Shelvey looks to Liverpool fans for inspiration

Jonjo Shelvey believes Liverpool supporters can be an asset to the team as they seek glory in Brendan Rodgers’ debut season in charge.

The midfielder pointed to the ‘electric’ atmosphere created by the fans at Anfield as Liverpool twice took the lead against Premier League champions Manchester City, with only a late mistake from Martin Skrtel allowing Roberto Mancini’s charges to snatch a point.

And Shelvey feels the passion from the stands inspires the team on the pitch and makes Liverpool ‘a great club to play for’.

“When we scored against City, you couldn’t even speak to the person next to you because the atmosphere was so good and the noise was so loud,” he told the club’s official website.

“It’s good to have that behind you and ever since I have been here, the fans have been like they were on Sunday. That’s why it is a great club to play for – the fans are electric.”

And despite the improved performance against City, Shelvey insists the team are taking it one step at a time as they look to negotiate their domestic campaign alongside the Europa League.

“I think it’s really starting to come together on the pitch and I think the fans saw that again against City. But you’ve just got to take it step by step in this league and game by game,” he said.

“We won’t look too far ahead – we’ve got Hearts on Thursday, so we’ve got to win that and make sure we get through to the group stages of the Europa League. Then we’ll look ahead to Arsenal.”

Shelvey revealed that it was a surprise to be called upon after just four minutes on Sunday but was buoyed by Rodgers’ decision to bring him on in place of the injured Lucas Leiva.

“The boss told me to be ready before the game and when I came on to the pitch, he just told me to keep doing what I had been doing during the pre-season games,” explained Shelvey.

“It’s good that the boss sent me on and it gave me a boost in confidence. Hopefully I repaid the boss out there on Sunday. I aim to kick on from here.

“I performed a lot better than I did on Thursday. But it’s not about me, it’s about the team and how well we play as a group because there are no individuals in our team. We’re just a bit disappointed that we didn’t get the three points against City.”