From liverpoolfc.tv
Ryan Babel is enjoying life at Anfield but insists there is still a lot more to come from him in a red shirt.
The former Ajax ace scored two goals in the 8-0 mauling of Besiktas in midweek, including one sublime finish which showed the quality he undoubtedly possesses.
Ideally he wants to play up front but Babel is no stranger to hard work and the Reds number 19 will play anywhere the manager asks him to.
"I see myself as a striker long term," said Babel. "I started as a striker at Ajax at 11 and I live the chance to score goals and give assists. The boss told me he signed me as a winger, but he knows that I prefer to be a striker.
"It was good to score in midweek and it showed what I can do. I have confidence enough to say that if I work hard, I can be a better player than I am now.
"There was a time at Ajax when there was a lot of criticism of me, about my technique and my skills. People said I was not good enough to play in the first team and the crowd picked up on it and started looking at me more closely.
"When I lost the ball, for example, you would hear the crowd groan, so at that time I had a big call to make and decided to show them it was not true."
Such was his commitment and determination to succeed, the Dutch international hired a personal technique trainer, Chris Kronshorst, formerly of Porto, to help him improve his game.
"I wasn't playing well, the club weren't performing well and we were all under pressure all the time," added Babel.
"I thought I have to work on myself to make the team and myself successful again.
"I used to train a lot in private looking at a lot of things, like how to use your body in certain situations, and I got a lot of confidence from that. It helped me on the pitch and I'm still using the things that I learnt in those sessions now.
"Somehow what I was doing became public and Ajax found out and said I couldn't do it any more, but it definitely helped me."
Ryan Babel is enjoying life at Anfield but insists there is still a lot more to come from him in a red shirt.
The former Ajax ace scored two goals in the 8-0 mauling of Besiktas in midweek, including one sublime finish which showed the quality he undoubtedly possesses.
Ideally he wants to play up front but Babel is no stranger to hard work and the Reds number 19 will play anywhere the manager asks him to.
"I see myself as a striker long term," said Babel. "I started as a striker at Ajax at 11 and I live the chance to score goals and give assists. The boss told me he signed me as a winger, but he knows that I prefer to be a striker.
"It was good to score in midweek and it showed what I can do. I have confidence enough to say that if I work hard, I can be a better player than I am now.
"There was a time at Ajax when there was a lot of criticism of me, about my technique and my skills. People said I was not good enough to play in the first team and the crowd picked up on it and started looking at me more closely.
"When I lost the ball, for example, you would hear the crowd groan, so at that time I had a big call to make and decided to show them it was not true."
Such was his commitment and determination to succeed, the Dutch international hired a personal technique trainer, Chris Kronshorst, formerly of Porto, to help him improve his game.
"I wasn't playing well, the club weren't performing well and we were all under pressure all the time," added Babel.
"I thought I have to work on myself to make the team and myself successful again.
"I used to train a lot in private looking at a lot of things, like how to use your body in certain situations, and I got a lot of confidence from that. It helped me on the pitch and I'm still using the things that I learnt in those sessions now.
"Somehow what I was doing became public and Ajax found out and said I couldn't do it any more, but it definitely helped me."
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