Benitez praises his 'Mr Duracell'

A newspaper report recently used the term to describe tireless forward Dirk Kuyt - and Benitez believes it was spot on.

"That's a great description for him because of the way he plays. He is always running and always on the go," said the Kop boss.

"But when we signed him we knew he was this type of player – he had been doing that for years."

Kuyt has scored 14 goals from the right wing this term - level with his highest ever tally.

Benitez believes the Dutch international is enjoying his best season since arriving from Feyenoord in 2006.

"This year maybe he is doing so much better because the team has been doing well too," said the Spaniard. "He's done really well creating things, but also scoring a lot of goals as well.

"Over my career I have had some very good players in terms of the running they do and the difference now is we have a squad with lots of those types.

"But it's always good when you have someone like Dirk, who has the mentality to realise how important that is for the team."

Kuyt has appeared in all but four of Liverpool's 53 games this season - and Benitez admits he is often one of the first names on his teamsheet.

"I was talking with one of his former teammates in Holland and he said that Dirk had actually started as a right-back, before moving forward as a winger with Feyenoord and the national team," he said.

"So we have always known that he can play in a lot of different positions – either wing, as a second striker or up front. And he's done well in all of them too.

"The thing is, because you can use him in so many different ways, you can pretty much guarantee he will be in the starting line-up."

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