Steven Gerrard has backed Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz to shake off the disappointment of missing out on a transfer to Arsenal.
Throughout deadline day, Luiz was heavily linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium, partly due to less than a year remaining on his contract.
The Gunners had been keen to sign a new central midfielder, while Villa were left with a decision to make regards receiving a significant fee for the Brazilian rather than risk losing him on a free transfer in 2023.
According to reports, Arsenal made as many as three bids for Luiz, the final one during the closing hours of the summer transfer window said to be in the region of £25m.
Nevertheless, the Villa hierarchy held firm, continuing to reject offers for the 24-year-old despite his alleged desire to move to the Premier League leaders.
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When addressing the situation at a press conference on Friday, Gerrard suggested that he had no concerns about Luiz's mindset heading into the remainder of the season.
The Englishman told reporters: "Knowing the boy and the player, I doubt it. I've got confidence he'll understand the situation and the club's decision that we didn't want to lose a very important player and a top player so late on in the window.
"From a personal point of view, I very much back the club's decision and stance on that. I spoke to Dougie face-to-face yesterday, he understood where it was at and the position that the club was in, and he very much respects the decision.
"Hopefully, it'll calm down in the hours and days coming, and he'll be fine moving forward."
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Luiz has endured a frustrating start to the campaign having been restricted to just one outing in the Villa starting lineup in top-flight fixtures.
In total, he has featured for just 108 minutes in the Premier League, ironically scoring a goal straight from a corner during Villa's 2-1 defeat at Arsenal on Wednesday night.
That setback was Villa's fourth in five league encounters during 2022-23, leaving the club down in 19th position in the standings.
Luiz will hope for a recall on Saturday evening when the West Midlands outfit square off against his former club Manchester City.
Darren Plant
