Benitez hopes for an injury lift

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Steven Gerrard, Martin Kelly, Martin Skrtel and Albert Riera will definitely miss Wednesday night's Group E match - a game Liverpool have to win to maintain any hopes of reaching the last 16 - while Glen Johnson (calf), Daniel Agger (back), Fabio Aurelio (calf) and David Ngog (ankle) are doubts.

But Benitez seems set on a major gamble on Fernando Torres and £20million new boy Alberto Aquilani, who has yet to start a match for his new club, as he said: "We have to take Fernando to Lyon because we don't have too many options. We have to keep working with him and the rest of the players."

Such is Liverpool's injury plight that boss Benitez may take all four (Johnson, Agger, Aurelio and Ngog) with him for the Stade Gerland showdown, even if there is just a chance they will recover enough to be involved. Certainly Agger and Ngog are considered fit to travel.

Without Gerrard, Benitez is considering using the pair as Liverpool's main attackers against the side who won 2-1 at Anfield last month.

While Torres has a persistent groin problem, and was taken off after an hour at Fulham on Saturday, a game Liverpool eventually lost 3-1 without him.

And Benitez added: "We are trying to manage because he was close to having an operation. Still on Monday, two days after the game, he is feeling something.

"He is not comfortable. He has not got the power he had before, so we have to try to protect him.

"But he cannot play well if you keep pushing him, maybe if you push him he will be injured for a long time."

Aquilani recently picked up a virus, but he trained on Monday, with Benitez saying: "He was a bit weak, hopefully he will be better for the match."