The former Swansea manager has managed to create a title-challenging side with a homegrown core at Anfield, and he expects Roy Hodgson to utilise his players in the coming years

Brendan Rodgers expects Raheem Sterling, Daniel Sturridge and Jordan Henderson to be influential figures for England in the coming years.

The trio impressed on Sunday as Liverpool bounced back from a 3-1 defeat to champions Manchester City by easing to a 3-0 victory over Tottenham at White Hart Lane.

Sterling opened the scoring inside eight minutes following good work from Sturridge and Henderson, and all three players earned praise from their manager after the game, with Rodgers believing England boss Roy Hodgson will benefit from their continued development.

“These are boys that are playing in a top league, with a top club and are showing great awareness, work rate and energy,” he told reporters.

“They are showing they can play in different systems as well, so they’ll be key over the coming years for Roy.”

Henderson has blossomed into one of Liverpool’s most valuable players since Rodgers’ arrival at Anfield in 2012, forming a strong partnership with former England captain Steven Gerrard in central midfield.

“He’s certainly taken on those leadership qualities – you can see his complete stature on the field,” Rodgers added. “Other than Steven, he’s played the most games since I’ve come into the club, so I obviously rate his talent very highly.”

The striker nearly scored twice as the Reds ran out comfortable 3-0 winners over Tottenham and his new manager has praised the new signings work rate on and off the field

Brendan Rodgers was full of praise for new boy Mario Balotelli after he caught the eye in Liverpool’s impressive 3-0 win at Tottenham.

The Italy striker almost enjoyed a dream debut when going close with an early header in Sunday’s Premier League clash and linked up well with Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling up front, before coming off after an hour.

Sterling, Steven Gerrard from the penalty spot and full-back Alberto Moreno scored the goals, but Balotelli also impressed his manager.

“He was excellent,” Rodgers told reporters. “I thought the two boys up front and Raheem in behind were a constant threat.

“He’s a good guy, he’s worked well this week and I think everyone could see the team effort as he was pressing as much as he could. He was very good.”

Sterling was also singled out for his contribution as Rodgers celebrated his 100th game in charge with a superb all-round display.

“I think he’s flexible and we’ve tried to develop him to not just be a wide player but to also be able to play on the inside – and I thought he was excellent,” added the Liverpool manager.

“From the inside, he can turn and he can press. Then, when we went to 4-3-3 he’s got that pace to go on the outside. It’s important for me that they have that intelligence to play in different positions and he can.”

It was especially satisfying for Rodgers to see his team bounce back from Monday’s loss at Manchester City and beat opponents who had won their first two matches of the new campaign.

“I thought we were terrific – outstanding,” he beamed. “It’s a difficult place to come because they’ve started well and Mauricio [Pochettino] is an excellent coach who will do very well here, so to get to two wins out of three is great and I’m reasonably happy.”

The defender does not believe Milan will miss the striker following his switch to Liverpool and had high praise for new coach Pippo Inzaghi after their win over Lazio

AC Milan defender Ignazio Abate has suggested Mario Balotelli will not be missed at the club and has urged him to become more responsible.

Balotelli made his debut for Liverpool in their 3-0 win over Tottenham on Sunday after having left San Siro in a €20 million deal earlier this month.

Milan made light of the striker’s absence in their opening Serie A clash, beating Lazio 3-1 in convincing style, and Abate does not believe the former Manchester City forward’s loss will be keenly felt in the coming campaign.

“The coach [Pippo Inzaghi] said a very important thing in his press conference, which is that the man comes before the player,” he told Sky Sport Italia.

“Mario is a truly great player, but he needs to improve in other areas. He needs to take on a lot more responsibility.

“I think that, in this group, we have got a good mix of experience and youth, but must not get ahead of ourselves.”

Goals from Jeremy Menez, Sulley Muntari and Keisuke Honda sealed the win for Inzaghi in his first Serie A match in charge of Milan and Abate believes the squad has recaptured some of its identity under their former striker.

“Inzaghi is like one of the group,” he added. “This season, I think we can achieve great things together. He really fired us up and I think the Milan DNA has returned.”