Liverpool have opened contract negotiations with five key
players, manager Rafa Benitez has confirmed.
Reds captain Steven Gerrard revealed earlier on Friday that he was
in talks about committing his long-term future to the club.
He is joined by defenders Jamie Carragher and Steve Finnan,
midfielder Xabi Alonso and goalkeeper Jose Reina in being offered
new deals at Anfield.
Benitez called a halt to discussions to allow his players to focus
on the UEFA Champions League semi-final against Chelsea.
Talks resumed after winning a place in the Athens final, and
Benitez hopes the five key squad members will sign extensions in
the near future.
"We have had some conversations with four or five players," the
Spaniard told reporters ahead of Liverpool's game against Fulham on
Saturday.
"We decided to stop talks briefly because we were playing in the
semi-final of the Champions League.
"But we are talking again and hopefully can agree something before
the final happens.
"The players already have contracts but we told them we want to do
the deal and we are really close (to agreeing terms)."
Meanwhile, Benitez has rejected criticism from outgoing academy
coach Steve Heighway.
Heighway claimed Benitez was having a detrimental impact on the
club's youngsters by taking too much involvement.
"I was working for 10 years with Real Madrid and we had 40 players
go on to play Premier League football in Spain, so I have some
experience," Benitez responded.
