A Chance To Be Heroes: Lyon Preview

Heroes are best separated from villains by what they do in the face of adversity. While the bad guys will go missing and take the easy way out, heroes will stand up and fight with every fibre in their bodies until there is just nothing more to give.

For those Liverpool players who step out at the Stade de Gerland on Wednesday night, then, there is a chance to be a hero. The question is will they take this opportunity and run with it, or will they accept defeat and be considered villains.

You would be forgiven for thinking that the furore surrounding this game would be more suited to the Champions League final, not a game in the group stages. However, such are the circumstances we find ourselves in, this match will define our hopes of European gloy this season and, in fact, our season as a whole. For a club with so much history in the competition, it is unthinkable that we are just 90 minutes away from such a catastrophic fall from grace.

In the build up to this decisive match Rafa Benitez has been rocked by the news of a potentially crippling list of absentees. While Alberto Aquilani should be fit to travel, Steven Gerrard (groin), Albert Riera (hamstring), Martin Kelly (ankle) and Martin Skrtel (muscle) are all staying in Liverpool for treatment.

Late fitness tests will be given to Daniel Agger (back), Glen Johnson (calf), Fabio Aurelio (calf) and David Ngog (ankle) to determine if they are fit enough to take part. Liverpool fans everywhere will be praying they are all fit for selection after last weekends horror show at Craven Cottage.

Lyon themselves have no such problems and are seeking to secure qualification to the knock-out stages with a victory on home turf. We will have to hope Debrecen can take something from Fiorentina to give to give us the best possible chance of qualifying.

This could be another occasion, then, like the one against Fulham last weekend, where some of the fringe players can step out of the shadows and prove exactly why it was that Rafa brought them to this club in the first place. Unfortunately, things didn't exactly go to plan at last time around but if there's one thing we know about Liverpool it's that when all hope seems lost we are always capable of finding something extra within to propel us to glory.

Olympiakos and Istanbul may be nothing but distant memories now, but that does not mean we can't take inspiration from them. Time and time again we have proved that we can rise up from the jaws of defeat to clinch victory, no matter how unlikely it may seem.

We must ignore the taunts of those around us who are revelling in our woes and concentrate on our own game. Let those people say what they will, it is they who will look foolish should we turn our fortunes around.

I remember a few years back, a Chelsea fan giving it the big I am after they beat us at Stamford Bridge in the first leg of the Champions League knock-out stages. I gave them no response at all and when we knocked them out at Anfield, I didn't have to say a word. I could tell how stupid they felt after rubbing defeat in my face when it was only half time. Forgive me for stating the obvious here but It is not over until it is over.

So instead of being roped into any such unproductive nonsense, then, let's concentrate our efforts on getting behind them team and allow the lads to do the talking on the pitch.

Those who are travelling to Lyon must do their utmost to create an electric atmosphere and make the Stade de Gerland feel like a home from home. Once the players know that we believe in them, they may begin to believe in themselves.