Shelvey: Why I told Fabio to shush
Jonjo Shelvey has lifted the lid on the banter he's been exchanging with Fabio Borini ahead of England U21s' clash with Italy on Wednesday night – but warned his Anfield teammate their friendship will be put to one side in Israel come kick off.
The Three Lions take on the Italians in their opening game of the U21 European Championships, with Shelvey, Jordan Henderson, Andre Wisdom and Jack Robinson set to line up against Borini in Tel Aviv.
Plenty of good-natured barbs have been exchanged amongst the trio, though all joking will be put to one side when the Group A game gets underway admits Shelvey.
He said: "I sent him a little message on Twitter the other day. He had left a tweet [about Italy beating England] so I just put: 'Shhhhh.' He hasn't got back to me! We had been having banter with Hendo [Jordan Henderson] all through the season about the game.
"Fabio just says they're going to play for a draw and meet us in the final. But I'm sure if there is a tackle to go through... if the ball is there to be won, even if it's one of your mates, you've got to go for it.
"He's a good player. When you see him in the finishing drills after training you see his real quality and how good he is in front of goal. I'm sure we won't be giving him a sniff because we know that if we do, he'll punish us."
Shelvey made 32 appearances for Liverpool in 2012-13, scoring five goals, in what was a season of development for the 21-year-old.
He's now hoping to end his campaign in style by helping England U21s to glory.
"I've always had niggles which have kept me out, so this is my first proper tournament, hopefully I can play a big part," stated Shelvey. "For the U21s it's a big deal. It's just an honour to play for your country, even in a friendly, so for it to be a tournament it feels extra special.
"We have had a meeting about the tournament. Spain have got a very good team, obviously there are some great international and club players. You've got Thiago [Alacantara] from Barcelona, so it's going to be a good tournament to be involved in.
"But we have won the last nine. To do that at any level, even in the park, is some record. Stuart keeps talking about the two years build up that we've had, that's how long we've had preparing for this tournament. We're going to go out to try and win it."
Though he was regularly involved in Brendan Rodgers' matchday squads, Shelvey only made one start in the final three months of the season.
He added: "I started the season well but after I got sent off against Manchester United it never really picked up again, if I'm honest. I can't say I had a bad season because I played quite a few games and I owe a lot to the manager in that sense. I didn't play as much as I would like to in the end, but that's football.
"I'm still only 21 years of age, I've got a long career ahead of me and there's no rush to be playing week in and week out. The manager didn't feel I was ready to do that, that's just how it goes and we'll have to see what happens next season."