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| NEWS STORY |
DAY 3: BOATS, GOOSE BUMPS AND ICE CUBES
Paul Eaton in Singapore
25 July 2009
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Liverpool have enjoyed their final day building up to their big match in Singapore - and we've been with them every step of the way.
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The players began the day with another run-out at the national stadium. Yossi Benayoun and Xabi Alonso again trained normally after ankle injuries but Glen Johnson was still missing with an achilles problem.
And talking of Yossi, it looks like he's after a career as a press officer when he hangs up his boots. On the cruise along the Singapore river he was kept busy providing us with players to interview at the front of the boat. The deal was he wouldn't have to do an interview if he could find more willing players - Pepe and Lucas got him off the hook. Thanks Yossi, but you won't escape us for the full season.
Thanks also to the players on Boat One who took great delight at launching ice cubes in our direction as we were interviewing Lucas. Fair play lads, you got us with a few good shots!
Hailing from football-mad Brazil and having experienced big Anfield nights, you'd expect Lucas to be familiar with awe-inspiring sights - but when You'll Never Walk Alone was sung by the crowd at the finale he admitted he had broken out in goose bumps. It was truly overwhelming to see such an incredible show of support for the players.
Before the boat cruise Rafa and Pepe addressed the media ahead of tomorrow night's clash with Singapore. Steven Gerrard was the main topic of conversation with the locals disappointed our skipper won't be joining us in time for Sunday's game. "We have to protect him," explained the boss. "If we fly him out only to go back straightaway then it wouldn't be the right thing to do. He has had a hard week, he has been under pressure and now he just needs to rest."
With Stevie not here, Fernando Torres is number one in the eyes of the locals and Benitez will have delighted the Singapore reds after revealing El Nino will enjoy his longest run-out of pre-season so far tomorrow night. "We don't know yet whether he can play 45 minutes or 30 minutes, but he will play more than he has done so far." Expect to see hysteria break out in the stands when our number nine comes on.
Torres is the star attraction out here, but Xabi Alonso isn't too far behind. Everywhere we go there are flags and banners pleading with Xabi to stay and every time he walks through the hotel fans scream out and beg for him not to leave.
Another transfer rumour can bite the dust after Rafa Benitez was asked if a recent report he was considering bringing Peter Crouch back to the club was correct. "No" was the straight reply.
The team will train again at the stadium on Sunday morning as they prepare for the big evening kick-off. 55,000 are expected to cram into the ground on the night to watch the game. After the match the squad will head straight for the airport and their overnight flight back to Liverpool.
As we prepare to say goodbye to Asia after tomorrow's game against Singapore, it's an opportune time to thank all those people who have helped make the LFC TV team's stay in this part of the world so memorable. We have met so many great individuals over the past week, all of whom have helped the website and TV channel cover the tour so comprehensively. From Steve McMahon and everybody at Profitable to the security team, the hotel staff, everybody from Carlsberg, Adidas and Thomas Cook and even the local camera hire guy who saved our skins on the penultimate day when our equipment failed, a big thanks from all of us.
But most importantly we want to pay special thanks to the many fans we have met either in Bangkok or Singapore. It was great to see you all and to hear your stories about why you love our great club so much. You all contributed to making our visit to Asia so memorable and we hope to be back again really soon. You'll Never Walk Alone.
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