Joao Carlos Teixeira: I want to stay at Liverpool FC - but I want to play!19:00, 21 JAN 2016 BY JAMES PEARCE
Liverpool's Joao Teixeira cannot quite believe that he has grabbed his side's third goalJoao Carlos Teixeira is hoping contract talks with Liverpool FC reach a successful conclusion as he looks to build on his classy performance against Exeter City.
The Portuguese attacking midfielder, who celebrated his first senior goal for the Reds in the 3-0 FA Cup third round replay win at Anfield, is out of contract this summer.
Negotiations over a new deal are ongoing as the 23-year-old battles to prove to manager JĂźrgen Klopp that he has the qualities required to play a big role in the clubâs future.
âWe are in conversations at the moment,â Teixeira told the ECHO.
âMy contract runs out at the end of this season. I want to stay but we will see what happens.
âI donât want to think about my future too much right now. I just want to play football. I want to enjoy this moment and try to build on it.
âI just have to keep working hard and keep doing my best in training. Whenever chances come along like this to impress JĂźrgen Klopp, itâs up to me to show him that I deserve more chances.â
Klopp praised Teixeira for the âbig jumps in the developmentâ and insisted âIâd like to work with him longerâ. However, the Reds boss also said that Teixeira is reaching an age where he needs to be playing regularly.
Itâs four years since Teixeira arrived at Liverpoolâs Academy in a ÂŁ830,000 move from Sporting Lisbon. Handed a debut by Brendan Rodgers away to Fulham in February 2014, he then found game-time hard to come by.
A successful loan spell at Brighton last season was cut short by a broken leg but he returned to fitness ahead of schedule in pre-season.
Rodgers opted to keep him at Melwood rather than send him on loan again but he was surprisingly left out of the Europa League squad.
Klopp picked him for the League Cup clash with Bournemouth in October but it was three months before he featured again. The FA Cup tie with Exeter finally gave him another opportunity to showcase his talents and he didnât disappoint in either game.
Teixeiraâs trickery and eye for a pass helped Liverpool create a succession of chances on Wednesday night. Positioned out on the left, he also put in a real shift tracking back. He rounded off a fine display by coolly netting Liverpoolâs third in front of the Kop late on.
Liverpool's Joao Teixeira grabs his side's third goal against Exeter CityIt was a goal at the same end playing for Sporting Under-19s in the NextGen Series which had first alerted the Reds to his huge potential back in August 2011.
âThat wasnât my first goal in front of the Kop,â said a beaming Teixeira.
âMy first was for Sporting when I first came here to play against Liverpool.
âBut this one felt very special. That was my first in a Liverpool shirt and it was a great feeling.
âIt was a great pass from Christian Benteke and I was able to beat the keeper. Itâs always good to score and to get one at such a famous stadium in front of a big crowd is even better.â
Teixeira wasnât the only one to grasp the chance he was presented with and he believes the dominant performance of such a youthful side bodes well for the clubâs future.
There were five home debutants in Brad Smith, Tiago Ilori, Kevin Stewart, Pedro Chirivella and Sheyi Ojo, who came off the bench to curl home the Redsâ second goal.
âIt was a great night for all the team. We won at home with a very young team,â said Teixeira, who has been an unused substitute seven times in the Premier League so far this season.
âWe played very well and Iâm very happy for everyone. The manager told us to go out there and enjoy it. He told us it was 90 minutes of our lives and to do our best. You could see how much effort everyone put into it.
âIt was a very different game to the one at Exeter. The pitch was better and bigger here. We were able to pass the ball better and we were able to create so many chances. We dominated possession and played some great football.
âThe stadium was full and the crowd were really behind the young players which was very important. The young players showed a lot of character to perform like that.
âThe fans can see that there are some very good young players coming through.
âKlopp was very happy with everyone. He put that team out there because he believed we could do well and we managed to repay the faith he showed.â
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/joao-carlos-teixeira-want-stay-10771248#rlabs=2%20rt I hope a deal can be thrashed out. He clearly wants to stay and he's shown himself to be an intelligent and quite talented lad on the pitch.