Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard is adamant that his side's late push for a European spot is more important that resolving his future at Anfield.

Reds manager Brendan Rodgers recently indicated that he expects the skipper to continue at the club once his current deal expires in 15 months' time.

However, the 32-year-old says that he is focused on matters on the pitch rather than issues off it at the present moment.

"For me, [contract talk] is not a priority at the moment," Gerrard told Sky Sports News. "The most important thing for me now is to move on to the West Ham game. I want to finish the season strong. I'm feeling good.

"Of course, I'm happy that the club are mentioning new contracts, but it's not important at the moment. What we need to do is put pressure on for that European place. A lot of the teams above us need to play each other. We're hoping there's a few slip ups above us and we can capitalise, but it's important that we take maximum points.

"Every game is a cup final now. That's what the manager said after the game. It's a little small short season left now if you like. We just need to play to our maximum every game because if we don't, like we didn't at Southampton, we know we'll be punished. We need the level of performance at [Aston] Villa to continue."

Gerrard has skippered the Merseysiders since October 2003.