Football
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Brendan Rodgers hopes Glen Johnson will sign new Liverpool deal

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers is hopeful that defender Glen Johnson will agree a new contract to stay at Anfield.

Johnson's current deal expires at the end of the season, and there is no agreement in place to extend it.

As things stand, he will be a free agent at the end of June and can already sign a pre-contract agreement with an overseas club.

Talks between the club and Johnson's agent did take place at the start of this season, but the England international said in November that he had not been made an offer, and would not "go crawling to anybody" in order to extend his Anfield stay.

It is thought that the full-back, who arrived from Portsmouth for 17 million pounds in 2009 and signed his current contract in 2011, would have to accept a significant pay cut in order to stand a chance of remaining at Liverpool.

But Rodgers is hopeful of keeping both Johnson and midfielder Lucas Leiva -- who has been linked with Inter Milan -- to lend experience to a squad that will be without Steven Gerrard once he leaves for MLS side LA Galaxy at the end of the Premier League season.

The manager said of Johnson's contract talks: "There's nothing new as of yet. I know that the club and his agents spoke towards the beginning of the season. But I'm hopeful that he will stay.

"We're into the last year, but I'm hopeful that we can find a solution for that and he can be here. Like every player, you want that security. You probably want it to be sorted earlier than it is now.

"But I think at the moment, when he looks at it, he realises that he's at one of the biggest clubs in the world with a team that's developing and growing, and that he would want to be a part of.

"I think he's more than happy to look to find a solution with the club in order to stay here. That's how he sees it. He loves being here. He enjoys working in the way that we're playing."

Johnson, who has been out of action since tearing a groin muscle during the 3-0 Premier League defeat at Manchester United on Dec. 14, is back in training and ready to return when Liverpool host Championship side Bolton in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday.

And Rodgers feels that the 30-year-old still has plenty to offer the club.

He said: "Maybe his game will adapt over the next couple of years. He's not the marauding full-back of six or seven years ago.

"But he's still a quality player, with a lot to offer in terms of his experience. He's one we'd look to keep. I hope that between the agent and the club, they can organise a deal."

Rodgers has made clear that he wants to keep as much experience at the club as possible for next season.

And although major doubts remain over the long-term future of Mario Balotelli, who has struggled to make an impact in the five months since he moved to Anfield from AC Milan, Rodgers is not planning a series of high-profile departures.

He said: "The intention will be to keep everyone, partly because of the mix in the group. Steven Gerrard will be a loss. I think any football club losing someone of that calibre, of that status as a player and a man, would find it a loss.

"But you move on. Football over many years has shown that you've got to keep moving forward.

"For the younger players to develop the potential that they have, we're going to need that seniority. You can't just have a whole group of young players. So players such as Glen Johnson, we'll want to keep. Lucas, we'll want to keep."

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