Liverpool defender Martin Kelly has signed a new contract with the club just days after Jamie Carragher announces his retirement.

Kelly has been sidelined with various injuries this season but Brendan Rodgers still sees the boyhood Liverpool fan as a key member of his long term vision at the club.

The 22-year-old made his England debut in May 2012 and will look to battle with team mate Glen Johnson for a permanent role in the national team.

Kelly could well be seen as the long term successor of the departing Jamie Carragher who will hang up his boots at the end of this season.

The new long term contract will keep Kelly with the Reds for the foreseeable future and the local lad has expressed his joy at pledging his future to his boyhood club but he also understands the pressure that will now be on his shoulders to produce week in week out when he is fit.

"I'm delighted to have signed. It means everything to me and my family. I've been at Liverpool since I was seven, so it's in my heart and I love the club,” Kelly told the clubs official site.

"When you play in the Liverpool shirt, you have to show the fans what it means. I just love playing and trying my hardest for the supporters and for my family.”

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