Gerrard: Premier League title or World Cup win?

ENGLAND’S drab, dour and dull draw with Ukraine does at least mean that their destiny is now in their own hands; the journey to Brazil is there for the taking.

For some time now, Steven Gerrard has been giving signs that he is unlikely to continue with England beyond the World Cup in Rio (if they get there) as he will be 34 and looking to prolong his career with Liverpool, with the likes of Paul Scholes and Jamie Carragher being the inspiration. However, Gerrard would love to go out on a high for the national team, even if it is as realistic as Paolo Di Canio acting normally. Meanwhile, the quest to win the Premier League title for his boyhood club goes on and despite the improvement shown lately by Brendan Rodgers’ side, the title does remain some way off.

And Gerrard does not have long left.

Even though he does keep fit and had an excellent 2012/13 campaign, the Liverpool and England captain cannot hold off Father Time forever. Therefore, with both of Gerrard’s biggest dreams being as distant as ever, there does come a question.

If he could choose one, which would it be?

Winning the World Cup for England would represent ultimate glory for most English footballers and Gerrard is no different. He has dreamed of it since he was a kid, and now as captain, wants it just as badly.

1966 is a long time ago, and the class of Bobby Moore represents the sole major trophy won by the Three Lions. For a country with the history and quality of England, that is not good enough. Whilst the current team may not set any fires alight, it was not that long ago that England experienced a so called ‘Golden Generation’ – consisting of the likes of Gerrard, Lampard, Rooney, Owen, Terry, Beckham etc. Even though England reached quarter final after quarter final, which most would see as a good result, those times should have resulted in more. Gerrard is one of the few from that generation remaining and wants to show that some good did come out of that era.

Furthermore, Gerrard would want to win the World Cup to stem not just his own personal ambition, but also for the fans. These major tournaments are held all over the world, and England fans have had to pay thousands of pounds to experience heartbreak. We all want penalty shoot outs to be a thing of the past, but they have been the plague of England. Gerrard will want to give the fans a chance to cheer, and experience a moment that gives the reaction: ‘I was there’, just like for Liverpool fans in Istanbul 2005. He would love to be the captain that lifts the World Cup. It would be the most incredible, special and fitting end to a fantastic international career, one that would be complete with the ultimate glory in Brazil.

When you open up a map of England, you may notice the different counties but no separate countries within the borders, such as the Vatican City or San Marino in Italy. And yet whilst they may not reside in their own realm, there are many Northerners (and a few Southerners) whose football values lie closer to home. Some have a club over country stance when it comes to valuing success, some prefer the opposite and some sit right in the middle. With Wembley way down in the South of England, that first stance increases amongst those who are Scouse. To them, it is inconceivable to think that England winning the World Cup is more important than Liverpool winning the Premier League or the Champions League, an opinion which I share.

Gerrard might be in that bracket. He is Liverpool through and through, and would do anything for the club to be winning trophies again and playing in the Champions League. It is the reason he ultimately turned down the likes of Chelsea to stay at Liverpool, even though he would have completed his CV with those clubs. In the end, winning just a few trophies for Liverpool means more to him than winning a bucket-load with another club. Consequently, winning the Premier League title, which Liverpool have never won in its current format and last won at all in 1990, would send the fans into raptures and provide Gerrard with a myriad of reasons to consider that winning the title for the Reds would cap as his finest moment ever – even ahead of winning the World Cup for England.

People share various opinions on their definition of ultimate glory. What they constitute as being the greatest thing that could ever happen to them. For Gerrard, only he truly knows, but in the same way that he will prolong his career for the Reds, it is my belief that he would rather win the title for his beloved football club than win the World Cup with his country.

What do you think Gerrard would prefer – World Cup glory or Premier League success?

Comment below!

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