Kuyt among LFC's European greats

FEW Liverpool players epitomise the team ethic as much as Dirk Kuyt. So it perhaps comes as no surprise that potential individual recognition should be met with seeming incredulity by the Dutchman.

While Fernando Torres has spent the past 10 days reasserting his fearsome reputation among Premier League defenders, Kuyt will be on fertile ground when he steps out at Fiorentina's Stadio Artemio Franchi this evening.
 
The 29-year-old's matchwinner against Debrecen in Liverpool's Group E opener a fortnight ago was a 12th goal in the European Cup, moving him alongside Terry McDermott in the Anfield rankings in the competition.
 
Only Ian Rush with 14 and Steven Gerrard with 28 have scored more times for Liverpool in Europe's leading club tournament. And that he now stands within touching distance of such an Anfield legend as Rush - the overall leading goalscorer in the club's history - is difficult for Kuyt to comprehend.
 
"That is unbelievable," he says. "To have the chance maybe to draw level with someone like Ian Rush is unbelievable.
 
"He is one of the biggest names in the history of the Liverpool Football Club and it would give me a great feeling if I could manage to do that. I have to be respectful of his achievements in his career, but it would be good to match his goals and then maybe continue scoring.
 
"It is nice to get personal things, but for me the most important thing is winning trophies. The milestones are nice, but if you don't have anything to go with them like a trophy then it is not the same.
 
"Don't get me wrong, individual honours are nice, but it is all about the team winning."
 
Europe hasn't always been so productive for Kuyt. Having arrived from Feyenoord in August 2006, the striker failed to net in any of his first 10 Champions League outings as Liverpool progressed to the final in Athens.
 
Kuyt ended that barren spell with the consolation strike in the 2-1 defeat to AC Milan, and has since netted in every round of the competition.
 
"I'm not sure why it has gone so well for me," says the Holland international. "In my first games in the Champions League I couldn't score at all. I got one in the final against AC Milan and it has just gone on for me since then.
 
"I think I have scored in every stage of the competition now and I am enjoying it. I just want to keep going. I don't try and do anything different to in the Premier League. It is always nice to be involved in big Champions League nights and I feel confident going into them."
 
Kuyt's goal against Debrecen was a rare highlight of a misfiring Liverpool performance in which they struggled to see off the Hungarian champions.
 
And the forward admits: "It was a reminder that nothing is easy if you don't kill the opposition off. Saturday looked like an easy game but Hull got it back to 1-1, they have some inspiration and then we have to score the second and the third goal to kill off the game. But I think we are getting better at that."
 
Kuyt will hope Fiorentina's defence is as chaotic as the pre-match press conference that took place inside the bowels of the decaying home stadium last night.
 
Liverpool won 1-0 at Inter Milan on their last visit to Italy 18 months ago but Kuyt expects a difficult evening as neighbours Everton, vanquished 2-0 in Florence just days earlier, would testify.
 
"It will be tough," he says. "We played Inter a couple of years ago, Fiorentina are doing well. I saw them playing Sporting Lisbon in the Champions league qualifying and they looked a strong side."
 
Benitez's side face a first real test of their Premier League title credentials on Sunday when they visit deposed leaders Chelsea, but Kuyt has dismissed fears that minds may be straying towards that impending Stamford Bridge visit.
 
"I don't think that will happen," says the striker. "After the bad start that we had we all had the same idea and that was to live from game to game and just try and win the next game. That is what we did against Hull and that's what we want to do against Fiorentina now.
 
"It would be great if we can get a good result in Florence it would give us a perfect position in the Champions League and then we can take that kind of confidence into the Chelsea game and try and close the gap.
 
"But we know what comes first and what our job is now."
 
Kuyt has scored in three of his last four games, operating mainly as a second striker behind Torres with Steven Gerrard dropping back into a more withdrawn midfield role.
 
And the Dutchman admits it has given him a further appreciation of his teammate's outstanding talent.
 
"I knew how good he was but playing there you learn where he wants the ball and the understanding is even better," says Kuyt.
 
"It is not just me but Yossi, Stevie and the whole team. He makes it easy for us.
 
"It is great to have a player like Fernando or Stevie in your team because they can score the most amazing goals at any moment and that gives you huge confidence.
 
"Two weeks ago and people were questioning Fernando because he hadn't scored in two games in a row and now he has five in his last two league games. He speaks with his feet!"

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