Liverpool boss Matt Beard has backed his side to put in a strong performance when they take on West Ham in the quarter-finals of the Continental League Cup.
It's been a torrid couple of weeks for the Reds, who were on the receiving end of a 6-0 mauling at Manchester United before last weekend's Women's Super League meeting with Chelsea was abandoned after just seven minutes due to a frozen pitch. But the Liverpool manager is confident his side will banish their January blues when they welcome West Ham to Prenton Park on Wednesday.
Group stage victories over Sunderland, Blackburn Rovers and Leicester City saw the Reds advance to the Conti Cup knockout stages as the best second-placed team, with a number of fringe players being offered the opportunity to showcase their talents in the competition so far. But Beard has hinted he will field his strongest XI against the Hammers, as his side try and regain some momentum following the WSL winter break.
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"We are really looking forward to it. We wanted to get out of the group stage, which was vitally important, and we managed to do that," Beard told club media ahead of the game.
"Hopefully we can progress in this tournament and get to the semi-finals, which would be fantastic because it’s a competition we want to go as far as we can this season. I know in the group stages of this competition I was able to use my whole squad and give players the minutes they needed, but we will be strong on Wednesday.
"We need the game time. We’ve only played one competitive game in seven weeks and we’ve got Reading at home in a couple of weeks too, which is a big game for us in the Barclays Women’s Super League."
West Ham travel to Merseyside off the back of last weekend's disappointing encounter with Everton, with the Blues having scored three without reply against the Hammers at Walton Hall Park. However, the Liverpool boss is expecting Paul Konchesky's side to be firing on all cylinders when they take to the field at Prenton Park.
"We know it’s going to be a tough game, especially when West Ham lost 3-0 to Everton on Merseyside on Sunday, and it’s always tough to play a team that has just been beaten," Beard said.
"If you look at the way we started last Sunday, for example, you could see that we had the bit between our teeth to put what happened the week before against Manchester United right."
Wednesday's game will also offer Beard the opportunity to hand home debuts to some of his January signings, and the 45-year-old is confident his new additions will play a vital role for the Reds in the second half of the season.
"It will be the first chance for our supporters to welcome our new signings Fuka Nagano, Sofie Lundgaard and Miri Taylor – plus a Prenton Park return for Gemma Bonner," he said.
"Everyone has settled in really well and they have added good quality to the group. It has brought standards up in training and the competition for places as well which keeps everyone honest.
"That’s something we wanted to do in this window – to make sure we keep driving our standards internally. Hopefully that should then translate onto the pitch."
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