Lille confident of upset against Liverpool

With only one loss in its last 16 European home games, Lille is confident ahead of its clash with five-time European champion Liverpool.

Lying fifth in the French league and vying for a Champions League berth next season, Lille players won't be tagged as underdogs against a Liverpool team experiencing a season to forget at home that has been plagued with inconsistency.

The Reds will travel to France for the first leg of their last 16 Europa League match following a disappointing 1-0 loss to Wigan in the Premier League that clearly irritated manager Rafa Benitez.

"Sometimes how you play depends on the other teams, on quality, match fitness and things like this," Benitez said after the team's ninth loss in the league that left the Merseyside team in sixth place in the standings. "But you cannot afford not to fight from the first minute until the last because it is really important for the club and all of us."

Lille advanced to the third round of the competition at the expense of Fenerbahce courtesy of a late strike from Adil Rami that gave them a 3-2 aggregate win. Lille coach Rudi Garcia said afterward that the prospect of meeting the Reds in the next round really inspired his players.

"Liverpool was a real motivator for us, it pushed us on," said Garcia, who knows Benitez well after spending time with the Spaniard as a trainee coach in Valencia, Spain.

"European competition is all about big emotion. Now we'll have the pleasure of traveling to Anfield and we can't wait to get there."

Hit by flu earlier this week, central defender Rami has recovered and is expected to play while midfielder Ludovic Obraniak is back from a hip injury. But Garcia will be missing several key players including Ivory Coast midfielder Gervinho (knee) and defender Mathieu Debuchy (ribs).

Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun may also miss the match because of an ankle injury but central defender Daniel Agger should be able to play after remaining on the bench against Wigan because he was sick.

Liverpool dropped into the Europa League after being eliminated from the Champions League, notably losing at home to Olympique Lyon in the group stages.

"It was a surprise the other day (against Wigan), but hopefully it was just a blip and we will see the real Liverpool on Thursday," Benitez said.

The two clubs have never met in a competitive match but Lille is used to English clubs, having played Liverpool's bitter rivals Manchester United six times.

About 1,000 Liverpool fans are expected at Lille's stadium where 400 police officers and 300 stewards will be deployed.