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LIVERPOOL -- Demba Ba's return to Anfield with Besiktas in the Europa League on Thursday will not "stimulate any bad memories" for Liverpool, according to Reds manager Brendan Rodgers. Ba, 29, is set to line up against Liverpool for Turkish Super Lig leaders Besiktas in their last-32 first-leg clash. It will be the Senegal international's first appearance at Anfield since he took advantage of a Steven Gerrard slip to score a crucial goal for Chelsea in May. Ba's goal was the opener in the 2-0 victory for Jose Mourinho's side which took the destiny of the Premier League title out of Liverpool's hands. The Reds, attempting to become champions of England for the first time since 1990, instead finished runners-up to Manchester City. Ba spent three-and-a-half years in England with West Ham, Newcastle and Chelsea before moving to Besiktas in July 2014. "He has scored 22 goals in all competitions this season, helping the Turkish club to the top of the Super Lig in the process. But while Rodgers is wary of the striker's threat, he insists he is not thinking about the past. "He'll get the respect we'd always have for a very good player," he told a news conference. "He had a very fruitful period here in England. He's a wonderful player with a good touch, good technique and he scores goals. "It won't stimulate any bad memories for me. At the time, he scored a good goal -- but he's scored many good goals in his career. We just see him as a threat who we will pay respect to, but nothing more than that." Daniel Sturridge, who left Chelsea for Liverpool two days before Ba arrived at Stamford Bridge from Newcastle in January 2013, is also adamant that the striker will not be singled out for special attention. Sturridge said: "He's got a good goalscoring record in England. "He's obviously a player who can score goals, but we're not paying too much attention to individuals. We're just going out to do our job, play the Liverpool way and enjoy the game. That's the most important thing to us." Rodgers expects a tough time against a side that only lost 1-0 on aggregate to Arsenal in the Champions League playoff round in August and took four points from two games against Tottenham in the Europa League group stage. He said: "I'm a lover of football so I follow it round the world, and especially young players who I know. Young Gokhan Tore was a young player at Chelsea who's very talented. It's been good to see his career development. "They play in a system that's effective. Demba Ba's the reference for the front four, the other three players move well behind him, and they're solid behind that. "They showed in the two games against Tottenham that they're defensively strong. They're a team that's used to winning. "Any time they've come up against an English team recently, they've always made it very difficult. They're a good side, and we expect a tough game over two legs."
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