Gerrard hands Mac Allister vital Liverpool contract advice after ‘outstanding’ display forces Iraola admission

Alexis Mac Allister has been handed some timely words of encouragement by Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard amid the player’s upset at not being offered a new deal, and with the Argentine’s sublime display against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League forcing Andoni Iraola to make a “really smart” admission.

Liverpool got their Champions League campaign off to a winning start in Europe’s premier competition with a 2-1 come-from-behind success against Diego Simeone’s side – just as they had 12 months ago – with goals from Dominik Szoboszlai and Mac Allister cancelling out Marcos Llorente’s early opener.

The build-up to the game had been dominated by Mac Allister’s very honest and open admission that he was feeling very sad over the club’s refusal to offer him a new deal over the summer – news that seriously fuelled speculation that the 27-year-old could be leaving Anfield in 2027.

However, the World Cup winner decided to use that energy to fuel arguably his best performance in a Reds shirt for several months, with the player outstanding in the game, having five duels in the game, completing 83% of his passes, two of them key, winning two tackles and also having netted the winner.

In the wake of that, Gerrard has told Mac Allister to continue letting his football do the talking and force the club’s hand over an extension to that contract he so desperately craves.

“I thought his performance tonight was outstanding,” Gerrard told TNT Sports. “Let your football do the talking. Consistency, top performance, show your experience. Show you’re a top international. This club will reward you.”

READ MORE: Fabrizio Romano drops bleak ‘realities’ of impending Liverpool exit for Alexis Mac Allister – ‘it’s true’

Mac Allister’s display for Liverpool forces Iraola into admission

Understandably, Iraola, who had handed Mac Allister some words of encouragement going into the game, was naturally delighted at the 54-cap Argentina international’s display and spoke warmly of the midfielder’s all-action display in the media afterwards.

“Yes, lovely goal for him and from Dominik [Szoboszlai]. They ran a lot. Alexis has been very smart – I think it was a very cheap first yellow. They were putting pressure to find the second one. He is a smart player, and he could survive that.”

Iraola said of the win against Atletico: “I was enjoying it. They’re a very good team. Technically, in the middle, lovely players. It is not easy to press those players as they have quality.

“They have been playing together forever. We found another comeback after Forest, after Newcastle. We still have this thing to improve at the beginning of the games, but I am happy as we have shown some character.

“This is the Champions League; you don’t have easy games.”

Mac Allister himself was also pleased by Liverpool’s reaction to falling behind.

“It was a good comeback,” he told TNT Sports.

“I think the first half was really good. We conceded a goal because we were not ready, and we did not defend well, but it was a good first half.

“The beginning of the second half was really good. We managed to score the second goal, which is good.

“Overall, it was a good performance. Now we have to think about the next one.

“Before the game, we spoke about the beginning of the first half and second half. I liked the mentality. I think we showed desire today. We got the fans behind us, and that’s really important when you play at Anfield. A positive step for us.”

Asked if the goal would boost his contract hopes, the 27-year-old sheepishly replied: “I don’t know – we will see.”

Meanwhile, the Liverpool boss has provided fitness updates on both the substituted Bradley Barcola and Cody Gakpo, who missed the game, ahead of the weekend’s meeting against Fulham.

Elsewhere, pundit Andy Gray has named the Reds’ BEST front three after watching Rio Ngumoha replace Gakpo versus Atletico Madrid.