Still Got It: Are veterans a vital cog in any team?

SINCE taking the helm at Liverpool, Brendan Rodgers has been rightly applauded for giving many of the club’s youth a chance to shine at first team level.

The likes of Raheem Sterling, Andre Wisdom and Jordan Ibe have consistently made the first team squad so far this season, and with Suso getting excellent first-team experience on-loan in La Liga after his promising performances for the Reds last season, Jonjo Shelvey sold for a tidy profit after establishing himself in the top-flight, and 21-year old Philippe Coutinho pulling the playmaking strings behind a potent strikeforce, the future looks assured.

However, for all the exuberance and zest that youth brings, comes a certain lack of consistency and street-smarts; the know-how of dealing with difficult situations that only experience can bring.

Before Liverpool’s upturn in league position pre-January, Rodgers spoke of the team’s need for leaders and ‘men’ to help guide the youngsters through this transitional period.

Jamie Carragher’s return to the defence coincided with the improvement of the Reds points tally, so with that in mind, is football really a young man’s game? Or is there still a place for the veterans, with all their wily cunning that only years of gladiatorial battles in vociferous arenas can bring?

Further afield, Ronaldinho, who many had deemed ‘well past it’, recently inspired Atletico Mineiro to their first ever Copa Libertadores victory, whilst in Serie A, Francesco Totti is still dazzling the league, aged 37, firing his Roma side to first place in the table, unbeaten.

Of course, Liverpool have enjoyed many of their own stars who have aged gracefully over the years, helping along the next generation – most notably Gary McAllister who signed at the start of the millennium and was credited as a key figure in guiding Steven Gerrard during his early years in the first team set-up.

Far from having a reduced role, the playmaking Scot is celebrated for his part in inspiring the Reds to the famous treble cup win of 2000-2001, whilst also scoring one of the greatest and most dramatic Merseyside derby goals ever witnessed.

Yes, even better than the one below…