John Henry knows that some of Liverpool's top players have long been said to be unhappy at Anfield, and though he has been encouraged by his conversations with them, he has made it clear that they won't be forced to stay if they don't want to be there.
''Frankly, we don't want a player at the club who doesn't want to be at the club. It's really up to us to provide the kind of leadership, on and off the field, that any player at the club or who is coming to the club wants to be here," said Henry.
With particular regard to the rumors about Fernando Torres, Dirk Kuyt and Pepe Reina, Henry seemed bemused by the fickle nature of the hearsay, but optimistic about their roles with the club, according to BBC.
''I was upset about the assertion that they were leaving. There was one day when I read reports that we were not going to be involved in the transfer window because we do not have the funds. The next day I read that Torres and Reina were leaving."
''I have spoken with a number of our top players and was really heartened by the response," he said. I was heartened by the intelligence of these players, who understand more about Liverpool than we do. They were good discussions."
Liverpool look to be buyers — not sellers — in January's transfer window and have a relatively soft schedule in the Premier League following Sunday's tie with Chelsea. The coming months, perhaps, will prove to provide momentum and optimism enough to put said rumors to bed for good.
