Keane has struggled to establish himself since his 19 million-pound ($26.81 million) move from Tottenham Hotspur and his exclusion from the squad for the FA Cup tie against Everton on Sunday fuelled reports that he might be sold.
"Robbie Keane is a good player, maybe he is not playing at his level but he wants to fight for his position," Benitez told reporters.
"It doesn't matter about the name or the price I have to think about the best player for the next game."
"Other people are talking too much about this," Benitez said. "Robbie had a day off on Sunday like the other players who were not involved.
"He trained on Monday and today as normal -- he will be in the squad for tomorrow. We are just thinking about using him in tomorrow's game.
"He is working very hard and will be a very important player for the rest of the season."
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