Stoke City midfielder Charlie Adam is ready to return to Liverpool.

When Brendan Rodgers told Adam that he would be little more than a spectator at Liverpool this season, the Scotland playmaker decided enough was enough.

"I've got more respect for myself than that," Adam told the Daily Mail. "I could have sat there for the next two or three years and played here and there in the Europa League, come off the bench if I was lucky or sat in the stands like I was against Manchester City in the last game I was there.

"But I don't want people saying I just sat doing nothing.

"I'll probably get more respect as a person by taking the opportunity to play somewhere else.

"It was hard to leave because Liverpool are one of the biggest clubs in the world, but I want to play football. I went to see the manager after being on the bench for the first couple of Europa League qualifiers because he had brought in Joe Allen, Lucas was coming back from injury, Stevie Gerrard is one of Liverpool's greatest players, and Jonjo Shelvey was playing as well.

"He said he saw me as a squad player. I respect the decision he made. He said I could look for a club and I did that."