Liverpool FC Forum

by **ethanr** » Sat Oct 01, 2011 4:42 pm

Another good performance by our captain.

Let me throw this out there and see what you guys think. Anybody think that maybe Gerrard should be called up for international duty? If Capello calls him up and gives him half an hour or 20 minutes or something, that's just 20 minutes closer to full fitness he is. I hope he starts against mancheater united in 2 weeks, but I'm not sure he's 100% ready. He gets another 20 minutes in and he may very well be ready to start.

However, I would be p!ssed if capello just benched him the whole game, which wouldn't be a surprise at all.

by **aCe'** » Sat Oct 01, 2011 5:59 pm

Decent performance but I think he left Lucas a little too exposed at times by drifting from his position to wider and more advanced roles. Everton didnt make us pay for it though so it wasnt an issue but if we plan on having Gerrard replace Adam regularly as part of a midfield duo then thats the sort of thing we should be looking to work on with Gerrard in training.

Im not sure that Capello will even consider Gerrard especially after that interview that Gerrard gave where he made it very clear he didnt want to be called up. England have other options and are doing well in the group so I doubt a Gerrard callup is needed at this stage.

by **ethanr** » Sat Oct 01, 2011 6:58 pm

aCe' wrote:Decent performance but I think he left Lucas a little too exposed at times by drifting from his position to wider and more advanced roles. Everton didnt make us pay for it though so it wasnt an issue but if we plan on having Gerrard replace Adam regularly as part of a midfield duo then thats the sort of thing we should be looking to work on with Gerrard in training.

Im not sure that Capello will even consider Gerrard especially after that interview that Gerrard gave where he made it very clear he didnt want to be called up. England have other options and are doing well in the group so I doubt a Gerrard callup is needed at this stage.

Agree.

True about Lucas as well. Gerrard's defending was really bad. During the world cup I thought he defended better than anybody... Had a great game against the US. Today tho he just doesn't seem as aware when it comes to tackling. Dove in a bit more and didn't seem to have his timing down. Offensively he looked like Stevie G.

Can only see him playing in a much more attacking role. Maybe help him ease back into it so he's not going up and down the whole game, but if he's focused on attack a lot more I think we can get a lot out of him.

by **jimmy brighton** » Sun Oct 02, 2011 9:31 pm

Capello has left him out of the England squad which has to be good news

by **7_Kewell** » Mon Oct 03, 2011 1:12 am

was impressed with his movement against Neverton...looked quick and alert. OK, he wasn't interested in tracking back, but he has been out a LONG TIME...so i'll let him off. Just this once

by **stmichael** » Thu Oct 06, 2011 12:26 pm

this is maybe the one time in recent living memory that i've been glad there's an international break. it gives gerrard an extra weeks recovery so we can unleash him from the start against the scum.

by **Waldo** » Fri Oct 07, 2011 1:03 pm

stmichael wrote:this is maybe the one time in recent living memory that i've been glad there's an international break. it gives gerrard an extra weeks recovery so we can unleash him from the start against the scum.

Agreed. Expect him to start the next league game and be in an advanced role playing off Suarez

by **SouthCoastShankly** » Sun Oct 09, 2011 10:11 pm

Just watch a goal compilation of Gerrard on LFC.TV. God we've missed him!

Actually I think Kenny needs massive respect and kudos for managing a motivating a side that has essentially been absent of the world class goals and assists that Gerrard brought on a weekly basis.

When Gerrard returns full time our performances will go up two gears! I have no doubt whatsoever that he still has it and will completely transform our season.

by **stmichael** » Wed Oct 19, 2011 1:12 pm

Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has admitted to being concerned whether he would return from injury during the "hardest six months of my career".

Gerrard, 31, scored against Manchester United on Saturday in his first start since groin surgery in March.

Asked if he feared for his career, Gerrard said: "I think it's only natural you have doubts and different things do cross your mind.

"There were times when I was as low as I've ever been as a footballer."

Gerrard said that before the operation he needed injections to get through games.

"Basically, I knew that wasn't right," he added.

"I was missing training sessions and coming in the day before a game trying to get that last session in or having injections to play the next day.

"You can only do that for a certain amount of time before your body gives in - and mine gave in.

"My groin packed in on me and, when it happened, I was down and I was low.

"I knew it was going to be a serious one, something I wasn't used to. I had to try to be positive but I will admit that I was down."

Gerrard had expected to return for the start of the season but caught an infection related to the groin injury in July. He was admitted to hospital for further treatment.

"When it [the injury] happened, it took time before I got back into a positive frame of mind," Gerrard said. "Without doubt the last six months have been the hardest of my career."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/15366011.stm

by **Scottbot** » Sat Oct 22, 2011 10:58 am

Such a massive lift to have him back in the mix. It's gonna be really interesting to see how Kenny uses him in the coming months and it's always a good one to discuss because fans have so many different opinions about where Stevie's best position is. Must admit i'm under-decided in many ways because we need to wait and see if he regains the pace and mobility he showed before his groin injury, if he does then i'm not sure he has to be pigeon-holed into the disciplined centre-mid role that everyone seems to have earmarked for him. Personally I like the idea of using him in mutiple positions depending on the opposition and where he can be most effective on a game to game basis. He could play in any one of the following positions.

Deep-lying Centre-Mid - This is the place i'd least like to see him to be honest although i've read several posters who believe it's his best spot going forward. For me it depends on his fitness and physical attributes. Last season he looked slower, he seemed to have lost that yard of pace, he wasn't as mobile, he looked stiffer in the hips and a bit lethargic. If he really has lost a step then perhaps he will come full circle and take up the defensive midfield position where he started. He can certainly do some damage with his passing from that spot BUT he doesn't have the movement of an Owen or a Torres upfront and although Suarez is clever with his runs he tends to play deeper and isn't the game stretcher that the other two were in their pomp. Also, please remember that Gerrard will never be the metronomic (get it give it) passer that we got with Alonso. He's not the sort of player who will necessarily keep things ticking over. Don't get me wrong he can do it but is that getting the best out of him? I think he'll finish his LFC career playing this role but for the moment I still think he has more to offer the team going forward.

- Attacking Mid (either at the tip of a 3 or playing in the hole) - Stevie's best year was without doubt the 2009 season when he and Torres were on fire as a partnership. Does he still have it in him to be as effective in that role? Obviously the role is a different one now because we don't have Torres' ability to stretch defences and work the entire back four the way he used to. That actually afforded Gerrard a lot of space to play in added to the fact they had a pretty telepathic relationship. Also, does Stevie have the monbility, pace and power to get about the pitch and make the most of such a free role? Looking at him on Saturday I thought he looked surprisingly sharp and perhaps our 31 year old Captain has it in him to still play like Roy of the Rovers for another season or two. Must admit I like him in this role. I'd still like him to defend, press and work hard when we lose the ball but I think he is at his best when he's got the freedom to go find the ball, to pop up on either flank (where it's difficult to mark him) and change the angles of our attack. I don't know that playing behind Suarez is necessarily the best mix but he could play behind Carroll with Suarez playing at inside left or right.

Right Mid - 2005-06 was (for me) Gerrard's 2nd best season (after 2009 and ahead of 2003-04) and it's always baffled me that we haven't seen him play this role for any real time since that excellent season. Obvioulsy the main reason is that Gerrard has always been quite vocal about his desire to play centrally but you can't deny he makes an excellent wide player. He puts in an excellent cross, he works his line well, he naturally cuts in and he is superb at getting full-backs on the back foot. How many times have we seen him run at left-backs, then he shapes to cross, sells them with the dummy and then drives into the box? If not at the start of games then i'd love to see Gerrard play this role at times in matches when we need something different from wide areas. Rafa had the right idea that season in that Gerrard only really had to worry about his positioning when we lost the ball, the rest of the time he had the freedom to pop up all over the place which again made him a nightmare to mark. I still think he has the pace and power to play this role. Also worth noting we had Crouch in the side that season and we've got another target man (albeit a different type of player) as focus this year.

Whichever way you look at it, this team is far better with Gerrard in it and it's really exciting to see what the lads can do once the Captain is fully fit and firing.

by **Reg** » Mon Oct 24, 2011 1:04 am

Scott, his impact yesterday was no greater than a journeymans'.

by **Scottbot** » Wed Oct 26, 2011 12:00 am

Reg wrote:Scott, his impact yesterday was no greater than a journeymans'.

I think that's a bit harsh mate. He played alright at the weekend. Is still feeling his way back to fitness so there's no complaints from me. For me his effectiveness is far less playing in a midfield two as he was at the weekend. Play him in a three and give him license to roam when we're in posession and we'll see the best of him. Ask him to play with Charlie in the centre and you will always see the more disciplined no thrills performance we saw on Saturday.

by **The Good Yank** » Sat Oct 29, 2011 2:24 am

My son scored two goals last night. Both times he scored he just ran back to the halfway line and had his arm raised with his hand open signaling "5". Shaughn wears the #8 shirt. Has his hair cut like Stevie. He wears his Liverpool "Gerrard" shirt under his team's shirt. Deffo have a hardcore LFC fan here. The funniest thing is that Tim Howard supplies the uniforms for the club. Reversible shirts. Red and Blue. The Merseyside Derby is alive in North Brunswick New Jersey.

by **maguskwt** » Sat Oct 29, 2011 2:32 am

The Good Yank wrote:My son scored two goals last night. Both times he scored he just ran back to the halfway line and had his arm raised with his hand open signaling "5". Shaughn wears the #8 shirt. Has his hair cut like Stevie. He wears his Liverpool "Gerrard" shirt under his team's shirt. Deffo have a hardcore LFC fan here. The funniest thing is that Tim Howard supplies the uniforms for the club. Reversible shirts. Red and Blue. The Merseyside Derby is alive in North Brunswick New Jersey.

Nice

by **The Good Yank** » Sat Oct 29, 2011 5:10 am

maguskwt wrote: Nice

Tonight Shaughn scored a hatrick and after the third he tried to do the knee slide. Umm didn't work out too well. A pristine pitch is needed for that and while our fields are really nice, they aren't quite that perfect. When the ref came over to tell the score keeper who got credit for the goal, he said, "the goal goes to "Little Stevie"

I facepalmed.

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