STEVEN GERRARD insists he will sign his new £120,000-a-week
deal as soon as it is placed in front of him. The Liverpool skipper
and his advisors have been discussing a contract extension over the
past few weeks as revealed in Sport. And Gerrard is ready to put
pen to paper the moment it is presented to him even if that comes
in the middle of their training camp in Cadiz.
Liverpool jetted out to Spain yesterday to complete their
preparation for next weeks Champions League final with Milan. And
all the signs are that by the time they return, they will have tied
their captain to Anfield until 2011 in a deal worth
£24million.
Gerrard said: The talks are progressing well and I am ready to
sign now. It is a question you would have to put to chief
executive Rick Parry and the American owners, but Im ready to sign
any time. As soon as it is put in front of me I will do so. I am
27 and hopefully can sign the long-term deal so that the fans can
see the best days of my career at Liverpool.
As a player you want to be as successful as possible and this is a
really exciting time to be at this club. There is the new stadium,
the financial backing off the pitch, and the team is progressing
well. This is our second European Cup final in three years so
things are going well, and I think therell be a big improvement in
the league next season too.
Two years ago, Gerrards future was clouded in doubt with Chelsea
waiting to pounce. But Kop boss Rafa Benitez said: It could be
signed before the final, but its a different situation than two
years ago. The positive thing was to show the players that we want
to keep them.
