Despite leaving Liverpool for Real Madrid all those years ago, fullback Alvaro Arbeloa has remained an ardent Red ever since. The Spaniard, who spent three Premier League seasons at Anfield, returns to Merseyside for the first time since departing for the La Liga outfit when the two sides meet in the Champions League tomorrow and he’s told his team-mates that they’re in for something special.
“I’ve told everyone this is an opportunity they shouldn’t miss,” explained the 31-year old World Cup and Champions League winner. “They’re used to a stadium that holds 80,000, sure, but Anfield is la bomba, unique. I’ve told them to enjoy it. I can imagine what Anfield will be like, how they’ll sing You’ll Never Walk Alone and cheer every corner or throw-in close to our area as if it’ll end in a goal – and I know it’ll feel like that to us.”
After finishing runners-up to eventual champions Manchester City last season, the Reds have failed to capture the kind of electric form that made them such fierce competitors last season. Although the visitors go into tomorrow’s meeting heavily favoured, Arbeloa will be taking nothing for granted on the pitch — but he’ll be relishing his return off of it.
“You get changed at Anfield and you have one little hook for your shirt, your trousers, your jacket, everything” said the defender with a laugh before turning serious once again. “Then you leave the dressing room and see ‘This is Anfield’. That sign’s the incarnation of a spirit, a way of preparing yourself as you head on to the pitch. I would reach up and touch it before every game – and I’ll do the same on Wednesday night.”
