Liverpool news: Highly-rated midfielder Cameron Brannagan signs new long-term deal

Liverpool have sealed the future of highly-rated midfielder Cameron Brannagan after he agreed a new long-term deal with the Anfield outfit. The midfielder is the current captain of the Reds' U21 side, and will remain at the club for the foreseeable future.

"Cameron Brannagan has today extended his contract with Liverpool," a statement on Liverpool's official site read. The 19-year-old midfielder, who is highly-rated by the coaches at the club's Melwood training base, has made one first-team appearance, when he came on as a substitute during the Merseyside club's Europa League clash against Bordeaux this season. He has made the first-team bench a further seven times, and it is likely that he will make more appearances under new manager Jurgen Klopp.

According to the Liverpool Echo, the Reds midfielder, who was entering the final year of his contract with the club, has signed a two-year extension, and will remain with the club at least until the summer of 2018. The report also claims that Brannagan, who wanted to remain with the club, rejected the initial offer of a one-year extension.

The player expressed his delight at signing a new deal, when he wrote on his official Twitter account: "Happy to have signed my new contract with Lfc."

Meanwhile, Reds striker Christian Benteke, who made his first appearance under Jurgen Klopp in the 1-1 draw against Southampton, believes that Liverpool need to kill off games at the earliest and not let the other teams have a chance to get back at them. The Anfield outfit went ahead through a header from the Belgian, but Saido Mane scored four minutes from time to give the Saints an equal share of the points.

"We are frustrated today because, with what we showed, we deserved the three points. [One goal] is never enough, you have to play until the whistle. We just let them get one chance and they scored," Benteke told Liverpool's official site. "We showed some good things and now we just need to kill the game when we can. We are not far but I think it's time to take more points," the former Aston Villa forward added.