Shelvey eyes more first-team chances

22 October 2010 10:54
Jonjo Shelvey is hopeful of getting more chances in the Liverpool senior side after making his first competitive start in the draw with Napoli.[LNB] The 18-year-old put in a solid performance which he feels repaid manager Roy Hodgson for selecting him in what was a weakened side in the absence of Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Raul Meireles, Lucas Leiva, Dirk Kuyt and Daniel Agger.[LNB]Now he is looking to experience that on a more regular basis.[LNB]"It has to be the biggest night of my career, doesn't it?" he said.[LNB]"I thought I started the game a bit shaky, but as the game wore on my confidence grew and grew.[LNB]"The manager put a lot of trust in me to play, but I feel I've repaid him and hopefully I can get more chances."[LNB]Those chances are likely to come in the Europa League, especially with Liverpool still top of Group K after a win and two draws as they edged closer to qualification for the knockout stage.[LNB]"It's a great result for the club after a few disappointing weeks," added England's Under-19 captain.[LNB]"It's not a nice place to come and play football. It's a scary place but as a unit we stuck behind the ball and played very well."[LNB]Forward Ryan Babel, who with David Ngog shared Liverpool's best two goalscoring opportunities, believes the experience in Naples will give everyone a lift ahead of Sunday's Barclays Premier League clash with Blackburn.[LNB]"We should be satisfied with 0-0, but we're disappointed after the chances we had," said the Dutchman.[LNB]"Napoli are a strong side and have players up front with ability. The crowd were very lively, but this should give us confidence.[LNB]"We had a couple of players who didn't travel and hopefully the ones who didn't play are ready for Sunday."

Source: Team_Talk