Brendan Rodgers impressed by improvement of Emre Can

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has revealed his delight with Emre Can's performance in the 2-1 loss to Chelsea on Saturday.

Can put Liverpool ahead with a deflected effort at Anfield before goals from Gary Cahill and Diego Costa handed all three points to the Premier League leaders, and Rodgers admits that he has been pleased with the progress the German midfielder has made since moving to the club in the summer.

"I thought he did very well," the Liverpool boss 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."

Liverpool signed Can from Bayer Leverkusen in June for a fee believed to be in the region of £10m.