Cisse blasts Marseille link

Djibril Cisse has launched a staggering attack on his own brother in an attempt to end speculation that he is on his way to Marseille.

The Liverpool striker is furious his brother Hamed, his one-time agent, had said a deal to join the French club was “90% done”.

That claim had earlier prompted manager Rafael Benitez to make it clear he did not want to sell Cisse and to say of Marseille’s constant interest: “They talk and talk but they do not talk to us. We do not want to sell Cisse.”

Now the Reds hitman admits he is fed up with constant speculation about his future and revealed he does not even speak to the brother whose comments sparked this latest bout of speculation.

Cisse said: “There is no truth whatsoever in this and I am really annoyed with my brother, who I have no contact with, for this. I cannot emphasise strongly enough how happy I am here at Liverpool.

“This is my club. I waited a long time to come here and I’m here to stay. The fans are amazing, my team-mates and manager are amazing, and it’s just a fantastic club.

“I have had no contact with Marseille and the ongoing speculation about my future is boring. It has caused me a lot of problems but I won’t let if affect me.

“My mind is focused only on doing my best for Liverpool. We have some tough games coming up and I am fully concentrated on them.”

He added: “I’m in Liverpool for three more seasons and I’m not going to leave. The stuff is rubbish, I’m here to stay. It hurt me because it’s my own family who talk rubbish.

“I just wanted the stuff to be clear and to be honest with the fans, who are very important to me.

“Don’t believe what was said. I feel good here, we have a really good team and performances at the moment.

“I don’t know why people want to spoil it. It’s boring but I’m strong enough to deal with it and switch off my mind and be focused on the game.”

Benitez added Marseille had not made an offer for Cisse and that he would not let the France international leave even if they had.

“Marseille are always talking, but they don’t talk with us – there is no news,” he said.

“Djibril has shown the kind of attitude I like in players. He is a very important player for us. We don’t want to sell Djibril.”

Cisse has scored 12 goals for Liverpool this season, including eight in the Champions League.

Cisse scored a spectacular goal in the 3-1 derby defeat of Everton in midweek and is likely to start up front against West Brom, particularly with Spanish striker Fernando Morientes now out for at least two games with a knee injury.

Cisse said: “To score in the derby was a special moment for me and one I will never forget.

“My confidence is high and I just want to continue playing well and scoring goals for this club.

“There is so much to look forward to here. We have a great team and we have a lot to play for in the second half of the season.”