SM
Newcastle vs. West Ham: 15 hrs 38 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

Brendan Rodgers has confidence in Joe Allen and Lucas Leiva

:Headline: Brendan Rodgers has confidence in Joe Allen and Lucas Leiva: ID:123284: from db_amp
Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers insists that Joe Allen and Lucas Leiva are capable of stepping up in the absence of injured midfield duo Steven Gerrard and Jordan Henderson.

Manager Brendan Rodgers has claimed that Joe Allen and Lucas Leiva have what it takes to carry the Liverpool midfield through a period of five games in 15 days.

The Reds fear that Steven Gerrard could be out until after the New Year with a hamstring problem, while there are major doubts over Jordan Henderson's fitness ahead of their trip to Tottenham Hotspur this weekend.

The former Sunderland star was seen at Liverpool's Melwood training ground on Monday wearing a foot brace, following an injury inflicted by a challenge from Kevin Nolan which earned the West Ham United skipper a red card in the Anfield club's 4-1 win on Saturday.

Both Gerrard and Henderson have started every one of the Merseyside outfit's 15 Premier League games this season, but Rodgers has insisted that Allen and Lucas can fill the void left by them in upcoming matches against Spurs, Chelsea and Manchester City.

Rodgers told reporters: "Steven is such an important player for us, but we have other players and dynamics in the team and they have to step up. Lucas has been excellent for us and he has forced his way into the Brazil side, so he has that quality and experience to step up and take the responsibility.

"Joe looks like he did when he first came here with his movement, his body work and fluency on the ball and that's what we need right now. We have a number of small players on the field but if we have the ball and the other team hasn't, I think they struggle with it.

"We need that mobility and constant movement in the midfield to get on the ball and knit the game together."

Lucas has made 11 top-flight starts for the Reds this term, while Allen has featured from the off in three of Liverpool's last four games, having previously only been used as a substitute in the Premier League.

amp_article__123284 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2013-12-10 11:52:21:
html db last update - 2013-12-10 11:52:21 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Brendan Rodgers

Click here for more stories about Liverpool

Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool1210112481631
2Manchester CityMan City127232217523
3Chelsea126422314922
4Arsenal126422112922
5Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton126422116522
6Tottenham HotspurSpurs1261527131419
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest125431513219
8Aston Villa125431919019
9Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
10Fulham125341717018
11Brentford125252222017
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd124441313016
13Bournemouth124351617-115
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Everton122551017-711
16Leicester CityLeicester122461523-810
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves122372028-89
18Ipswich TownIpswich121651323-109
19Crystal Palace121561017-78
20Southampton121110924-154
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .