Monday 11 March 2013

Liverpool's Brendan Rodgers keen to negotiate long-term deal for Raheem ... - Telegraph.co.uk

"It's gone wrong because you've taken away his hunger. It's about being sensible, and that's what we do, but Ian Ayre does a brilliant job in pulling the contracts together. He's been excellent and obviously there's good communication with the owners. So it's about using common sense rather than going over the top.

"There's good conversations so there's no worry or concern. It will be resolved. I've spoken to the agent and I know the agent so there's no problem. He's a real good kid. We just want to make sure it's right for him. It will get done sooner or later."

Liverpool face West Ham on Sunday without a recognised striker because of Luis Suárez's suspension.

Jonjo Shelvey, a former West Ham trainee, will be trusted to lead the line. "He can play in that role. He's an attack-minded player," said Rodgers. "But we have other options. I saw an interesting stat that we have had 15 different goalscorers this season. The record for the club in a season is 18."

Shelvey says he is looking forward to it. "I supported West Ham as a boy so to play against them in any position is good for me," he said. "It is not easy to fill the boots of a player like Luis. I will just give it my best shot."

It has been a far from ideal preparation for Liverpool before the trip to Upton Park. The plane leaving Italy after the Europa League win over Udinese was grounded, and players and staff forced to disembark having prepared to take off on Thursday evening. The squad finally returned to Merseyside late on Friday afternoon. "We will go to the game on Sunday with no excuse," said Rodgers.

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