Liverpool's Alberto Aquilani: More English Patient Than Roman Gladiator

Six months ago I wrote an article discussing Alberto Aquilani's transfer from Roma to Liverpool. In it, I offered the view that he would never be the saviour of Liverpool's season, that he would struggle to adapt to both England and English football, and that the stress placed upon him would lead an already weak player to be unable to cope with the expectation.

Here is the original article in full.

It seems those fears are being realised, as even the man responsible for bringing Aquilani to Liverpool, Rafael Benitez, has made public his doubts over the player's fitness, mental state, and his willingness to push himself to repay the investment the Anfield club made in him last summer.

He joined Liverpool amid much hype on August 5th, for an initial fee of €20 million, with further bonuses linked to Liverpool's achievements in the first few seasons. Benitez and his team were fully aware of an ankle injury which had prevented Aquilani playing for previous club Roma since March 11. It took until November 9 for him to make his Premier League debut, and he has made only 18 appearances in total.

His last game was March 15, where he had perhaps his best game in a Liverpool shirt against Portsmouth, where he scored his first goal for his new club. Since then he has missed a game "due to illness", and the remaining fixtures with a recurrence of the original ankle injury that so delayed his debut.

Fans and experts alike questioned the acquisition of a player known to be injury-prone, and many will feel their fears have been justified. Liverpool are in the midst of serious financial difficulties due to the debts leveraged against them by their North American owners, yet their major summer signing has so far cost them in excess of €1 million per game.

In my original assessment of the transfer, I offered the opinion that the player would, sooner rather than later, request a move back to his native Italy. With Benitez now publicly questioning Aquilani, how long before that too proves true? Only Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher remain from that distant triumph of Istanbul, the Spanish coach seemingly holding no loyalty to any player, even those he fought to bring to the club.

Italian teams will always believe their medical expertise can recover players deemed "lost" to injury. This is especially true at Milan, where the self styled "lab" is rightly held up as the example of what sports medicine can offer professional teams. It seems to hold the secrets of eternal youth as well as re-igniting the careers of many stars who previously succumbed to frequent injury.

Aquilani, despite being Roman-born, is a self-confessed fan of rivals AC Milan. Their midfield is growing ever older, and a cut price move for a player once seen as the future of the national team seems to make sense. Of course, that is just one of many possible destinations for Aquilani, who is still viewed with admiration in Italy.

What seems certain is that Aquilaini has a limited future at Anfield, even Benitez has lost faith. With his own future far from assured, how long before he cuts loose another expensive mistake?