Steven Gerrard has called on Raheem Sterling to continue his impressive development by staying hungry and by staying at Liverpool.
Sterling, whose contract expires in 2017, has so far turned down Liverpool’s opening offer of an extended, improved deal.
“I hope he signs a new contract at the club because I think this club is perfect for him, certainly for the next few years,” said Gerrard after Sterling scored twice in Liverpool’s 3-1 Capital One Cup win over Bournemouth.
“He’s going to play most weeks, the fans love him here. He can progress here and become a top, top player here so I hope the people around him give him the right advice because he should stay here.”
A deal is expected, partly because Liverpool cannot afford to lose their best player and also because Sterling knows he will play regularly under Brendan Rodgers. It is now down to Liverpool whether they increase the offer of a basic £70,000 a week (with handsome incentives for progress in the Premier League and Champions League). Sterling’s worth to the club was highlighted by his match-winning contribution at Dean Court, setting up a semi-final against Chelsea.
Sterling’s newly-shorn locks ensured plenty of “cutting edge” and “crop star” headlines. “It’s the haircut, wasn’t it?” smiled Gerrard. “It was the reason why he scored! No one recognised him when he came in, he knocked about 10 years off with that haircut! He’s great to watch, great to play with, he’s got that pace. When you look up he’s always giving you an option and that’s what I’ve thrived on throughout my career at Liverpool with the likes of Fernando Torres, Michael Owen.
“There’s nothing better as a midfielder when you look up and see pace running in behind. I saw it on numerous occasions [against Bournemouth] and hopefully it will continue because it stretches teams and creates chances.”
Just turned 20, Sterling has shown admirable versatility for Rodgers in 2014, having played on the left, the right, up top and at the tip of the diamond.
“You’ve got to be able to have that [versatility] in your locker if you want to be top drawer,” added Gerrard. “Raheem’s got potential to be top drawer for sure. He took a lot of stick after the weekend [the loss to Manchester United] but I thought his all-round performance was magnificent, the only thing that was missing was a finish and that came [against Bournemouth].
“The exciting thing for all of us is that he’s English and going to be a top, top player. I think he can play anywhere along the front, he’s that intelligent. He’s got to keep learning, he’s got to keep wanting it.”
Sterling’s return to form is well-timed after a difficult few weeks for Liverpool. “It’s been very hard,” acknowledged the captain. “For me, I’ve experienced it a few times during my career at Liverpool when it gets tough under certain managers and from the outside people are trying to kill you. It’s normal. We’re at a big club, we’ve got to take that responsibility. We can’t have players hiding and feeling sorry for ourselves, we need men out there and I thought we all turned up [against Bournemouth]. That’s why the result came.”
Gerrard had rallied the players, underlining how vital victory would be to silence some of the shrill criticism of their recent performances. “I tell them individually, I tell them in the dressing room. But if you’re sitting in that dressing room and you don’t know that the performance levels haven’t been good enough of late, you’re at the wrong place.”
It was also important given that Rodgers was under pressure. “Yes, I’d say so,’’ added Gerrard. “But it comes with the territory. There was a stage when a couple of my performances were under par and I got a bit of stick. It’s normal.
Pressure relieved: Brendan Rodgers and Steven Gerrard during the defeat of Bournemouth
“I know when I don’t play well. Every individual does here. It’s been tough to perform because we haven’t played well as a team and so there have been tough days of late. But if we keep fighting, keep performing, keep giving everything you’ve got, I’m sure the good days are not too far away.”
Criticism was aimed at Gerrard, perceived as showing the ravages of time, and Rodgers, who struggled tactically in the Champions League.
“I’ve got to accept it being captain of the club and he’s got to accept it being the manager of Liverpool. If results don’t go well, questions are going to get asked, criticism is going to fly, you take it on the chin and try to improve things. That’s the only way.”
Rodgers’ 3-4-3 tactics worked at Dean Court, attacking and creating chances with Sterling the target-man.
“We did that at Old Trafford,” replied Gerrard. “The difference was we made mistakes there and got punished by world-class players. We cut the mistakes out [against Bournemouth] and the first half was a very pleasing performance, probably as close as we’ve come to last season’s standards. It’s been tough of late, I can’t deny that. It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster so to get a good win and look forward to two very exciting games against Chelsea is a big lift.
“But we need to keep going, keep winning. We have a tough game at the weekend against Arsenal and then we have a run of fixtures which are a bit more kind to us. If we can get a big result against Arsenal and build on this, I think we can turn it around.”
Liverpool produced one of their most devastating displays against Arsenal last season. “Yes, it was. We won the game in the first 20 minutes. But when you have a strike-force of Daniel Sturridge and Luis Suárez, they are capable of killing teams in 20 minutes. It’s different this year and everyone knows that. They were 60-70 per cent of our goals those two. You take them out of any team in the world and it’s going to be tough.
Big loss: Steven Gerrard admits Liverpool have struggled without Daniel Sturridge and Luis Suárez
"This is where you find out what kind of players you’ve got in the dressing room. It’s time to roll your sleeves up and fight for the club and try to put it right as soon as possible and that’s what we’re trying to do. It’s satisfying and gives you a bit of breathing space but everyone knows if we perform back to how we have done of late against Arsenal we’ll get beat.”
Another London side pose a formidable barrier on the road to Wembley. “It’s tough, of course it’s tough,” said Gerrard of the two-legged tie with Chelsea. “On current form they’re the best team in the country. But it’s exciting. It will be two great games, and two great atmospheres and it’s a bonus for us right now because it’s been tough. It’s nice to see the lads smiling. We’ll certainly be looking forward to the games and if we can through, it’s a great chance to get another cup.”
Gerrard was speaking quickly, the answers flooding out in a mix of relief, residual defiance and an understanding of the hard work still required to lift Liverpool back up. He paused only when considering whether Liverpool could finish in the top four.
“It’s a tough question. It’s going to be tough. We knew it was going to be tough the moment we lost Luis and the injuries we’ve had to Daniel of late.
“Everyone in the country knows the job to get in the top four becomes that awful lot harder. But we’ll keep fighting until the end and if people are going to write us off, we can’t control it. But certainly, on this performance, there’s still a chance.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Did you know Telegraph Sport has a Liverpool Facebook page?
Like the page using the link below
Raheem Sterling vs Alexis Sanchez: who has the edge?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
0 nhận xét:
Đăng nhận xét