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Is Steven Gerrard Our Greatest of All-Time?

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MAKING his 400th league appearance against Everton last Tuesday, Steven Gerrard put his name into Liverpool’s record books once more. He was the man of the match by some distance and his hat-trick was the first in the Merseyside derby since Ian Rush put three past Everton at Goodison Park thirty years ago. It was another special night for our Captain Fantastic, a player who has had so many special nights in a red shirt.

Gerrard’s appearance against Everton was his 576th for Liverpool in all competitions and his hat-trick took his total goals tally for the club to 149. It also led to a number of Reds fans asking, is Stevie G the greatest player to ever wear the Liver bird on his chest?

With the Premier League title the only piece of major silverware to elude Gerrard in his fourteen seasons at Anfield, he is certainly the most decorated Liverpool player to never collect a league winner’s medal. Gerrard was part of our unique cup treble in 2001, put two goals past West Ham when we won the FA Cup in 2006 and who can forget his role in the miracle of Istanbul? Stevie G has been there for almost every Liverpool success story since the Reds last won the league title in 1990 and on most occasions, he has played a pivotal role in those successes.

Gerrard was named man of the match for both the 2005 Champions League and 2006 FA Cup Finals, with good reason. In Istanbul, Gerrard headed home Liverpool’s first goal and then won the penalty from which Xabi Alonso scored the rebound after Vladimir Smicer had pulled the score back to 3-2. At the Millenium Stadium in 2006, Stevie G equalised twice for Liverpool; his thirty yard strike in stoppage time to take the game to extra time was spectacular. Gerrard was so important in Liverpool’s 2006 FA Cup victory that after the game he was compared to Stanley Matthews, who played such a big role in Blackpool’s 1953 FA Cup win that the game was nicknamed the Matthews Final.

One of Gerrard’s greatest assets, both as a player and as Liverpool captain, is his ability to inspire those around him. Istanbul and Cardiff are just two examples when Stevie G’s never-say-die attitude has rubbed off on his teammate. His hat-trick this past Tuesday was a reminder of just how important he is to Liverpool and how much he has been missed during his injury troubles this season and last. At 31 years of age, Gerrard is still both willing and able to lead Liverpool to glory for a few more years at least; one can only hope he adds that elusive Premier League winner’s medal to his collection before he hangs up his boots.
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Gerrard has already done enough to cement his place in history as a Liverpool legend, but is he also our greatest ever player? To answer that question, you only need to watch his post-match interview from Tuesday night. When another Liverpool legend, Ian Rush, was mentioned, Gerrard replied, “Ian Rush was a big hero of mine. I looked up to him for a long time and used to watch a lot of the videos of him scoring, but let’s not be stupid. He scored over 300 goals and I’m not comparing myself to Ian Rush. He was a different breed”. Perhaps Gerrard was being modest, but on this occasion his modesty was honesty – Rush really was a different breed. He remains Liverpool’s record goalscorer and probably will for quite some time. In his time at Liverpool, Rush won five league titles, three FA Cups, five League Cups and one European Cup, including a league, European and League Cup treble in 1984. Rush was named Liverpool captain in 1992 and as skipper, he lifted the league cup once; Liverpool’s leading scorer might not have led Liverpool the way Steven Gerrard has as captain, but his goals for the club were just as important as Gerrard’s antics on the pitch, if not more important. Rush’s strike partner, King Kenny Dalglish, is another man that can rival Gerrard as Liverpool’s greatest ever player.

Alongside Rush for Liverpool’s glory years in the ’80s (and there for numerous successes before Liverpool signed Rush!), Dalglish scored fewer goals but still played a pivotal role in Liverpool’s success. As a player, Kenny did more than just score goals – with a delicate touch and incredible vision, Dalglish created goals. After being named player-manager in 1985, King Kenny was able to inspire success both on the field and off it.

I’ll always look back on Liverpool’s success with Gerrard leading the team more fondly than the Dalglish and Rush era, particularly as I’ve been able to witness it firsthand. However I’m also respectful enough of Liverpool’s history to acknowledge that although Gerrard can take his place alongside Dalglish and Rush as one of Liverpool’s greatest ever players, he hasn’t yet surpassed them. Gerrard could yet do more to stake his claim as our greatest ever; it’s something we should look at again after Stevie G retires, especially if he’s been able to lift the Premier League title by then.

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3 comments

  • CB says:

    Without question, Jamie Carragher has got to be the greatest footballer that ever played for Liverpool. In fact, Carragher should be hailed as the best centre-back who ever played the game – past, present and perhaps, into the next millennium. Given that Carragher is so technically deprived of football skills and yet being able to garner a record-breaking amount of first-team starts for Liverpool is a remarkable feat. Where in the world would you be able to find another footballer like Carragher who cannot pass, dribble, cross, shoot nor head a ball competently. Yes, Jamie wins the Liverpool Greatest Player title hands down. He is a living legend. He is also an embarrassment to professional footballers the world over and in particular to LFC.

  • Jack says:

    I second that.

  • Tony says:

    I could not have said it any better. Well done, CB.

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