Agger: Players Happier Under Hodgson

Daniel Agger today revealed
how Roy Hodgson has lifted the
mood of the players since
arriving at the club this
summer.
The Dane believes the squad has
been rejuvenated by the influx of
new colleagues, staff and
training methods.
He told our pre-Steaua Bucharest
press conference: "It's a new
team with new players, young
players, new staff. You can see
on people's faces they're a lot
more happy.
"The training sessions are
different. When you get a new
training session, new staff, new
methods, it gives more energy
somehow.
"Obviously the sessions have to
be good and in the right way.
But for me it's important for a
team to be happy to play football.
For me personally it's important
to be happy to play football. I can
perform better and I think it's
the same for everybody."
The 25-year-old was also asked
for his thoughts on playing at
left-back, something he was
required to do at the end of last
season and the beginning of this
one.
He said: "Both me, the boss and
some of you here know I'm not a
left-back and if I could decide
myself I wouldn't play there, but
I've got to do what the manager
tells me.
"At a club like this you have to
play in the position the manager
puts you in.
"That's the same for me. I'm
happy to be in the team and
that's the biggest part of it. I'm
never happy to be on the bench,
so if I have to play left-back, I play
left-back.
"I feel my qualities are in the
middle and I feel I give more to
the team in the middle."
The Europa League without
question falls second in
Liverpool's list of priorities this
season as the club seeks to
regain its Champions League
status.
But Agger for one is desperate to
be involved in the Dublin final in
eight months' time.
"I came to this club to win
trophies and we haven't won
anything for the last four years,"
he said. "For me and the team it's
important, and it's also important
for the squad because we have a
lot of players and everybody
wants to play.
"We've got 25 players and they
can't all play, but we get more
games because of this
tournament, so it's important to
progress to keep more players
happy."
Quizzed on whether he thought
Europe represented our best
hope of silverware, Agger added:
"It's the quickest way to success,
isn't it? Obviously the Premier
League is very strong. Like last
year, we want to win this.
"It's a tough game. Every game in
Europe is tough but we have
enough quality to go out and
win that game. Liverpool Football
Club goes out to win every game.
Sometimes it doesn't matter how
you win it as long as you win it.
"Steaua are a typical Eastern
European team. We played in
Macedonia earlier and obviously
Steaua are a bigger club and a
stronger team, but they're similar
kind of players."