Centre-back the priority for Rafa Benitez

Dec 31 2007 by Ian Doyle, Liverpool Daily Post

RAFAEL BENITEZ is confident there will be “one or two” new arrivals at Anfield during next month’s transfer window – with a young centre-back the priority.

The absence through injury of both Sami Hyypia and Daniel Agger forced the Liverpool manager to employ Alvaro Arbeloa at the heart of defence alongside Jamie Carragher at Manchester City yesterday.

It underlined the need for reinforcement at centre-back, and Benitez said: “We have some players, have some targets and we will try to sign the players we need.

“Maybe one, maybe two, if everyone is fit you never know. We are working hard and are very close.

“We are close to some players but until you see them put pen on paper then you keep working with the players you have.”

Benitez has turned his attentions away from Fiorentina’s Tomas Ujfalusi, after it emerged the Czech Republic international is likely to see out the last six months of his contract at the Serie A outfit.

Instead, the Liverpool manager is now expected to move for a younger centre-back, and said: “We have confidence we can sign the right player for the right price, and it will be good for us thinking about now and the future.”

After an unconvincing opening period against City, Arbeloa settled into the centre-back position and helped keep a clean sheet during a goalless draw.

But Benitez admitted: “It shows how short we are. We knew Arbeloa had experience playing at centre-back in Spain but the Premier League is different.

“But we needed to manage that situation and I thought his understanding with Carragher was good.”

On the evidence of this yesterday’s contest, Benitez could do worse than try to prise Richard Dunne away from Eastlands.

The City skipper turned in an awesome display, not only subduing the considerable threat of Fernando Torres in a way few have managed this season.

Dunne also managed to hack off the line when Joe Hart saved Dirk Kuyt’s late effort before sliding in to block Yossi Benayoun’s goal-bound strike, the last chance Liverpool had to make their dominance tell.

“I don’t know if it was Richard’s best performance for Manchester City but it was an extremely good one,” said City manager Sven-Goran Eriksson.

“He is a good player and our captain and he showed the way forward.

“He is a very important member of our dressing room,” said the former England manager.

“He has been here for a long time and it is good to have someone like that around the club.

“Not only is he a good footballer, he is a very sensible person, which is what you require from a captain,” he added.