Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard has revealed he told Jurgen Klopp to stick with Reds youngster Curtis Jones.
The midfielder has enjoyed a rise to prominence in recent weeks as his inclusion has coincided with the seven-match winning run, nine unbeaten, to secure European qualification next season.
Jones has flourished following the introduction of the new role of Trent Alexander-Arnold, including his brace in Liverpool's 3-1 win over Leicester City earlier this month. There has been caution over the selection of the 22-year-old after the playmaker suffered a number of injuries leading to his game time being monitored by the medical staff at the AXA Training Centre.
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"I used to make it personal with my own teammates to make sure I was best, no one out trained me, no one out-performed me on a daily basis because then I could look at a manager in the eye and say 'no no, I deserve to play in this team because I've shown you every single day or the majority of the days that I've been the best player'," the former Reds captain told The Anfield Wrap.
"That's the mentality you need at Liverpool, otherwise you don't last long or you don't play enough. I know he's [Curtis Jones] got that [mentality]," he added.
"I remember having a conversation with Jurgen and we were talking about Curtis and he was like 'yeah, there's a few little things that we need to improve in a few areas' and all that.
"I said 'yeah I get that and obviously you've all seen him a lot more than me because he was spending more time at Melwood at the time,' but I said 'stay with this kid, whatever you're thinking keep him and stay with him because he won't let you down'.
"Once you get him right and you've fixed the few little things that you need to fix, he won't let you down, he'll be there for you. I think he's showing Jurgen that now."
Jones has fired his name into the conversation for a place in the starting 11 next season as the Reds plot a busy summer of additions with Alexis Mac Allister among those. James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will depart at the end of the season when their contracts expire leaving a number of roles to be filled.
You can listen to the full interview with Steven Gerrard on The Anfield Wrap’s app.
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