Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has given the strongest indication yet that he will remain at Anfield as he welcomed the signing of Joe Cole. There has been speculation over the Reds midfielder's future this summer but after meeting new boss Roy Hodgson, Gerrard now appears set to stay. "I wanted the chance to meet Roy Hodgson privately," the 30-year-old told the club website. "Having done so I'm very impressed with his plans for the future of the team." He added: "I only returned to training on Monday at Melwood with some of the other World Cup players but I can't wait for the new season to start." Gerrard has been linked with a move to Jose Mourinho's Real Madrid during a summer in which he endured a disappointing World Cup campaign with England in South Africa. The fact he has broken his silence about his future will go some way to reassuring Liverpool fans of his future plans, and he explained: "I made it clear thant I simply needed to concentrate on the World Cup and then have a decent holiday with my family." New Liverpool boss Roy Hodgson greeted Gerrard's apparent pledge with understandable delight, saying: "It's a great piece of news. There won't be anyone in Liverpool today who isn't delighted to hear that. "I'm really pleased about it because I've got great respect for Steven Gerrard. He's a player who I was really looking forward to working with when I came to Liverpool. "It seems now with that commitment that this will happen. It gives everyone a boost without question. "It will be a tough season, with a lot of matches and the disappointment of last season is going to take a while to dissipate, but it is very good that our best player is still going to be playing at this club. "Hopefully with the signing of Joe Cole - and if we are lucky one or two others, to boost the squad - we will be going into this season's competition, maybe stronger on paper than we were last season." Gerrard, along with Jamie Carragher and Glen Johnson, returned to training on Monday as they started their pre-season preparations after three weeks off following England's exit from the World Cup. England tamely went out at the last-16 stage after a 4-1 thrashing by Germany but Gerrard and Carragher did use the opportunity of being on international duty with Cole to persuade him to come to Anfield. The Reds beat Tottenham to the free transfer of the 28-year-old attacking midfielder, who left Chelsea in June. Hodgson also told TalkSport: "Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard did a good job in selling the club to Joe at the World Cup. "He was undecided about what he wanted to do and to be fair it takes a bit more selling to persuade a Londoner who has played all his life in London to move up to Liverpool. "The simple solution would have been to stay in the London area." Cole, who played 18 minutes against Slovenia and 27 minutes in the defeat by Germany during the World Cup, has travelled to Switzerland to undergo a medical at Liverpool's pre-season training camp after agreeing terms on a four-year deal . Gerrard said: "It's a great signing for us. I know Joe well through the England set-up and have seen first hand just how good a player he is. "He's proved his ability over many years in the Premier League, sometimes against us - so it will be fantastic to play alongside him in a red shirt for Liverpool. "I've told him what a great club this is and I'm sure Joe's the sort of exciting talent our fans will love to see." Liverpool defender Carragher believes Cole's arrival at Anfield delivers a statement of intent. "It's great news and it is a message that Liverpool mean business," Carragher told the club website. "We have signed a top international player who has been really important for Chelsea. "A lot of clubs wanted to sign him but it is a real coup that he has chosen to come here and you have got to give the manager and the board a pat on the back for convincing him to come here. "Every supporter that I have spoken to is absolutely delighted and all the players are the same - it's given everyone a boost, just at the right time." Carragher believes Cole's arrival is the kind of fillip the club needed after disappointingly finishing seventh in the Premier League last season and failing to qualify for the Champions League. "It has been a long summer and we have been in a transitional period but now the World Cup is out of the way, we can start to look forward again," stated Carragher. "Joe is a player who has the ability to get supporters off their seats and I've no doubt he will do that here. "It's good news again and, hopefully, there will be more to come. It's the kind of signing that we needed to make. "Joe is someone I have known for a long time from playing with England. He is a great lad to have around the squad, he mixes well and is a lively character - he's also an outstanding footballer. "In the modern game, you need forwards that can function in two or three different positions and Joe will do that, no problem at all. He can play on the right, through the middle or on the left." Meanwhile, Hodgson hopes Cole's impact will buoy the club's fans as well as players. "I am pleased to get the player because it is very important to try to improve our squad as much as we can in order to reach the high goals we have set ourselves," said Hodgson. "It is also pleasing the reaction of the fans has been as positive as our reaction, so at the moment that is perfect. "Now it is up to Joe to show on the field he is the right man." Credit: BBC