Jay Spearing desperate to prove value to Liverpool

Spearing was shown a straight red for this challenge against Fulham (GETTY IMAGES)

Liverpool midfielder Jay Spearing admits he has to prove his value to the team in order to persuade manager Kenny Dalglish he does not need to bring in reinforcements.

Academy graduate Spearing was seen as the most likely to fill the void left by Lucas Leiva's cruciate knee ligament injury which has ruled him out for the season.

However, the 23-year-old was sent off on his first Barclays Premier League start of the season at Fulham last week and still has two matches of his suspension to serve.

Jordan Henderson filled in for the weekend's victory over QPR and Spearing knows he has to work hard to show he is capable of providing a long-term solution.

"The club is massive worldwide and the owners have come in and shown that they're going to back the manager," he said.

"A club the size of this is always going to attract big players.

"It has always been my dream to play week in, week out so it's up to me to prove to the manager on a daily basis that when the transfer window does open and he has money at his disposal that he can look at a position like mine and think: 'There's no need to sign anyone there - we're pretty strong'."

Last season Spearing showed he was an able deputy to the injured Steven Gerrard, playing the last three months of the season after the Reds captain had surgery on a groin problem.

The former reserve team captain was boosted by that experience but accepts he cannot afford to rest on his laurels.

"Kenny has given me a lot of confidence and has shown the faith that young local lads like me need to get a chance," he told LFC magazine.

"But half of it has to do with myself as well; the effort I put in day in, day out.

"There's a lot of stuff in training that not a lot of people see.

"It's the way I've been brought up because you don't get much from life without hard work.

"My dad said to me that I had to take each day as it comes and prove every single day that I was better than the last one.

"The only way that I was going to get games was by working harder than anybody else in training; not necessarily show that I was better than anybody else but prove that I could compete and not be overawed - to show them I'm up for the fight."

PA