"It was good to see Harry get 90 minutes," Benitez told liverpoolfc.tv about Kewell's match for Australia on Saturday. "I was talking with him and he said it wasn't a high tempo game so he was able to get through it.

"Physically he probably still needs to improve his pace and stamina but he is getting there.

"When you talk about Harry then you talk about a player of quality and ability who can make a big difference to our team. He can give different things to us, especially against teams who play deep and compact."