Sebastian Coates is aiming to put his Udinese own-goal behind him by helping Liverpool get their Europa League Group A campaign back on track – and stake his claim for more first-team action in the process.

The Uruguay centre-back turned in a commanding performance against the Italian side, though unfortunately put through his own net as the visitors secured a 3-2 victory in a game that had been dominated by the Reds.

Now Coates is eager to play a part in helping Liverpool secure three points when Anzhi Makhachkala arrive at Anfield tonight.

He told Liverpoolfc.com: "Own goals are things that happen. You never want to score an own goal, but when it does happen you just have to get on with it and move on.

"I think it is important to win, especially taking into account that we're playing Everton next. It's also very important we get back to winning ways in the Europa League.

"Anzhi are a very good side with some very good players, and they've bought some good players. That's the reason they're top of the Russian league and I think they're going to come to Anfield to try and win the game.

"But we will play at home and when we play at home, it's always important we win. We obviously didn't manage to do that against Udinese, and so it makes it more important for us to win this one."

If selected, one man Coates will have to pay close attention to is Samuel Eto'o.

The Cameroon forward scored goals for fun for both Barcelona and Inter Milan before moving to Russia last summer, where he has continued to find the back of the net.

"We already know all about him," said Coates. "He's played for some very good teams and we've seen how he plays on DVD. It would be nice to try and mark him during the game.

"He is very fast and you cannot give him an opportunity to shoot. He is a very good forward player and he cannot be given any space like we did against Udinese.

"You can't afford to give players of his quality any space or opportunities to shoot."

Coates heads into tonight's showdown having made four first-team appearances so far this season.

The 22-year-old has been given opportunities to impress by Brendan Rodgers in cup competitions, while he was also selected to start against champions Manchester City in August.

Now the towering defender is aiming to repay his manager.

"Brendan is a very good manager," said Coates. "He is a manager who likes to play the ball, keep possession and we have players in the team who can fit into this style very well.

"You can see the improvement the team has already made. It's a style of play used in Spain and Latin America. It suits Luis and I very well.

"From a personal point of view, I would like to play more matches than I did last season. From the team's perspective, we would like to try and finish in the top four and do well in all of the other competitions.

"I hope I can have a very good season - and I hope the whole team can have a very good season. Every player has a responsibility to play well and try to achieve the team's goals.

"I'm not sure how well I've done so far this season. I've played from game to game, but I think as I play more games I'll become aware of how well I'm doing. As a team, we have to keep trying to improve on the training ground and get better and better."

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