Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen confirms positive contract talks

Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen has confirmed contract talks with the club and has admitted that he is keen to extend his stay at Anfield.

The Welshman has become a key player for the Merseyside club in recent months and has excelled at the heart of the Reds' midfield in the absence of skipper Steven Gerrard, who has been injured since early February.

But the former Three Lions skipper returned for Liverpool's visit to the Liberty Stadium on Monday, and had to be content with a place on the bench as Allen kept his place in the starting lineup.

The 24-year-old midfielder, who has two-years left on his current deal is ready to commit his long-term future to the club and believes the signs are good despite negotiations being at an early stage.

"We're at the early stages at the moment but the signs are good," Allen said, as quoted by the BBC.

"From my point of view I'm looking to commit my future here and hopefully I can be here for years to come."

"For me it's just a case of playing regularly and putting in consistent performances. I've always been confident that I'll able to be successful here," the Welsh international added.

Meanwhile, Allen, who was signed by Brendan Rodgers when the manager moved from Swansea to Liverpool in 2012 admitted that the south Wales side were the better team in the first-half of their 1-0 win on Monday, but was nonetheless delighted to come back to Merseyside with the three points.

"We got three points, that's the main thing. But we certainly did have to dig deep, especially in the first half - Swansea were the better side and made it really difficult for us," Allen told Liverpool's official site.

"I think we can count ourselves maybe a little bit lucky not to have gone in behind. But thankfully we regrouped at half-time."

"It was important, with that performance, to get in at 0-0. We came out and gave a much better account of ourselves and got the three points," the former Swansea midfielder added.