Rotation the route to goal – Voronin

Sep 8 2007 by Ian Doyle, Liverpool Daily Post

ANDRIY VORONIN believes Rafael Benitez’s rotation policy will bring the best out of Liverpool’s forwards.

The Anfield manager has alternated his strike partnerships, using four different combinations in six games so far this campaign.

It has so far paid dividends, with Liverpool qualifying for the Champions League group stage and rocketing to the top of the Premier League, scoring 16 goals in the process with nine having been netted by the strikers.

Voronin has proven a revelation since moving from Bayer Leverkusen on a free transfer in the summer, starting his Anfield career in impressive fashion with three goals and two assists in 197 minutes of action.

The Ukraine international has revealed he was assured by Benitez he’d have a part to play this season, despite his arrival being overlooked in the wake of later big-money buys.

And Voronin reckons Liverpool’s encouraging opening to the season is proof rotation can work.

“I was always confident in myself,” said the 28-year-old. “When I signed, Rafa told me that I should be prepared to be rotated.

“Liverpool have a 23-player squad, and 20 of them are national-team players. Everyone wants to play and everyone knows how to play.

“But the coach is doing the right thing by giving us rests. He wants us to play 50 or 60 games at the highest level per season, not 20.

“This is why over the last five games our squad has been changed four times. The results show that Benitez is right.”