Dalla Valle set for Wigan test

Lauri Dalla Valle gets another chance to impress at reserve team level when he lines up for John McMahon's side against Wigan Athletic in the semi-final of the Lancashire Senior Cup at the Robin Park Sports Arena this afternoon (2pm).

The Finnish striker netted his first goal for the second-string in the Liverpool Senior Cup semi-final against Tranmere Rovers last week and he will be looking to help the Reds reach another final today.

"Lauri is a natural finisher and that is a priceless asset to have at this level," McMahon told Liverpoolfc.tv.

"I was pleased to see him get his goal against Tranmere. He still has a lot of work to do on his movement and the runs he should be making, but when he gets a chance more often than not it ends up in the back of the net.

"He has done well and will be involved in the team against Wigan. He has this knack of being in the right place at the right time and he tends to finish more than he misses.

"In this week leading up to the game his finishing has been excellent in training. He needs to keep working hard and listen to what we are telling him. He is a lad that does take things on board and he is a decent prospect.

"His next stage in his progression for me is to stay with our squad in the reserves, score goals and show he deserves to start every game."

The Reds are aiming for a possible treble this season with the league title in their sights, a place in the final of the Liverpool Senior Cup and a chance today to reach the Lancashire County Cup final.

Since the opening day 3-2 defeat at Blackburn McMahon's side have gone  12 games unbeaten with 11 wins in the process.

McMahon's side also meet the Latics in the league next Thursday but first they have the chance to reach their second cup final in the space of a week.

"We are looking forward to it and we just need the games now to get our sharpness back after the amount of postponed games we have had," he added.

"I have seen Wigan three or four times this season and they are very competitive and very aggressive. They play with a lot of pace so we are expecting a really tough game.

"Dave Watson and Graham Barrow have their team well organised and they will work hard and we know with Dave being a Blue they will want to get one over on us, so we have to be ready.

"Our performance against Tranmere last week, for me was not up to the level that we expect and I'm looking for an improvement today.

"I don't want to make any excuses but the fact we haven't played that much and just train means you do lose a sharpness and an edge to your game. You can't replicate in training the competitive edge you get in games so it has been difficult for the lads.

"We are on a good run of unbeaten games but we've had this massive gap in between when we have not been able to play so I hope we can get our momentum going again.

"The lads have applied themselves well and they have listened to what we as staff have been telling them. They are taking things on board and improving.

"Results come with performances and I know we stress this all of the time but we are looking for development and improvement and then hopefully some of these lads can play for the first team."

Watch McMahon's Wigan preview>>