The fall-out from Liverpool's row with England over Gerrard's fitness will cloud the 10-year anniversary of his debut for the club.

And Benitez has gone out of his way to praise his skipper and even suggest he will one day take over from him as the club's manager.

Gerrard was forced to drive to Watford last Sunday to join the England squad and have his torn groin muscle assessed by coach Fabio Capello's medical experts.

That Gerrard is out of Saturday's home game with Fulham and still a doubt for the Champions League clash with Marseille next week is something Liverpool do not want lost on the England management.

Privately, Liverpool felt their honesty was being doubted and they are annoyed Gerrard missed out on a day of treatment that may have meant he could have faced Fulham, and certainly seen him return against Marseille.

And all this in a special week for Gerrard, who made his Liverpool debut 10 years ago next week as a substitute against Blackburn.

Benitez chose his words carefully when quizzed on Capello's motives, but was fulsome in his praise for the 28-year-old.

Benitez said: "It is simple. He is not fit and he cannot play. Maybe he'll be ready for Marseille.

"We know the rules and respect them. But I prefer now not to think of this because there are no more internationals for a while.

"But we were right. Gerrard cannot play, so we were right when we said he was injured.

"It is too soon to say how long Steven will be out. But if we have an extra day of treatment, maybe he will be ready for the Champions League."

On his relationship with the England manager, Benitez was diplomatic in the extreme.

He said: "There's no problem between me and Fabio Capello, I am not unhappy with him. But the best news now is that there are no internationals until March.

"I am happy with that situation, and happy to be able to concentrate on my team.

"Were we unhappy that Steven had to go to the England hotel? All I can say is that he is not fit and will not play for us against Fulham.

"That is the only thing important for me. We cannot change the situation and Steven is not available, that's it."

And Benitez's respect for Gerrard is clear, with him adding: "Everyone can see how good he is on the pitch. As a person he is a nice lad, you can see his commitment to the club. Everything is positive and hopefully he can win more trophies.

"Maybe he will be here for another 10 years, certainly five or six. It is not easy to stay with one club. Life in general is very different than before, clubs can offer a lot of money.

"I am really pleased to have kept Gerrard here, and maybe he will one day be the manager to replace me.

"There are more important things than money in Steven's mind. He has great passion for the club, he loves the club and the city.

"That is the key as far as he is concerned, and hopefully he will take over from me."

Liverpool will have Alvaro Arbeloa back after suspension and all their 13 players on international duty returned without picking up any injuries.

Benitez said: "They are tired, have some knocks, but no injuries. Maybe that is a miracle."

He is also confident his side, unbeaten at home in the league this year, can cope without Gerrard.

The Spaniard said: "We have shown we can win without Steven. We have the quality, we can change players and have different options.

"That is positive when you talk about a long race to win a championship.

"The squad is better, and although Steven is a key player for us, very important and you always lose something when he is not playing, we have players with different qualities who can come in."

It is likely Fernando Torres will start his first match for the club in almost two months, with Benitez wary of Fulham's revival.

He said: "Fulham are playing well, their manager Roy Hodgson is doing a good job.

"They have two strikers doing well, we know all about (Andrew) Johnson from his time at Everton, and Fulham have energy and quality.

"After an international break we know, though, that things can be more difficult."