Wisdom Grateful To Team-Mates

Liverpool teenager Andre Wisdom has praised the club's senior players for helping him make the step up into the first team this season.

Brendan Rodgers' side claimed their first home win of the campaign against Reading last weekend with three teens in the starting line-up.

Winger Raheem Sterling, 17, has attracted most of the attention, and he demonstrated his vast promise again with the winning goal, but also playing a key role were 18-year-old midfielder Suso and 19-year-old full-back Wisdom.

Rodgers was keen Wisdom should not be overlooked in the praise for Sterling and, since making a goalscoring debut in the UEFA Europa League against Young Boys in September, the academy product has been virtually ever-present.

Injuries to Martin Kelly and Jose Enrique gave the teenager his chance in the Premier League, but he has grabbed it with both hands and it would be a surprise if he was not in the team again for the Merseyside derby against Everton on Sunday.

The youngster said: "It's been good making the step up. It's very competitive and hard but I think it's going well.

"With the players around me, the likes of Steven Gerrard, Martin Skrtel, Daniel Agger and Glen Johnson, it makes it that little bit easier because they're players with great amounts of experience and they pass it on to the young lads.

"It is difficult but that does really help, and it's important because to play in the Premier League you need more than just quality, you need to be mentally in tune as well.

"And that's hard when you're young because we're used to reserve-team football where you might get 50 people turn up to the game, so to go and play in front of 45,000 is a big shock."

The intensity is certain to be turned up another notch at Goodison Park this weekend, where Everton will be eager to build on their good start to the season with victory over their great rivals.

Wisdom is a Yorkshireman rather than a Liverpudlian but his aunt and uncle are Reds and he has experienced the occasion before, albeit as a spectator.

He said: "I've been to them and I can see the intensity and the fire in everyone's eyes. I've played in many reserve-team and youth-team derbies, and even in those the level of competitiveness is bigger than most games.

"It would be amazing to win. Everton have had a good start to the season but I think we have as well, even though the results haven't always gone our way. We just need to get the breakthrough, as we did last weekend.

"That's given the club a little lift and hopefully we can move forward and continue to keep our home record good as well as the away one.

"I think we should look forward and hopefully we can kick on by getting a few good results to help us up the table. But we just have to be patient. We're all willing to work hard and we all want the same thing, and that's to win games."