BACK ...in form & favour at Anfield BACK ... in Spanish national set-up ... BACK emotional return to Seville
ALBERTO MORENO may be relishing an emotional return to Spain...but he insists Liverpool is now his true home.
The defender has pulled off one of the most unlikely comebacks to resurrect his Anfield career and also earn a shock recall to the Spanish national side.
He was called back into the squad for the first time in three years for Saturday’s friendly against Costa Rica in Malaga, just a short journey from his birthplace in Seville.
The left-back could earn his fourth cap for his country in Russia tonight, and will then cap a remarkable fortnight when he returns to Spain to face his old club Sevilla in the Champions League showdown that will determine Liverpool’s European fate.
Though still a proud Spaniard, Moreno insists his heart lies in one place.
“I live for Liverpool. I love Liverpool. I always want to win when I am wearing the shirt of Liverpool. I’ll fight hard for victory like I do every time I pull that shirt on,” he said of his impending visit to Seville.
“It will be a special game, if I am selected to play. Lots of family and friends will be going to watch it.
“But, irrespective of the occasion, we will be going there to win to get us as high as possible in the table.”
Few would have bet on Moreno (right, before Spain’s 5-0 win over Costa Rica on Saturday) playing in the Champions League for Liverpool against Sevilla this season, with the defender looking set for a return to his first club back in
the summer. He was left out in the cold at Anfield last season, making just two Premier League starts, and his chances of first-team action looked even more slim when Liverpool paid Hull £10million in the summer for Scottish international leftback Andrew Robertson. Yet somehow he fought back during pre-season to not only put off a move but also reclaim his first-team place from veteran James Milner, who filled in at leftback for most of last term.
Now he is aiming for the perfect end to the fairytale by taking the Reds into the group stages – and victory in Seville would almost guarantee that.
“I’ve only played in the group stages,” said the 25-year-old (left). “I’ve never played in the knock-out stage before so to get through to the next round would be really special for me, as I’m sure it would be for everyone at the club.
“It’s been a few years since we got through as a club to the knock-out stages. The fans deserve a happy event like that.”
First, though, is a visit to St Petersburg and the prospect of his fourth Spain cap, a comeback not even the player himself would have predicted in the summer.
“It is amazing to get a recall into the Spain squad,” Moreno said. “I am excited by the prospect and I will give everything if I get the chance to play.”