Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard urges Raheem Sterling to sign new contract at Anfield

Steven Gerrard has warned Raheem Sterling it would be a mistake to leave Liverpool. And he has compared the 20-year-old to Anfield greats Fernando Torres and Michael Owen.
Sterling has been stalling on signing a new £70,000-a-week deal since the summer amid interest from Spanish giants Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Premier League champions Manchester City.
But Liverpool skipper Gerrard hopes the England ace’s advisors will encourage him to pledge his future to Anfield.

Speaking after Sterling scored twice to fire the Reds into the Capital One Cup semi-finals at Bournemouth on Wednesday, Gerrard said: “He’s great to watch and great to play with.
“He has got that pace and when you look up he’s always giving you an option. That’s what I’ve thrived on throughout my career at Liverpool with the likes of Torres and Owen.”
“I think he can play anywhere along the front, he’s that intelligent. He’s got to keep learning, he’s got to keep wanting it.
“I hope he signs a new contract at the club because I think this club is perfect for him, certainly for the next few years.
“He’s going to play most weeks, the fans love him here. He can progress here and become a top player.
“I hope the people around him give him the right advice because he should stay here.”
Gerrard has also backed Sterling to give Arsenal a close shave on Sunday and get Liverpool’s top-four challenge back on track.
Sterling sported a new shaven haircut at Dean Court and Gerrard added: “It was the haircut, wasn’t it? It was the reason he scored!
“No one recognised him when he came in, he knocked about 10 years off with that haircut!
“Raheem’s got potential to be top drawer for sure – the exciting thing for all of us is that he’s English.”
Liverpool thrashed the Gunners 5-1 in February but Gerrard admits it will be impossible to repeat the trick without Luis Suarez and the injured Daniel Sturridge.
The ex-England skipper said: “Last season we won the game in the first 20 minutes, but when you have a strike-force of Sturridge and Suarez, they are capable of killing teams in 20 minutes.
“It’s different now and everyone knows that. I think they were 60-70 per cent of our goals those two.
“You take them out of any team in the world and it’s going to be tough and it has been.
“But I think this is where you find out what kind of players you’ve got in the dressing room.
“It’s time to roll your sleeves up and fight for the club and try to put it right as soon as possible.