Former Werder Bremen striker hoping to be selected this evening
MARKUS Rosenberg hopes to make his full home debut in tonight’s Capital One Cup third-round clash with holders Liverpool (ko 8pm).
The 29-year-old striker has made three appearances as a substitute for Steve Clarke’s men in the Barclays Premier League – in addition to starting in Albion’s 4-2 victory over Yeovil in the second round of the competition.
And the Sweden international, who joined the Baggies on a Bosman in August, believes he is now fully fit and ready to start his first game at The Hawthorns.
“It would be great to start as I played 15 minutes on Saturday and hopefully I will get a chance to start against Liverpool,” said Rosenberg.
“It has been a long time since I started a game but I’ve had one game with the under-21s and I also played at Yeovil in the last round so hopefully I will get another chance against Liverpool.
“I had quite a few defensive duties when I came on Saturday against Reading and the gaffer wanted to close out the game.
“That's part of the job. I didn’t really show my attacking side and hopefully I will get a chance to show that tonight.
“The team is doing fantastically and the gaffer cannot change too much at the moment.
“I came here with a lot of rest behind me so I was not really fit, but now I have trained well for a couple of weeks and made a couple of appearances.
“I feel good in training but training is one thing and playing is another.
“I need more game time.”
Liverpool’s defeat by Manchester United on Sunday condemned them to their worst start to a league season in 101 years.
But Rosenberg insists the Baggies will need to be wary of the Reds as Clarke prepares to face his former employers for the second time in less than six weeks.
“Liverpool are always dangerous, even though they didn’t have the start you would expect them to have," Rosenberg added.
“They will maybe make some changes and maybe some fresh players will come in.
“Liverpool are the same as us and they have a big strong squad and they will be tough as ever.
“There is a lot of tradition at Liverpool Football Club and we have already met them once at home this season and hopefully we will enjoy the experience of playing against them again.”
And the former Werder Bremen forward plans to cease the opportunity if he is selected.
“We have lots of players in every position and I think everyone in the squad feels that you have to have a good game or there will be someone knocking at your door," he said.
“Normally small teams struggle over a long season because of the size of their squad when injuries and suspensions come along but I think we have plenty of cover.
“The competition is hard and the squad is really good.”