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Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard [right] in disbelief - Source: Reuters -
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Liverpool boss Rafael Benitez is set to demand a full explanation from the FA after star midfielder Steven Gerrard lasted just ten minutes of an England training session before his recurring groin injury flared up.
Reds boss Benitez is said to be frustrated that Gerrard was allowed to stay on and train for the upcoming Belarus clash with the nation team, despite aggravating his groin injury during the Three Lions 1-0 loss to Ukraine.
An already struggling Liverpool now face a tense wait to see if Gerrard will be fit for arguably the biggest month of the club's season so far, which starts with current high-flyers Sunderland on Sunday and a visit from Lyon in a crucial Champions League clash on Tuesday before facing fierce rivals Manchester United on October the 25th.
It has been reported that Gerrard passed himself fit to stay with the England squad, but after pain struck the influential midfielder during training he was on the next plane to Liverpool to received treatment.
It has now been reported in the British media that Benitez will demand to know why England's medical staff did not pick up the seriousness of the injury, especially when Wayne Rooney was put on a flight back to Manchester soon after injuring his calf.
But England boss Fabio Capello has defended the defended the decision not to send Gerrard back to Liverpool, by explaining it was the player's own choice.
"He stayed with us. We spoke after the game against Ukraine and he thought he'd be fit, perhaps for this game. He practised with us but, after 10 minutes, he felt it," Capello said.
"It's not a big problem. He'll be fit in two or three days. For Saturday when Liverpool play. The manager will decide. They have the Champions League afterwards. Not a big problem.
"He decided to stay here. We asked him what he thought, and he thought he'd be fit. If he'd not been fit, he'd have gone home."
