Monthly Archives: April 2013

Enrique hoping to emulate Carragher’s Liverpool success

The 27-year-old has revealed that one of the reasons he decided to join the club from Newcastle was because of the veteran defender, who is set to retire at the end of the season

Jose Enrique is hoping to emulate Jamie Carragher’s success and longevity at Liverpool and believes his fellow defender is the ideal role model for his team-mates.

Carragher, who is set to retire at the end of the season to pursue a career as a football pundit, has been with the Anfield outfit for his entire career, making his debut in 1996.

And Enrique has revealed that both Carragher and fellow Reds veteran Steven Gerrard played a huge part in his decision to join the club from Newcastle back in 2011.

He told LFC TV: “One of the reasons I came here was Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard and now Luis Suarez.

“These are players that have amazing history at the club and I want to try to be like them in the future here.

“You have to respect the past he [Carragher] has here – he’s a player that has played 700 games.

“It’s not lucky, he deserves it. He has been an amazing player for Liverpool for many years and he’s an example for any player here.”

With his second season at the club coming to a close, the 27-year-old is delighted with life at Anfield, adding: “It was one of the best decisions in my life, in terms of football.

“Of course, I already played for a good club at Newcastle, but you can’t compare one club with the other in terms of history.

“It was really quick; I knew there was interest from before the summer. When they started talking to Newcastle about how much I was going to go for, it was one or two days to sort it out. I told them I wanted to come here.

“I’m really happy with my decision to be here; it’s my second season and I’m playing a lot, like last year. I’m improving a lot as a player and a person as well.”

Derby victory key to Liverpool finishing above Everton, says Lucas

Despite beating Newcastle 6-0, the Reds midfielder feels there are still areas they could improve and is keen for them to beat the Toffees on Sunday and finish in the top six

Lucas Leiva is hoping that Liverpool can win their remaining three matches, starting against Everton on Sunday, to secure a top-six finish in the Premier League.

The Reds currently trail local rivals Everton by five points but can close gap between the two sides to just two points with a victory when the pair face each other at Anfield.

And Lucas is keen for Liverpool to finish the season on a positive note after an indifferent first season under Brendan Rodgers.

He told reporters: “We still have a chance of catching Everton and that’s our target. We know we have to win if we want to finish a position higher than we are now.

“Merseyside derbies are always special to play in. The atmosphere will be amazing at Anfield and it’s the kind of game you really look forward to playing in.

“We will go into the derby with a lot of confidence. Hopefully we can get another win and try to finish the season on a bit of a high.

“It’s been a difficult season for us but we have to keep going. We still have three games remaining and the chance to get nine more points. The manner of our victory against Newcastle United showed the character of everyone.”

The Reds beat the Magpies 6-0 on Saturday and, despite the emphatic scoreline, Lucas believes there are still areas where they can improve.

He added: “We showed on Saturday that we are a team. We approached the game in the right way and played with a lot of confidence and intensity.

“After going 4-0 up in the second half, we just controlled the game. I remember when we beat Newcastle 5-1 at St James’ Park a few years ago and this was even better.

“But even though we won 6-0 there are still areas that we can improve upon. We need to keep working and keep believing.”

Premier League Team of the Week: Hat-trick hero Benteke stars

The Aston Villa striker helped give his side an enormous boost in their battle to avoid the drop with a superb performance against Sunderland, while Liverpool also feature heavily

He had to wait until Monday night to do it but Christian Benteke stole the Premier League show this weekend with a hat-trick as Aston Villa thumped Sunderland 6-1.

The Belgian was at his brilliant best as he inspired the Villans to an emphatic win that gave their survival hopes a massive boost as they moved five points clear of the drop zone with just three games left to play.

Partnering Benteke in attack is Liverpool’s Daniel Sturridge, who was in the goals too as the Reds also hit six against Newcastle, to end what manager Brendan Rodgers called a “difficult week” on a high.

Liverpool team-mate Phillippe Coutinho was the inspiration for Rodgers’ men at St James’ Park and he takes his place in our TOTW with fellow Red Jordan Henderson.

Joining the Anfield duo in midfield are Chelsea’s Eden Hazard – who was at his flamboyant best as the Blues beat Swansea to move third in the table – and Tom Huddlestone, who impressed as Tottenham grabbed a point at Wigan.

In defence, Cesar Azpilicueta and Jose Enrique appear as our full-backs while Phil Jagielka and Daniel Agger make up the central-defensive partnership, with the entire back four keeping clean sheets at the weekend.

Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer completes the line-up after making important stops from Marouane Fellaini, Steven Pienaar and Ross Barkley as Martin Jol’s men lost narrowly at Everton.