© EuroFootball.com
With a day left before the historic match for Lithuanian football, in which our country's champion FBK will meet the last year's Champions League winner, English team defender Steve Finnan stated that he does not plan to underestimate his future opponents.
"Liverpool" arrived in Kaunas today from their training camp in Switzerland. The Irish S. Finnan, who has played in over 80 matches for the team, admitted that he knows nothing about the "Kaunas" team, but does not expect an easy match.
"I'll be honest - personally, I don't know anything about "Kaunas", but our scouts have done their homework and explained to us what to expect. We don't expect an easy match, it should be tough, especially since the first match will be away," the player said.
"They scored eight goals in two matches in the first qualifying round, so their strikers definitely know where the goal is. We undoubtedly have to be cautious in defending against their attacks, but as always, we will play like professionals, and having kept our goal 'dry' several times this summer, we believe we can do it again," confidently spoke Finnan.
Last Saturday, "Liverpool" defeated Piraeus "Olympiacos" club in a friendly match in Liechtenstein with a score of 4-3, and although the new club acquisition Peter Crouch failed to score, he hopes to open his goal account soon: "I didn't manage to do it against "Olympiacos", but if I'm sent onto the field, I hope to score in the match against "Kaunas"."
In the Liverpool lineup against "Kaunas", it is unlikely that Milan Baros and Jerzy Dudek will play, as their coach Rafa Benitez does not want them to play in the Champions League, as they would then not be able to participate in another European tournament, which would reduce their potential transfer value.
Apart from these two players, the English team is expected to play with their strongest lineup - the only doubts are regarding the injured S. Finnan and Djimi Traore, while P. Crouch and Mohamed Sissoko are likely to have the opportunity to debut in official matches.
Probable "Liverpool" lineup: Reina, Carson, Finnan, Carragher, Hyypia, Warnock, Josemi, Medjani, Whitbread, Traore, Riise, Potter, Garcia, Alonso, Gerrard, Hamann, Sissoko, Zenden, Le Tallec, Cisse, Crouch, Morientes
