Traore back to fitness

By Mighty Reds
September 23 2005

Djimi Traore is eager to put his injury worries behind him and gain back his first team place. He’s back to fitness after suffering a torn thigh muscle which has kept him out for pre-season and the early Premiership matches.

He said:

"It was a terrible pre-season for me because I picked up the thigh injury just one week after we came back. That's two years in a row now I've missed pre-season and it was very disappointing.

"I've worked as hard as I can to come back as quickly as possible and I'm pleased to be fit again now. I just need more games to improve my match fitness and my confidence.

"It's going to be hard to get into the team though because we now have two or three good players for every position and that's good for the manager.

"At left back there's me, Stevie Warnock and John Arne Riise. It's the same all over the field as well. All we can do is work hard and see who the manager chooses for each game."

Liverpool face Birmingham this week-end who beat them 2-0 in the same fixture last season.

"We didn't play well there last year," added Traore. "But I think we need to win this weekend otherwise we could be a long way behind the top three.

"We've had a couple of good draws away from home but we need to start winning games now. If we can win some matches away then teams could start becoming a bit scared about playing Liverpool. It's not enough justto pick up points at home if you want to do well in the league.

"I'm sure we'll be better at Birmingham this year. We have a stronger team and the new players understand our style of play better. It will be a tough game but we have to be confident."

Traore who signed a new deal in the summer has confidence that Rafael Benitez will do well at Liverpool.

"We can be successful in the future," he said. "The main target is to win the league. Some players here have won a lot of trophies and the only thing missing is the league.

"It was a boost to sign the new contract. During the summer I was wondering what I was going to do next season, but the manager told me he wanted to keep me for longer and I was pleased to hear that.

"My target is to play more games than last season and to perform well in the team. I'm happy here, I signed a new contract so the club has confidence in me.

"I'm 25 years old and I've been here since I was 19. I've done a lot of things with Liverpool and I feel this is my club now."