Gerrard, 34, is out of contract at the end of seasonBrendan Rodgers has spoken with Gerrard’s agent

Liverpool are due to begin formal contract talks with Steven Gerrard’s representatives later this week as they seek to extend the captain’s Anfield career.

The 34-year-old is out of contract at the end of this season and free to sign a pre-contract agreement with a foreign club from January. There has been uncertainty over Gerrard’s future at his boyhood club, with the former England captain revealing last month that Liverpool had not made an approach over a new deal and manager Brendan Rodgers, having said in the summer an extension was “a formality”, later admitting the club would have to “see how he feels”.

Speaking after Liverpool’s recent defeat at Newcastle United, however, Rodgers revealed he had held talks with Gerrard’s agent Struan Marshall about a new contract for the long-serving captain.

Rodgers said: “As manager of this club you can’t afford to be sentimental but, both on an off the field, as a leader and as a captain, I want to ensure that Steven is very much part of this second curve we’re on in terms of group development.”

That informal contact between Rodgers and Marshall will be followed by dialogue between Liverpool officials and Gerrard’s agent in the coming days, with a one-year contract likely to be offered.