Steven Gerrard insisted he did not have a point to prove to Liverpool fans in the club's Champions League first round 3-0 win against TNS. Gerrard said he wanted to leave the club before signing a new deal and scored a hat-trick as Liverpool beat TNS at Anfield.
"I didn't want to get into that situation, I wanted to sign a contract after the cup final," said Gerrard.
"But now that trouble is behind me and the fans reacted well."
He added: "I am pleased about that and I am proud to carry on as captain of Liverpool Football Club.
"I don't think I had to prove anything but I have to keep proving things to myself as I want to be successful."
Reds boss Rafael Benitez maintained he wants to build his side around Gerrard.
"We said before he was a good player for us," said the Spaniard.
"He scored three goals, he played well, he is our captain and we always said we wanted to build a team around him."
Liverpool were frustrated for much of the second half before Gerrard's third goal after 89 minutes and Benitez added: "We shot many times, we crossed many times but at the end they were well organised and it was difficult to find space."
The Liverpool squad will now travel to a training camp to Switzerland before the second leg on 19 July.
"Maybe we can switch some players (in the second leg) but the most important thing is to see if our players are fit or not," said Benitez.
"We will train hard in the week, we will wait to see."
MMIX
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