Injury Problems Consistent For Liverpool After Birmingham Draw

Rafa can't shake off his injury nightmare.

After finally having Steven Gerrard back, Fernando Torres is out for three weeks (although that was expected), Glen Johnson is still not 100% fit, along with Daniel Agger and Martin Kelly. Liverpool also lost Albert Riera and Yossi Benayoun to injury after Liverpool's draw with Birmingham. Both will be out for three to four weeks and that will be another headache for Benitez, especially Benayoun, who has been arguably Liverpool's best player this season.

Liverpool have had a myriad of problems so far this season, most that were not expected, like a shaky defence, major injury problems, defeats in a row and then problems which might have been expected like the loss of Xabi Alonso, Gerrard or Torres being injured and players like Babel and Voronin not improving. 

All this adds to a bad first third to the season for Liverpool and Rafa.

Alberto Aquilani has the potential to be as good as Xabi Alonso, but will he live up to it? A lot of things ride on him now.

Liverpool need to gel together more and finish teams off. Lyon should have been beaten in the first half, especially after Voronin's chance and Birmingham should have been won after scoring the penalty.

But they didn't.

And that has been the story of Liverpool's season.

Bad injuries, losses, can't finish teams off, no playmaker, shaky defence and bad striker back ups all have led Liverpool to the brink of going out of the Champions League, and as good as out of the title race (who knows though!).

They need to make sure nothing stupid happens, get winning by starting against Man City after the international break, finish in the top four and win the last two Champions League games (maybe qualify).

You never know though.

Good luck to them. They're going to need it.