Robbie Fowler is looking forward to his Anfield return with Cardiff City tonight – but is intent on sending the Welsh side through to the next round of the Carling Cup.
Fowler left Anfield this summer and with a surprising lack of interest from Premiership clubs he chose to move to South Wales. It won’t be the first time he’s played against Liverpool at Anfield though, the place he’s always felt was home: “I have been back before with Leeds and Manchester City so it will not be too weird for me. I am expecting a great reception from the Liverpool supporters, they have always been fantastic to me and I don’t see any reason why that should change. It is like going home when I get there. I will have a lot of friends and family to watch me there so I am hoping it will be a good night for everybody.”
Robbie’s looking forward to meeting up again with old friends, but the friendships won’t be on his mind when he walks onto the pitch: “It will be nice to see everyone, but we have a job to do there and I am going to give it my all to see Cardiff do the business. Once the whistle goes for the kick-off, I will be concentrating on putting in a good performance for myself and to help the whole side.”
Rafa Benitez says he’d not mind if Robbie scored – as long as Liverpool were already 3-0 up by that stage. Fowler would love to score: “If I score that would be fantastic, this is all about football and the Liverpool fans love their football so they all know how the situation works. It is a big game for the Cardiff fans and I think there will be a lot there, so it should be a really good atmosphere and I want to give them something to cheer about.”
Fowler recently bought himself a home in Cardiff, and he says he’s settled into life in the Welsh capital already: “I am enjoying myself at Cardiff, I really like the city and everyone has made me feel very welcome. I think if we can put in a performance we can get the result we want. If we can get something positive in this game, I think it could act as a real spark with our league form.”
He told the Western Mail: “We are going into the game at Anfield as underdogs really, but I know we will be giving it our all – like we always do.”