Roy Hodgson has admitted he must persuade Fernando Torres to spurn offers to leave Liverpool by proving that the club are capable of progressing next season.
Hodgson, appointed as successor to Rafael Benítez on July 1, insists he is “confident” of keeping captain Steven Gerrard at Anfield, despite acknowledging the prospect of bids for the England midfielder.
But with Chelsea preparing the ground for a £50 million move for Torres, Hodgson has conceded that the 26 year-old’s Liverpool future is uncertain and a matter that must be addressed as soon as the player returns from a post-World Cup holiday next month.
Hodgson said: “Fernando is a wonderful striker and I understand the fans’ concerns about his future.
“Unfortunately, with the World Cup still on, I won’t be able to meet him face to face for another few weeks.
“When I do meet him, I will be doing everything I possibly can to convince him that Liverpool is the place to be. If he sees progress, I am confident that he won’t want to go anywhere else. I think he understands the club and the city.”
Liverpool’s £351.4 million debt and the attempts by their American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett, to sell the club have ensured a turbulent backdrop to Hodgson’s installation as manager.
The departure of Benítez was a result of the failure to qualify for next season’s Champions League, however, and that is likely to prove the biggest obstacle for Hodgson to overcome in his attempts to retain Torres and Gerrard.
But despite Real Madrid’s determination to lure Gerrard from Merseyside, Hodgson claims that his discussions with the player last week were positive and encouraging.
Hodgson said: “I anticipate there might be a situation where other big clubs will try and sign Steven, but he gave me no indication that he wanted to leave.
“Nobody at the club wants him to go so I will be doing my utmost to make sure he stays. I am confident he will.
“At Liverpool, I am lucky to have genuine world class attacking talent like Gerrard and Torres, who are both highly intelligent footballers.
“Both instinctively know when to move into different areas with a tactical awareness, so I will be encouraging them to play a natural game.”
Hodgson, who insists it is “crucial” that Kenny Dalglish retains an involvement at the club as a link between the first-team and the academy, aims to draw on Liverpool’s glorious history from the Seventies and Eighties as his blueprint for the team.
He said: “The Liverpool sides of the Seventies and especially the Eighties achieved greatness because all the players had similar values to one another both on and off the pitch.
“That has been the strength of the club for so many years and has been the mantra which has taken them so far and made it one of the most important football institutions in the world.
“It’s vitally important to make sure all the players especially are fighting for the same cause and it’s my job to find the right combination of players to bring success back to Liverpool.
“I want Melwood [the training ground] to be a place where the players enjoy coming to work because of the training and the way they’re treated.”
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