Little by little is how Benitez was hoping to bring Glen Johnson back into his starting line-up but the manager’s hand could be forced at the DW Stadium, given the fitness concerns surrounding Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel.
Skrtel, of course, is out with a broken metatarsal and will not play again until the middle of April at the earliest, while Agger – who left Anfield last weekend on crutches after damaging his knee – is facing a race to be fit to face Wigan.
Should he miss out, Benitez would have the option of pairing Jamie Carragher and Sotirios Kyrgiakos – available after serving a three-match ban – in the centre of his defence and he could persist with Javier Mascherano as makeshift right-back.
Yet the temptation is there for Benitez to thrust Johnson back into the side for the first time since the 1-0 victory at Aston Villa December 29 – the last time Liverpool won away from Anfield.
Johnson has looked awesome in spells this season but, due to a succession of niggling fitness issues, there have been other times when he has looked considerably off the pace, such as on his return to former club Portsmouth.
Benitez remains in no doubt that Johnson will become a huge success for both Liverpool and England thanks to his outstanding natural talent and eagerness to learn and show those qualities on the training pitches at Melwood.
And that’s why Benitez is tempted to give Johnson the nod at Wigan; his influence on the right has been missed and he is looking to unleash him to enhance Liverpool’s prospects of snatching three points.
“Glen is doing well and I will have to consider if he is going to be in the squad,” said Benitez. “It has been difficult for him this season. He arrived here as a new player with quality but he has not always played.
“We have missed him because he is very good going forward.
“We knew that we needed to improve his defending but when you have these injuries, you cannot spend time together on the pitch with the coaches.
“That makes it more difficult.
“But we know he has got great quality. He is going to make a difference going forward but I felt he was starting to improve his defending before he got injured. But, hopefully, he will be okay from now and he will be a good addition for us.
“We don’t want to take any risks with him but when you have a player of Glen’s quality coming back in, you have to think about it. We have a few more training sessions before we face Wigan, so we will see.”
