Liverpool Defender Desperate to Impress After Injury Nightmare

Liverpool defender Martin Kelly admits he has had to be patient after recovering from a cruciate knee injury that kept him out of action for more than a year but he is now desperate to get an opportunity to impress.

The 23 year old was pushing Glen Johnson for a regular starting berth at right back and was a member of the England squad that travelled to Poland and Ukraine for the European Championships in the summer of 2012.

He started last season in impression fashion but would suffer an ACL rupture of his right knee against Manchester United in September 2012 that would keep him on the sidelines for some 12 months.

Kelly would return to first team action against United a year and two days after suffering the injury but a minor knock in the 1-0 defeat would again force him out of contention.

Having now returned to full fitness Kelly is eager to impress manager Brendan Rodgers who has been forced to experiment with his defence because of an injury to first choice right-back Glen Johnson.

"I feel good and I'm back to full fitness," Kelly told the official Liverpool website. "I came on against Manchester United and took a little knock there.

"That's why I haven't been involved in the last couple of games, but I'm back in training now, so I'm happy.

"The last 12 months has taught me to look after myself. My body needs to be able to cope with the demands of the Premier League and over the past 12 months I've been getting to a condition that will cater for that.

"You've got to have patience in football as well as knowing that when you're given your chance, you've got to take it. Football is that sort of industry and all footballers know that.

"It's taken a long time getting back to full fitness. I feel really strong physically now and I'm just biding my time waiting for my chance. I'll grab it with both hands."

With Johnson still injured and yet to return to full training, and with Jordan Henderson and Raheem Sterling being asked to play out of position as wing-backs in recent weeks, Kelly may well have an opportunity once Liverpool return to action against Newcastle on 19 October.