Benitez hails Gerrard after acquittal

Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez hailed Steven Gerrard on Saturday after he was cleared of an alleged assault, voicing confidence that his captain would be mentally ready for the new season.

Gerrard was accused of being part of a group that injured a man at the Lounge Inn nightclub in Southport, near Liverpool, northwest England, on December 29.

Gerrard was found not guilty on Friday and celebrated his high-profile acquittal by playing for the Liverpool reserves just hours later.

The England star scored a goal in their 2-2 draw against neighbours Tranmere Rovers, but Benitez said he will not travel to Singapore to join the rest of the squad for the final days of their Asian tour.

“We are really, really pleased with the news which means he can now play football and focus on football,” said Benitez.

“But the plan is to rest him and he will start again next week.”

His non-appearance in Thailand and Singapore put a dampener on their much-hyped Asian swing with some fans upset after his image was used prominently in promotional material to sell tickets.

His court date was set before the trip to Asia was announced.

Benitez said he hoped supporters understood that, despite the trial being over, Gerrard needed to be treated with care as the new season was just weeks away.

“We were in touch with him every day and knew what was happening and we were confident everything would be okay,” he said.

“Now we need to take care of him, he must rest.

“I have to protect my players. We have already lost two to injury (defender Martin Skrtel and forward Nabil El Zhar). I’m sorry for the fans that we can’t bring Gerrard but he is the captain of the team so he is a key player for the rest of the season.

“I hope the fans can respect the decision. We have other big names like (Pepe) Reina, (Xabi) Alonso, Fernando (Torres) and (Javier) Mascherano and they are all here.”

Asked if Gerrard would be mentally ready for the new campaign given the stress he has been under, Benitez said: “He’s alright, he scored a goal against Tranmere on Friday night.”

Gerrard said in a brief statement that he wanted to put the case behind him.

“I’m really looking forward to the season ahead and concentrating on football,” he said.

Meanwhile, reserve team coach John McMahon hailed Gerrard’s “world class” contribution in the Tranmere match, saying he was delighted with the impact he made in a 64-minute appearance.

“Steven is different class and he wanted to play,” he told the Liverpool website.

“He was a real inspiration to the young players and they can learn from playing alongside a world class player like him.

“He is a model professional and his attitude in the dressing room before the game and at half-time was fantastic. Young lads look up to Steven and they can only learn from that.”

Gerrard is likely to rejoin the team for their friendly against Espanyol on August 2.