Liverpool boss Benitez pleased with Aquilani performance

Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez was happy with Alberto Aquilani's goal scoring performance in victory over Portsmouth.

Benitez stands by his assertion that Aquilani was a signing for the long-term and that people will not see the best of him until possibly next season.

But he was pleased to see the player starting to blossom in the Premier League.

"We had Javier Mascherano and Alberto controlling the game and the tempo and that was really good," said the Spaniard of last night's performance.

"That will be important [for Aquilani]. He has to improve his match fitness and he has to play - he played 90 minutes against Portsmouth which was a good opportunity for him.

"We will see now [whether he can continue] as we have too many games in a short time so it will be important to have all the players available and ready.

"He can play some games like Mascherano, Lucas Leiva or Gerrard. It depends on the player, the opposition, and if the player is fit or not.

"You have to analyse these things together but the great thing, as a manager, you can see the players in every single training session and that is the key for us."