Friday, 17th October, 2014
Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has hit back at claims that he put pressure on England manager Roy Hodgson to rest Raheem Sterling for the nation’s 2016 European Championship qualifier against Estonia on Sunday.
The relationship between Rodgers and Hodgson hit a low recently when the former Swansea manager blamed the England set-up for Daniel Sturridge’s thigh injury.
The uneasy relationship between the two intensified further when Sterling complained of tiredness and asked Hodgson to rest him against Estonia, with some corners blaming Rodgers for the incident.
However, the Liverpool manager dismissed those reports and also blasted the claims that he is due to meet Hodgson for showdown talks.
“I’m fed up reading about this club v country row, claims we intervened and put pressure on Roy Hodgson”, he exclusively told The Independent.
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“I’ve read we sent dossiers to the FA on Raheem Sterling and Daniel Sturridge and I’m having showdown talks with Roy Hodgson on Sunday and all sorts of rubbish.
“The decision not to play him was a managerial decision. I haven’t said a single word but have to say I have never seen such rubbish written over the last few days.”
Despite starting on the bench, Sterling did come on as a second half substitute against Estonia, who were defeated by a late Wayne Rooney goal from a free-kick.
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