Why is Steven Gerrard?

[Angus]

Just back from my first Irons game of the season last night at Anfield against the Red Scousers.

Clearly a super result for us, and a few decent performances. The basic things we know about football keep coming back - decent keeper - decent cente halves - pace and strength up front - all go to a quality point for us.

But the reason for the post is Gerrard - clearly a maginficient striker of the ball and a talisman figure for Liverpool - but I am sorry, he is a crap midfielder.

He never wants the ball - when he gets it he has 2 instincts - to shoot from 40 yards (admittedly with a decent success rate) or to spray it 75 yards cross field. The latter regularly fails so he simply gives it away. Time after time last night, a Pool full back had it, gave it to Hyppia and took it back - and time after time "the best midfielder in the world" was running the opposite way not interested in creating and owning the play

It is almost like the Hairdresser at Man U - a total luxury player, who admittedly pops up with something spectacular - but can we please drop the pretense that this guy is a midfielder - he is a striker.

[EAFC_rdfl]

nice to see him try to con the ref for another injury time penalty last night, should have been booked for that dive IMO

[Red4Eva]

i think he's a right back. the reason liverpool were so poor was because xabi alonso had to be the midfield by himself. gerrard contributes nothing around the middle of the park. alonso has to drop to pick it up off defenders and ends having to look for a spray out to riera because he has noone with him in the centre. i'd say benitez rues the day stevie changed his mind about going to chelsea

[shakermaker1982]

It is almost like the Hairdresser at Man U - a total luxury player, who admittedly pops up with something spectacular - but can we please drop the pretense that this guy is a midfielder - he is a striker.

who is this hairdresser you refer to?

[lionelhutz]

i think he's a right back. the reason liverpool were so poor was because xabi alonso had to be the midfield by himself. gerrard contributes nothing around the middle of the park. alonso has to drop to pick it up off defenders and ends having to look for a spray out to riera because he has noone with him in the centre. i'd say benitez rues the day stevie changed his mind about going to chelsea

Thats a little overboard to say the least but I have to agree he's not a good midfielder in the traditional sense. He doesnt drop deep to collect the ball and dictate the play.

However, he's excellent playing just off Torres and I think Liverpool can win the title if Benitez plays the following team barring injury and suspension;
Reina

Arbeloa Agger Carragher (whoever you want)

Kuyt Mascherano Alonso Riera

Gerrard

Torres

[Red4Eva]

Thats a little overboard to say the least.....

I think benitez would rather have the £45 million(or however much it was) than Gerrard but I will agree that Gerrard linked up very well with Torres in the 2nd half of last season.

[DeLorean]

Thats a little overboard to say the least but I have to agree he's not a good midfielder in the traditional sense. He doesnt drop deep to collect the ball and dictate the play.

However, he's excellent playing just off Torres and I think Liverpool can win the title if Benitez plays the following team barring injury and suspension;
Reina

Arbeloa Agger Carragher (whoever you want)

Kuyt Mascherano Alonso Riera

Gerrard

Torres

Bye bye Robbie so!! I'd probably have Aurelio left back cos that Dossena looks awful. To be honest when Sketel comes back I'd play Agger left back I think. Arbeloa is rubbish as well but no options there really. I know it's early days but Riera looks a bad player, he gives them width cos he hogs the touchline but he can't cross the ball to save his life. Babel is a far better player, that said I think this is their best team....

Reina

Arbeloa-Carragher-Skertel-Agger

Gerrard-Mascherano-Alonso-Babel

Keane

Torres

Still wouldn't win the lge cos it's very simple, United and Chelsea are far superior. You don't win lges with Kuyt, Arbeloa, Aurelio/Dossena. Absolutely no bench either.

[Angus]

who is this hairdresser you refer to?

Who could it possibly be ?

[lionelhutz]

Bye bye Robbie so!! I'd probably have Aurelio left back cos that Dossena looks awful. To be honest when Sketel comes back I'd play Agger left back I think. Arbeloa is rubbish as well but no options there really. I know it's early days but Riera looks a bad player, he gives them width cos he hogs the touchline but he can't cross the ball to save his life. Babel is a far better player, that said I think this is their best team....

Reina

Arbeloa-Carragher-Skertel-Agger

Gerrard-Mascherano-Alonso-Babel

Keane

Torres

Still wouldn't win the lge cos it's very simple, United and Chelsea are far superior. You don't win lges with Kuyt, Arbeloa, Aurelio/Dossena. Absolutely no bench either.

I agree mostly. I couldn't believe he started Benayoun instead of Babel last night, Benayoun is a nothing player while Babel will always give something to the game. I wouldn't mind seeing Gerrard play wide right with Keane behind Torres, but I still think Gerrard is much more effective in a free role behind Torres.

I used to be of the same opinion on Arbeloa, but I think he's been very good this season of what I've seen of him. He's been solid enough and offers an outlet going forward.

Riera started very well for Liverpool but has faded in the last few games, but he deserves a bit more time before any judgement is made, just like Keane.

[DeLorean]

Ya that's true, I remember Pires was crap in his first season at Arsenal and turned out to be a fine signing for them. Still don't think it's fair on Babel though when he's done more to justify a starting place imo. There's no doubt Gerrard's best position is behind the front man but I think there would be more quality on the pitch with him playing out wide and Kuyt gettin dropped. I thought Arbeloa looked like a decent player at one stage, remember him doing very well on Messi in one match, he looks poor anytime I've seen him in the past yr or so. He's still better than the 2 fighting it out for left back though.

[rambler14]

Very Selfish player, infact i'd go as far to say that he is the most selfish midfielder in the premiership.
When things arn't going right (like last night vs West Ham), Gerrard takes things upon himself and starts shooting from absolutely EVERYWHERE when there are clearly better options on. He becomes reluctant to pass and tries to do it all himself.
Actually Stan Collymore (Good pundit despite his eh.............history!) raised that very point on Football Matters last night and it made perfect sense. Gerrard got slated by he Liverpool fans in the studio and by the rest of the panel too.
Even todays papers have said it was his worst ever game in a Liverpool shirt!

[John83]

...I think Liverpool can win the title if Benitez plays the following team barring injury and suspension;
Reina

Arbeloa Agger Carragher (whoever you want)
...

I don't know about that. I've seen Poor Student play left back...

[dfx-]

And yet if Benitez dares play him anywhere but central midfield, out come the pundits and the journalists.

He doesn't have the talent, mentality or discipline for it - he did, but not for the last few years.

[sligofan4ever]

I agree mostly. I couldn't believe he started Benayoun instead of Babel last night, Benayoun is a nothing player while Babel will always give something to the game. I wouldn't mind seeing Gerrard play wide right with Keane behind Torres, but I still think Gerrard is much more effective in a free role behind Torres.

I used to be of the same opinion on Arbeloa, but I think he's been very good this season of what I've seen of him. He's been solid enough and offers an outlet going forward.

Riera started very well for Liverpool but has faded in the last few games, but he deserves a bit more time before any judgement is made, just like Keane.

Benitez played Gerrard out right wing about a season or 2 ago for a while, it was a disaster decision, Gerrard isn't born to be a winger, no doubt he's a quality attacking midfelder though.

By the looks of things its bye,bye keane by the end of the season, payed far too much for him. Infact they payed more for Keane than they could have for Gareth Barry. Its weird though, they say they couldn't come up with 18 million for a player they were tracking all summer yet, they sign a player for 19-20 million who they were after for about 2 or 3 weeks!.

[Kingdom]

Benitez played Gerrard out right wing about a season or 2 ago for a while, it was a disaster decision, Gerrard isn't born to be a winger, no doubt he's a quality attacking midfelder though.

By the looks of things its bye,bye keane by the end of the season, payed far too much for him. Infact they payed more for Keane than they could have for Gareth Barry. Its weird though, they say they couldn't come up with 18 million for a player they were tracking all summer yet, they sign a player for 19-20 million who they were after for about 2 or 3 weeks!.

I think its understood that Keane was agreed to be signed around May (definitely before the season ended anyway) despite the protestations from Levy at Spurs.

I don't rate Gerrard at all. If he wasn't scouse he wouldn't be half as revered as he is by the kop. I agree with the point made earlier that Benetiz would have been far happier for him to have signed for Chelsea back in the day.

As for Liverpool's best team, currently, you couldn't leave Kuyt out of it, he's been excellent for Liverpool this season. Alonso has been player of the year, but Dirk has followed up a good Euro08 with a fine start.
Personally I'd go with this myself
Reina
Arbeloa
Fabio Aurelio
Skrtel
Carragher
Kuyt
Alonso
Mascherano
Reira/Babel
Gerrard
Torres.

[shakermaker1982]

Who could it possibly be ?

if your referring to Ronaldo and think he's a 'total luxury player' then you need to watch Man Utd a little more closely. Everything that is good about United from an attacking sense stems from Ronaldo. He's won them two league titles and putting Gerrard in the same category is a bit of a joke.

[Angus]

if your referring to Ronaldo and think he's a 'total luxury player' then you need to watch Man Utd a little more closely. Everything that is good about United from an attacking sense stems from Ronaldo. He's won them two league titles and putting Gerrard in the same category is a bit of a joke.

I may have said it badly - where I was going is that both SG and CR can be match winners, but also have the tendency, or even the licence, to go missing for periods of games. I can see why CR can do it, because there is no pretense that he dominates games - he is a top class finisher - on the flip side SG is supposed to be a centre midfielder who dominates the tempo etc

I have only seen Ronaldo once in the flesh, at Upton Park 2 seasons ago (WH won 1-0 Curbs first game) and while CR was pretty good, it looked to me like Rooney and Carrick (yes, that bloke) were the most creative and the most dangerous - clearly that is only one game and it is difficult to assess anything on the TV in the other games (having said that Steve McManaman spent the entire of Monday night turned away from the pitch)

CR was a goal machine last year but what I mena by "luxury" is that he does not have to perform for 90 minutes - it is not a bad thing - it is just a thing

[brianw82]

Stan Collymore (Good pundit despite his eh.............history!)

Sorry for going OT but Collywobbles is BY FAR the most annoying co-commentator ever. He just never shuts up!

[sadloserkid]

who is this hairdresser you refer to?

Can only be Vidic surely...

And Gerrard is an impact player at best, there's been a lot of good points made about him in this thread. But, to those who write the stories, he plays for England so...

[Morbo]

Can't stand Gerrard tbh, he is more annoying than CR in some ways in that not only is he a cheat but he is a hypocrite. Unfortunately I have to agree Pools best XI is probably Gerard in the hole with Alonso and Mascherano behind him although against weaker teams I think they are better off dropping a holding midfielder and playing Keane, best thing for Ireland would be for Gerard to break a leg or something, failing that a return to Spurs is probably the best option for Keane.