It is time for an excursion so grab your valise, finish up your game of cards with the Central Casting Irishmen and let's jump on an old-timey steamboat so we can chug on over to Futfanatico to read an exotic international guest post.

It's about some guy who occasionally plays for Liverpool, I think.

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Liverpool kept alive their hopes of silverware this season with a 3-0 victory over Lille at Anfield to win their Europa League last-16 tie 3-1 on aggregate.
Captain Steven Gerrard's ninth-minute penalty gave them the ideal start, after Lucas Leiva had been fouled.
Fernando Torres then struck twice in the second half - his first European goals for more than 11 months - to put his side into the quarter-finals. Click to continue reading...

Aquilani scores for Liverpool!

Who were we watching? Standing in the pub, we made the irresistible jokes about how Barcelona had flown to Anfield and donned our side's red jerseys. The Liverpool side that couldn't carve out a goal against Wigan or Lille was nowhere to be seen. This was a flowing, determined outfit.

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A deflated Liverpool after defeat to Lille. Liverpool are set to welcome Lille to Anfield tomorrow on the back of a 1-0 loss in France. After the emphatic victory over Portsmouth on Monday night can Liverpool keep things going with another win in the Europa League? Liverpool lost the first leg after conceding in the 84th minute [. Click to continue reading...

It is probably too far to stretch it by claiming that Liverpool's next two matches have the potential of redefining their season. First up on Thursday night is the arrival of Lille in the Europa League, followed by a meeting against their old adversary Manchester United on Sunday at Old Trafford. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool midfielder Alberto Aquilani missed training at Melwood today after suffering from a stomach upset.
The Italian turned in arguably his finest performance in a Red shirt to date when scoring his first goal for the club in Monday's 4-1 Premier League win over Portsmouth but was unable to take part in this morning's preparations ahead of the Europa League Round of 16 second leg against Lille. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool forward Dirk Kuyt has revealed that the Reds' dressing room was a happy place after Alberto Aquilani scored his first goal in the 4-1 defeat of Portsmouth on Monday evening.
The game marked something of a return to form for the Reds after disappointing defeats at Wigan Athletic and Lille in the last week, and Aquilani's team-mates were also delighted that the Italian had at last found the net after a disappointing campaign for him. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool midfielder Alberto Aquilani has hailed captain Steven Gerrard and striker Fernando Torres as he aims for a Champions League place.
The Italian scored one and made another for Torres during the Reds' 4-1 destruction of Portsmouth on Monday night.
And the emphasis is to continue moving forward with the help of the star duo. Click to continue reading...

Just as we thought our ship was about to sink, captain Steven Gerrard and the rest of the boys pulled something special out of the bag last night against a team fighting for their life in the Premier League. But is this a sign of things to come or just a one off result? Many people [...] Click to continue reading...

Rafael Benitez saw his Liverpool side hammer Portsmouth with a splendid 4-1 victory over the Premier League's bottom side. The Reds hit Pompey with a furious seven-minute blitz, which saw them score three decent goals in the first half of a very pleasing performance. Alberto Aquilani completed a full match for only the second time in [. Click to continue reading...

Rafael Benitez saw his Liverpool side hammer Portsmouth with a splendid 4-1 victory over the Premier League's bottom side. The Reds hit Pompey with a furious seven-minute blitz, which saw them score three decent goals in the first half of a very pleasing performance. Alberto Aquilani completed a full match for only the second time in [. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina has urged his team-mates to produce a repeat performance of their display against Portsmouth in their next games against Lille and Manchester United as they aim to salvage their season.
The Merseysiders brushed Pompey aside at Anfield courtesy of a Fernando Torres brace as well as goals by Ryan Babel and a first in English football for Alberto Aquilani. Click to continue reading...

Midfielder Alberto Aquilani is delighted to have got off the mark for Liverpool in front of the Kop end.
The Italian has failed to live up to his reported £20million price tag since arriving from Roma last summer, with a string of injuries and poor form hampering his progress.
The 25-year-old was handed a rare start in Liverpool's 4-1 win over Portsmouth on Monday, and he rewarded boss Rafa Benitez with a well-taken first-half goal. Click to continue reading...

Martin Kelly reflected on Liverpool's 4-1 demolition of Portsmouth and declared: 'There's a lot more to come from us.'
The Reds cruised to a comprehensive Anfield victory courtesy of a Fernando Torres brace and strikes from Alberto Aquilani and Ryan Babel - and Kelly is confident the goal glut is a sign Rafael Benitez's side are ready to return to top form. Click to continue reading...

Midfielder Alberto Aquilani finally found a performance to justify his £17million price tag, capping a masterful display with his first Liverpool goal in the 4-1 win over Portsmouth at Anfield.
The summer signing, brought in after Xabi Alonso's sale to Real Madrid, has struggled to adapt to life in England but was at the heart of everything in only his fifth Premier League start. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool beat Portsmouth 4-1 at Anfield, with Torres scoring twice and Alberto Aquilani getting his first goal for Liverpool. The Reds were 3-0 up at half time, and Anfield were expecting the final score to be about 8 or 9 nil (and it could have been) but Liverpool only found the net once more in the [. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool are beating Portsmouth 3-0 at Half time at Anfield, with Alberto Aquilani scoring his first goal in a red shirt. In a quiet Anfield, Torres, Babel and Aquilani have found the back of the net; while in reality Liverpool could be 5 or 6 up. Liverpool have been the far better side, playing some nice [. Click to continue reading...

Rafael Benitez has hinted Alberto Aquilani's encouraging cameo performance at Wigan has pushed him into contention for more action against Lille.
The Italian midfielder played the final 20 minutes at the DW Stadium on Monday, and the boss admits he has been impressed with his determination to make an impact at Anfield. Click to continue reading...

Alberto Aquilani is happy at Liverpool despite making just four starting Premier League appearances in his first season at Anfield.
The 25-year-old midfielder joined the English outfit in a £17m transfer from hometown club Roma last summer.
He didn't make his Premier League debut for Liverpool until November 9 after struggling with injury since his move. Click to continue reading...

Another European night, another reason for Liverpool's statisticians to scribble another entry into their books.
While, inevitably, the focus was on Steven Gerrard after he took his tally of European goals to 33, surpassing Alan Shearer as Britain's all-time leading scorer in continental competition, there was another significant foot note. Click to continue reading...

For eleven first-half minutes, Rafael Benitez must have feared the worst. Thankfully the Spaniard's attack-minded approach paid off and Liverpool move on to the Europa League's last 16 with relative comfort, after a 3-1 win over Unirea Urziceni in rain-soaked Bucharest.
It had looked worrying for Benitez and his side when Ricardo Gomes was allowed to rise unchallenged to meet an 18th-minute corner and draw Unirea level in the tie, but Liverpool's response was as clinical as it has been all season. Click to continue reading...

All eyes turned to the Europa League last night, and many Kopites gazed towards Romania as Liverpool took a trip to Unirea for their second leg clash. As Rafael Benitez draws away the pressure from his team using banter with the press, his £19m+ summer signing from Roma, Alberto Aquilani, knows he has to show what he is capable of. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool midfielder Alberto Aquilani is proud that the Reds fans seem to have taken him to their hearts so soon after his summer arrival from Roma.
One expression of that affection has been the banner which was unfurled at Anfield not long after his arrival bearing the legend 'Il Principino - A Hero has Arrived'. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun is unlikely to be risked for the visit of Unirea Urziceni in the Europa League.
The Israeli has not played since breaking a rib more than a month ago in the FA Cup defeat by Reading and, although he has been training with the squad, he may be held back for Sunday's match at Manchester City. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool are finished, aren't they? The season has been a disaster on the pitch, the club is divided off it by joint-owners who want out but are reluctant to sell in case such a deal benefits the other. The manager cannot be sacked however bad his team performs because Liverpool simply cannot afford to do so.

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Liverpool midfielder Alberto Aquilani could fail to make Italy's final 23-man squad for the 2010 World Cup, according to Calciomercato.it.
The player spent the first part of the season out with a serious ankle injury, and has since only made eight appearances in the Premier League and has yet to play a full match under coach Rafa Benitez, who seems to prefer Steven Gerrard, Javier Mascherano, and Lucas in central midfield. Click to continue reading...

Liverpool's talismanic leader Steven Gerrard, 29, believes playmaking midfielder Alberto Aquilani, 25, bought from AS Roma last summer and now embarking on a sustained run in the first team following an ankle lay-off, will have no problems during derby day, given his experience of big games in Serie A.

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I think Sotirios Kyrgiakos will have a key role to play in Saturday's derby.
I'll be honest; when I first saw the big Greek defender play I wasn't impressed. I didn't think he was good enough for a club of Liverpool's stature but he's made me reassess.
Over the past four games he has been excellent. Click to continue reading...

The supporters at Liverpool have been great with Rafael Benitez – at a lot of other clubs he would no longer have a job.
They are a patient bunch at Anfield and in times of trouble they go to the manager and say ‘how can we help?'
So in light of some of his comments which emerged at the weekend about the interest from Juventus, Benitez has got to be careful. Click to continue reading...

Alberto Aquilani has been forced to endure a tumultuous start to his Anfield career. The young Italian international looks some way off living up to his £20million price-tag right now, with stop-start appearances and constant changes in position further unsettling his progress.
And so, hopefully, Saturday's far post header assist, which teed up Dirk Kuyt for the Reds' opener and ultimately set Rafa Benitez's side on the road to maximum points against Bolton, will act like a shot in the arm for the young Roman. Click to continue reading...

A first-half strike from Dirk Kuyt and an own goal from Kevin Davies saw Liverpool maintain their top four push with a 2-0 victory over Bolton on Saturday afternoon.
The Dutchman's close range finish eight minutes before the interval put the Reds in the driving seat before Emiliano Insua's deflected shot sealed the points to stretch our unbeaten run in the Barclays Premier League to six matches. Click to continue reading...

Boots do not come any bigger to fill: if Alberto Aquilani accepted mission impossible last summer, how must Sotirios Kyrgiakos have felt upon touching down at Anfield?
As the man bought to replace Xabi Alonso, a huge crowd favourite and Liverpool's play-maker supreme, Aquilani was always destined to be subjected to a succession of unfavourable and unhelpful comparisons with his predecessor. Click to continue reading...

Cutting through the exotic monikers of Premier League imports so you can judge the player, not the name This is arguably the most mistranslated name in Premier League. Waterline? Watercarrier? Watermelon? No, it is eagle-related. Either that or your ancestors used to live in the town of L'Aquila (which means The Eagle in any case). Click to continue reading...

Liverpool midfielder Damien Plessis could be set for a loan switch to Serie A strugglers Lazio, Goal.com UK understands.
The 21-year-old midfielder has been on the fringes of the Reds' first team for the past three seasons, making eight appearances in that time, and manager Rafael Benitez revealed yesterday that an Italian club had made an enquiry about signing Plessis on loan. Click to continue reading...

By Ollie Irish

Rafa Benitez called this a "fair result" it's not something you hear him say often. But after the encouraging win over Spurs, this was a fairly turgid performance by Liverpool against a spirited Wolves side. Still, a point away from home in the Prem isn't such a terrible result.

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Liverpool midfielder Alberto Aquilani has revealed that he has found the move from Serie A to the Premier League a taxing ordeal but stressed that he is determined to start playing more regularly and at the level which earned him a £20 million move to Anfield.
Aquilani joined the Reds in the summer as a direct replacement for Xabi Alonso but spent much of the first half of the season trying to regain fitness and making cameo appearances from the substitute's bench. Click to continue reading...

Paddy Power has offered Soccerlens readers a free £20 bet for simply opening an account and placing a bet with them. Plus they're offering excellent odds on the Liverpool-Spurs game tonight with the Spurs 9/1 to win 2-1. Go ahead, claim your free £20 bet and back Spurs to win.

Liverpool v Tottenham
Premier League
Anfield
Kickoff: 20:00 GMT
Wednesday 20th January 2010

Liverpool and Tottenham meet at Anfield hoping to keep up with the Big Three or at the very least, get an advantage over their rivals in the race for the final Champions League spot.

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According to Sky Sports News, Liverpool midfielder Alberto Aquilani is not going to leave the club and return to the Seria A. His agent Franco Zavaglia told laroma24.it,

"There aren't possibilities that Aquilani will go back to Italy in January .

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Liverpool forward Ryan Babel comes back into contention for a place in the squad to face Tottenham after apologising to manager Rafael Benitez.
The Holland international accepted his mistake over remarks made on Twitter and Benitez has now deemed the matter closed.
Striker Fernando Torres (knee) and midfielders Steven Gerrard (hamstring) and Yossi Benayoun (rib) are all out. Click to continue reading...

Alberto Aquilani's agent has laughed off claims the Liverpool midfielder could return to Seria A with Juventus this January.
The Italian arrived as a £20million replacement for Xabi Alonso, who left for Real Madrid, from Roma last summer but has failed to live up to expectations at Anfield. Click to continue reading...