Liverpool’s manager Brendan Rodgers has praised Emre Can for his performance against Chelsea.

Emre Can was a surprise inclusion in the starting XI and he repaid his managers faith by scoring in the 9th minute to give Liverpool the lead.

“I thought he did very well,” Rodgers told reporters.

“The plan was to play Emre because of the physicality of Chelsea, they’re a big team with physical presence.

“Emre’s coming back to fitness, he’s been out for a little bit of time and he’s getting the game time and doing very well. I thought he looked strong, took his goal very well.

“[He is] a young player who’s getting to grips with the Barclays Premier League, and he’s looking very good in training and in the games.”

Can who moved to Liverpool in a £9.75m deal from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer has missed much of the early part of the season with injury.

The young midfielder was born in German to Turkish parents and is eligible to represent Germany and Turkey at international level.