Brendan Rodgers spoke to media on Friday afternoon ahead of Liverpool’s trip to Arsenal in the FA Cup fifth round on Sunday.
Rodgers explained that he doesn’t need to or plan to rest players for the match, with his side not facing any scheduled midweek fixtures for the remainder of the season – whereas Arsenal host Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday.
“We want to win the FA Cup” explained Rodgers. “We don’t have a midweek game so we can go as strong as we want to go. We won’t need to rest anyone”
Speaking of last year when he used a rotated team in Cup competitions, Rodgers said “When I made too many changes, we weren’t good enough. This year we wanted to do well in Cup competitions.”
“We want to get to Wembley, not for the semi-final, for the Final.”
Here are selected other quotes from Rodgers’ press conference:
On a “bust-up” with Fulham assistant boss Ray Wilkins:
“There was no bust up with Ray Wilkins. He’s one of the nicest men I’ve met in football. There is no problem.”
“Anyone who knows me knows how I work, I’m not that kind of person. There was just a disagreement about something that happened during the match.”
On Fulham result:
“The result gave us great confidence. The most pleasing aspect was our character to come from behind twice.”
“We kept probing, we kept passing. We didn’t panic or throw balls into the box and eventually we got the penalty.”
On “mind games”:
“I think you guys [media] will make more of it than what it actually is.”
On Glen Johnson’s return from injury:
“Glen Johnson is working very well. Not sure he will be ready for this weekend but he looks fresher and fitter.”
On the squad availability:
“We’re similar to the other night. Johnson not ready for the weekend.”
On Agger’s return from injury:
“First and foremost you must know how to defend. There’s no doubt Agger is a great defender.”
On Daniel Sturridge’s form:
“Sturridge is up there with Suarez (as a goalscorer). When he gets in a position to score he never looks like missing. He’s got great variety in his finishing.”
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