Gerrard hints he will stay after Cole deal

Steven Gerrard has hinted he will stay at Liverpool after the Reds captain revealed he was delighted by the club's capture of England midfielder Joe Cole.

Gerrard had been linked with a move to Real Madrid after Liverpool endured a dismal campaign last season, finishing seventh in the Premier League and failing to advance past the Champions League group stage.

It is four years since Liverpool won a trophy and it was suggested Gerrard was keen to move to a team who were regularly in the hunt for silverware.

Even the appointment of new manager Roy Hodgson was not expected to convince him to reject Real boss Jose Mourinho, who twice tried to sign Gerrard when he was in charge at Chelsea.

But the England international has held talks with Hodgson and he is impressed with the former Fulham manager's plans, as well as the move to sign Cole from Chelsea on a £90,000-a-week, four-year contract.

"I made it clear that I simply needed to concentrate on the World Cup and then have a decent holiday with my family," Gerrard said.

"I wanted the chance to meet Roy Hodgson privately and having done so I'm very impressed with his plans for the future of the team."