avoid any recurrence.”

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lol.i oli want to see how he is going to perform for Liverpool.

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Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez is confident new signing Alberto Aquilani will complement his current midfielders.

"Xabi is a holding midfielder that can play long. He (Aquilani) is a player with more mobility, playing a little bit higher," Benitez told liverpoolfc.tv.

"He can pass the ball and keep getting into the box."

Benitez has a clear role in mind for Aquilani, but is confident his new No.4 could comfortably fill in anywhere in central midfield.

"We have Mascherano and Lucas Leiva both playing really well, with Gerrard in front. He can play instead of any of them," he said.

"He can play as second striker if necessary, but his best position will be between Gerrard and Mascherano - or between Lucas and Gerrard."

Rafa brushed off any lasting concerns over Aquilani's ankle injury and insisted the Italian is on the road to recovery.

"We knew that he had some problems," he explained.

"We think that we can improve him and keep him fit. We are 100 per cent confident he will be okay.

"Since the first day he was here with the physios, he was in the gym and the swimming pool, training and working really hard to be fit as soon as possible."