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• New contract will allay fears of move to Barcelona
• ‘Liverpool know I want to stay,’ says Argentina captain

The Liverpool midfielder Javier Mascherano has pledged his future to the club and expects a new contract to be signed “in the next few weeks”.

Securing the Argentina captain and the Spain goalkeeper Pepe Reina on extended deals have been a priority of the Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez.

With Reina close to concluding an agreement, it appears Mascherano will not be far behind him. “The club are talking with my agents,” said Mascherano, who was a reported target for Barcelona in the summer.

“I don’t like to be involved in the contract meetings so I leave that to my agents and the people at the club. Liverpool know I want to stay. I don’t think it will be difficult to arrive at a deal and we will see what happens in the next few weeks.”

Benítez has always been confident the 25-year-old would extend his stay at Anfield despite speculation to the contrary and the player sees his future at Anfield.

“I have never said I was not happy at Liverpool – that was the press,” said Mascherano, who has been one of the more consistent performers in a disappointing season, even when filling in as an emergency right-back on a couple of occasions.

“I am happy here and the only way I can show that is with my performances on the pitch. I always try to do everything I can to help my team-mates and manager.

“Sometimes I can do well and sometimes I can’t, but I always look to give 100% in training and in games.”

Meanwhile, Benítez is wary of the threat 20-goal Darren Bent will pose when Sunderland visit Anfield on Sunday. The manager knows his defenders will have to be at their best if Liverpool are to avenge October’s 1-0 defeat at the Stadium of Light.

“Bent is a good player,” Benítez told Liverpoolfc.tv. “He’s always thinking about scoring and it could be a problem for us. Twenty goals in the Premier League is a fantastic achievement.

“They have some other good players and they showed good team spirit in the game in October. I think they’re improving a little bit now so it will be dangerous.

“They will be working hard, they’ll try to be organised and push and press and play counter-attack. But playing at Anfield makes a big difference for us and we’ll have to play well in front of our fans.”

It was Bent who scored the winner in October – with a little help from a beachball which had strayed on to the pitch. Benítez added: “It was a pity. It was a difficult situation, a big mistake that cost us the rest of the game. We have had some problems this season but to change your luck you need to work hard.”

LiverpoolRafael BenítezPremier Leagueguardian.co.uk