Bellamy pleads for a piece of the action

Bellamy, who joined his boyhood idols last summer from Blackburn, dreads the thought of missing the AC Milan rematch.

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But he knows that his affectionate hug and cheeky tribute to the manager after the semi-final win over Chelsea — lip readers recognised "you are f***ing amazing, boss" — may not sway Benitez's final choice.

Even the plushest seat in the stand would leave Bellamy feeling as removed as he was when perched on the sofa in Scotland.

He said: "I was with Celtic and watched it at my mate's house. Milan were impressive in the first half. Like everyone, I suppose, I was just hoping it wouldn't get embarrassing.

"You could never have imagined what happened in the second half. A boring 1-0 will do us this time! If I'm involved it'll be a memory I hold for the rest of my life, but you don't want to be walking past the trophy at the end, you want to be lifting it up."

Bellamy had to be patient at times this season as Benitez shuffled his strike force and his future may still lie away from Anfield.

Aston Villa had a bid for Bellamy turned down in January but remain keen, while Blackburn could trigger a £7million buy-back clause.

He added: "I've had great seasons and ended up with nothing. This season hasn't been too much for me, but at the end I'm in a European Cup Final.

"There's no guarantee I'll be involved, but this is what I've always been working towards. This is the biggest tournament aside from the World Cup Final, which I'm not naive enough to think I'll ever play in.

"Watching it from the stands would hurt. I want to be lifting that trophy, then no matter what anyone says about me I'll have the biggest trophy of them all in my back pocket."

Peter Crouch remains favourite to partner Dirk Kuyt and the England striker yesterday made his case for inclusion.

Crouch said: "I'm a different type of player to anything Nesta and Maldini face in Serie A and I feel sure I could cause them problems. I would be gutted to miss out, but it is the manager's way to keep us all waiting until about an hour before kick-off.

"When it comes to relationships, he is quite distant. We know what he wants, and he stresses football matters to us all the time. But he will never outline to you why you've been dropped.

"If he feels you need a rest, you get one. There may be an explanation from Paco Ayestaran, his assistant, but not from him. You can't quibble with the results. An FA Cup in between two Champions Leagues wouldn't be too bad."