WELCOME one and all to the latest instalment in my series of season reviews for individuals in our squad.
In case you have missed them I have already discussed, Carroll, Henderson, Downing, Jose Enrique, Agger, Skrtel, Lucas, Bellamy, Suarez, Reina and Adam so please go and check them out and let me know what you think.
The subject for this article is our very own Captain Fantastic, the heartbeat of our squad, the man himself Stevie Gerrard.
This man is responsible for some of my greatest footballing, let alone Liverpool, memories in my life time. Olympiakos, Milan, West Ham, Germany to name a few of the more infamous ones as well as countless other goals whether be it from his head or from 40 yards with a volley (remember that Middlesbrough game at Anfield??).
His ability to drag a side to victory, to embody the passion of the Liverpool family and roam the turf, dominating the opposition allows each Kopite to live vicariously through him on the pitch. He is a symbol of hope for all Liverpool fans and a name that invokes fear in the opposition. He has already secured his legendary status in the Anfield corridors and a name that commands respect. How many of the young England players when asked who their favourite England player was growing up said Stevie for example.
I have held off writing this article until after England exited the Euro’s (actually expected to write this a while back!!) as I wanted to incorporate his performances in the Ukraine as unfortunately his season at Anfield has been ravaged by injury.
It was quite apparent at the start of the season that the way Stevie was to be handled has changed and taken into consideration his needs rather than the clubs as at this point in his career decisions need to be made looking towards the longevity of his career. In previous years, Liverpool have suffered in the long run as key players, such as Stevie and Torres, were rushed back into first team action as we were overly-dependant.
This year however the decision, and the correct one in my mind, was to allow Stevie to recover as much as possible before returning to action, and it is my opinion had he been rushed back too soon we would not have seen him at the Euro’s. So the fact that he played the amount he played in Ukraine and came through it relatively unscathed is a testament to the medical team at Melwood and encouraging for us and for Brendan Rodgers as we approach the new season. Would a fully fit Stevie in every game made a difference to Liverpool over the course of last season? Without doubt the answer is a resounding yes.
We were able to see glimpses of how he could link up with the likes of Suarez and Carroll up top and have security of Lucas covering, when they were on the pitch together which has been criminally minimal since January 2011. Stevie craves a talent at his level to play with and excels when he gets it as we have seen previously with Torres, excels when he trusts those around him as we have seen with the likes of Alonso and Mascherano, and can create magic when there is a legitimate target and threat up top again something we have seen when Torres was here.
Suarez is every bit the player Torres was at Liverpool and has the ability to be more so. Lucas has developed in to the type of player that Stevie can trust and Carroll is exactly the man to be the target up-top, and if you doubt that please re-watch England v Sweden. So all the ingredients for Stevie to flourish once more and alleviate the burden on his shoulders are in our squad already before any further transfers but a combination of injury and misfortune has robbed the Kop of seeing these four consistently playing together.
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Throughout the season questions were asked whether Stevie still had it or had his injuries taken their toll and in a red shirt this year we saw that clearly he has. The hat-trick against Everton at Anfield is testament to his abilities as well as the performances and keeping of nerves against City in the League Cup semi-finals.
The issue this year has been more about achieving that level of fitness and then getting a run of games to find that level of form that sets him apart from the majority of players on the planet. It just seems that his year has mirrored that of the club, each time the threat of really turning it on arises something rears its head. It has been a year of frustrations on and off the pitch for all involved with Liverpool so it is important to look at the shoots of recovery, and for Stevie, the European Championships in Poland and the Ukraine have presented him a stage to show off his talents and to demonstrate his ability to play 4 tournament games at a high intensity in such a short space of time.
Despite being shackled once more within a rigid 4-4-2 put out by Hodgson (I imagine he hoped never to have experienced that again when Roy was fired from Liverpool), he excelled in his defensive work despite being forced back and back due to ineffective tactics. He tackled, he passed, he spread the ball to all corners of the pitch and showed how devastating his delivery is. The Lescott and Carroll headers, as good as they were, are all about the devilishly whipped cross from Stevie, whereas the Rooney goal against Sweden, whilst put on a plate by shoddy keeping, was wonderfully created by a moment of skill from the Liverpool skipper.
Throughout the tournament Stevie showed how a true England captain should both behave and perform and why the award of the armband is several years late. His talent and performances during this last tournament have shown the calibre of the man and how horribly mismanaged he has been at international level. It appears that outside of England his ability is instantly recognised; quotes from people like Vieira and Zidane make this abundantly clear, yet rather than focus on why manager after manager fails to highlight Gerrard and build a side around this world class talent, the English press slams the fact that we don’t have a Pirlo, or a Xavi or Muller and so on and so on.
England’s poor performances on the European and World stages can be attributed to the wrong players being identified as talismanic and world class whereas the one man who is genuinely world class has seen his versatility and ability to play anywhere used against him, even on the left hand side of midfield!! Wow!
I believe that the Euro’s have shown that in terms of fitness Stevie is as close as he will be to his top level and that an early competitive start to Liverpool’s season will help him find his form before a difficult start to the league campaign kicks in and with the style of football that Brendan Rodgers wants to play will allow Stevie to play the style he wants, with the players he wants and to truly express himself on the pitch. Exciting times ahead.
As always, please come and find me on twitter for a Liverpool chat and discussion about my articles if you want, I’m @timdibs
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