McMahon pleased with duo return

John McMahon was full of praise for returning duo Martin Kelly and Nabil El Zhar who played 45 minutes each during the reserves 2-0 win over Bolton Wanderers on Monday night.

Kelly played the first half at right back before making way for Moroccan international El Zhar in the second period.

"It was always the idea to give Martin and Nabil 45 minutes each and they did well," McMahon told Liverpoolfc.tv.

"They looked sharp and it was nice to see them back. It's a boost for us."

Goals from David Amoo and Damien Plessis gave the Reds a 2-0 win in Leyland and McMahon's side will now travel to Wigan Athletic in the semi-final of the Lancashire Senior Cup.

He added:  "It was a good performance from the boys and I thought we played some good football.

"Bolton are a good side. I've watched them a couple of times. They have some dangerous players with quality, and we did really well."

Amoo started in a central attacking role before switching to the right wing in the second half, and the reserve team boss was pleased with his display.

"We wanted to have another look at David up front and he did well," he added.

"We are struggling a little bit for strikers with Nathan Eccleston on loan and Nikola Saric has injured his hamstring so David did well for us."