Liverpool's must-win Basel clash tailor made for Steven Gerrard says teammate Kolo Toure

The former Arsenal man thinks the Reds' crunch Champions League decider is the perfect stage for their rested skipper

1539 Shares
Share
Tweet
+1
Email

Steven Gerrard of Liverpool celebrates after scoring his team's second goal — Captain marvel: Gerrard will be hoping to help the Reds through to the Champions League last 16

Steven Gerrard: “a man of great days”.
It would be a fitting epitaph to a remarkable career, but equally, when delivered by one of his team-mates on the eve of a week that will define Liverpool’s season, it explains why the noise surrounding the Liverpool skipper will never subside.
Kolo Toure has known some great days himself in his time. He understands what it takes to deliver at the highest level. He knows those who do that consistently are players hailed as World Class.
After a desperate, dispiriting contest against Sunderland, the impact Gerrard had when he emerged from the bench for the final quarter showed there will always be questions whenever he is rested.
Toure though, has a different perspective. The impact his captain and leader has, he explained, stretches well beyond the question of which games he should play. Look at Liverpool’s programme over the next four fixtures.
In the space of 12 days, they will decide their Champions’ League future, have their Premier League fate defined against Manchester United and Arsenal, and also visit Bournemouth in the Capital One Cup quarter final.
Will Gerrard play some in those games? Undoubtedly. Would you want him starting all four? Unquestionably. Can he start all four? Probably, even if his manager is unsure whether he should play three games in a week.
In pictures: Liverpool vs Sunderland

Toure though, cuts to the heart of the matter. “The game against Basel is made for Steven Gerrard, of course – he is a man of great days!
"He makes a difference, if I can say he makes the magic when nobody can make it, that’s why he is one of the best players in the world,” the former Arsenal defender explained.
“His age is nothing, for me it doesn’t matter. People just keep talking, but if you have a player like that in your dressing room he is very important. With his experience, he makes a difference. Today he came on, he made a difference.
“He was there, he was making some amazing passes and you could see the energy he brings to the team. Players like that, they don’t need to play 90 minutes to make a difference, he only needs 20 minutes, 30 minutes to make the difference.
“For me, I am really happy to have him as a captain first, and as a mate, because he is a great, great player.”
It is a fair point. Liverpool were terrible without him, with Sunderland actually dominating possession, especially in the first half, and creating what few chances arrived in a midfield quagmire of a contest.
When he came on though, the Reds were transformed, and in particular, Raheem Sterling, who combines remarkably with his captain.
The pair are Liverpool’s only real source of a goal at the moment, and if they are to win the next four games, will have to combine in those matches.

Great: Toure says Gerrard is still one of the best players in the world

Which makes the decision to rest Gerrard against Sunderland the right one, even if the victory Gerrard’s presence at the end could so easily have delivered, didn’t ultimately arrive.
Listen to visiting boss Gus Poyet. He knows how important the Reds skipper is.
“It would be very easy for Brendan to play Gerrard 90 minutes every game but then lose him for a month with an injury.
"It is tough. Of course, when he came on, it wasn’t just the players who were affected. The crowd, the atmosphere – everything changed,” he said.
“That is when we started suffering as Liverpool were coming at us from everywhere. Listen, he is special. He is a player who with his presence on the pitch makes the whole place better. So it was good news when Brendan never played him. I was quite pleased!
“You are going to be lucky. I am going to tell you a little secret. We checked Gerrard playing in front of the back four and we checked him playing off the front man.
"We watched it on the video, the difference between Liverpool when they play with him at the back or at the front. Then he wasn’t playing and some of our players were saying “thanks for that gaffer! Well done on the videos – all that work for nothing!”
“So we were getting ready for it but it was good, you know? He is special so when you show your team the sheet and you see he isn’t playing? Phew. It is good news. The (Sunderland) players wouldn’t have been very impressed with their manager.”

The troubling reality for Liverpool was they created so few chances – even when their captain emerged to provide a stunning cameo of the midfielder’s passing art.
With the leader on the pitch, there was a different mentality, but still there was little incision through the heart of what was a resolute, experienced Sunderland defence.
Only one fine run from the dizzying Sterling which produced a shooting chance for Coutinho (spurned naturally, on a day when nothing went right for the Brazilian), and an earlier header from a good position by Rickie Lambert that flew wide even troubled Pantilimon in the visiting goal.
The stats show this was an even game, the heart tells the Black Cats it was one they could so easily have won, given they had probably the best chances of a terse, limited contest, in which the only available options seemed launching long balls at hefty forwards.
Wes Brown probably should have converted a fine heading chance just before the break, and soon afterwards the constant threat of the impressive Conor Wickham produced space for a shot he flashed wide, when really he should have scored.
At the end, the under fire Simon Mignolet pulled off the only memorable save of the afternoon. You can make the case Gerrard should have played from the start to change the tone of the game, but really, with their four defining games, coming up, he must play every one, and something has to give.

Huffing Post International

Pages

Monday, 8 December 2014