Unless you follow him on Instagram where he is refreshingly active, you could be forgiven for totally forgetting that Liverpool left-back Jose Enrique still exists.
Joe Gomez, a new signing from Charlton, has started the season at left-back for the Reds and impressed on his Premier League debut against Stoke, and with Alberto Moreno also a part of the squad it seems perfectly clear to everyone that Jose Enrique doesn't feature in Brendan Rodgers' plans, so why is he still there?
Enrique has today hit out at Liverpool and claimed that even though he knows the club wish to sell him, he still wants to stay and fight for his place.
I’m in a difficult position. The club have alienated Balotelli, Borini and me. I have a year left on my contract and I imagine the club will want to sell, but I still want to stay and fight as I always have. I will not give up. I know from experience that football changes from day to night.
Enrique underwent surgery for a knee injury in 2013 and was never able to regain his place in the team, but he claims he would rather fight for a place at Liverpool, a club he clearly really loves, than return to Spain.
I feel fine after two years with knee discomfort, plus in the squad here we only have one pure left-back [Alberto Moreno] and I know that if I stay I’ll play. I want to prove that some are wrong.
What I think is that I will not play in a team better than this. Liverpool are a match for Manchester United. I had a very good option to return to Spain, but it's complicated because the economy is very different from what exists here. The only teams that can deal with what is paid in England are Real Madrid and Barcelona, so I would love to stay here until my legs stop me.
He certainly knows what to say to get the Anfield faithful behind him, but Enrique was always a popular figure with Liverpool fans which makes the club's stance of completely ignoring him all the more puzzling.
With one year left on his contract it looks as though Jose will accept his limited opportunities for the financial benefits of playing for Liverpool, but it is unlikely that he will be at the club beyond that.
via The Guardian.
