Liverpool’s Jonjo Shelvey: I never recovered from Man United red card
Liverpool midfielder Jonjo Shelvey admits he never really recovered from his sending off against Manchester United in September
Jonjo Shelvey has admitted he struggled to rekindle his early season form following his red card against Manchester United in late September.
The England Under-21 international made a promising start to the Brendan Rodgers reign as the midfielder featured in the opening three Premier League games.
The former Charlton Athletic youth graduate also scored two goals to secure a memorable 5-3 victory over Young Boys in the Europa League group stage.
However, Shelvey was sent off for a tackle on Jonny Evans in the first half of a 2-1 loss to the Red Devils following his Switzerland exploits before falling out-of-favour under Rodgers.
“I started the season well but after I got sent off against Manchester United it never really picked up again, if I’m honest,” Shelvey told Liverpool’s website.
“I can’t say I had a bad season because I played quite a few games and I owe a lot to the manager in that sense.
“I didn’t play as much as I would like to in the end, but that’s football.”
Shelvey, who is part of Stuart Pearce’s 23-man squad for the Under-21 European championship, acknowledges that he is still learning and is relishing the new campaign.
“I’m still only 21 years of age, I’ve got a long career ahead of me and there’s no rush to be playing week in and week out,” he added.
“The manager didn’t feel I was ready to do that, that’s just how it goes and we’ll have to see what happens next season.”
