Steven Gerrard’s return to form can drive Liverpool FC’s run-in says Rafael Benitez

Rafael Benitez today predicted Steven Gerrard’s imminent return to form will be the catalyst for Liverpool to sharpen their cutting edge.

Though the Reds are unbeaten in five Premier League games and have only conceded one goal in that period, they struggled both score goals and create chances.

The draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers on Tuesday was a case in point, as Liverpool had to settle for a point without ever testing home goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann.

Gerrard returned for that fixture after missing the draw at Stoke and the win against Tottenham with a hamstring problem and clearly needed the run out.

With that 90 minutes under his belt, though, Benitez expects his inspirational captain to go through the gears tomorrow when Bolton Wanderers arrive at Anfield.

“Steven has worked very hard,” said Benitez, who may be able to add Fabio Aurelio back into his squad but is likely to again be without Daniel Agger.

“He did well (on Tuesday) but you could see in two or three of the runs that he made that he didn’t quite have the match fitness that you need.

“But he was trying all the time and he kept taking good positions. Clearly he will bring a lot to the team when he is fully fit.

“We know that he is going to give us different options. We played with (Alberto) Aquilani as a second striker against Tottenham and we can play Steven in that role.

“When you play him in that role, he is different because he can get into the box but he also has great deliveries from set pieces which will help too. We have different players with different skills and that is going to be good for the team going forward until the end of the season.”

If Liverpool are going to put themselves firmly in the running for a Champions League spot, winning the next two matches at Anfield are going to be crucial.