STEVIE G: AN UNOFFICIAL WEBSITE'S VIEW
James Carroll 20 November 2008

James Carroll, editor of shanklygates.co.uk, explains why Steven Gerrard deserves to be recognised as one of the greatest Liverpool players to ever wear the red shirt.
The first time I can recall seeing Steven Gerrard in action was around ten years ago in a Liverpool reserve fixture at St Helens' Knowsley Road. The youngster was deployed on the right-wing but struggled to impose himself on the game and, if memory serves me correct, he was substituted shortly after half-time. It's fair to say that the handful of Liverpool fans scattered around the old stadium that evening could not envisage the rookie midfielder going on to become one of the world's greatest footballers and write himself into Anfield history. Injuries meant that a first team debut followed shortly after for Gerrard and he began to establish himself as a key member of Gerard Houllier's squad with a series of eye-catching displays in various positions all over the park. Fans are always especially delighted to see a local lad break into the team and Gerrard quickly won the hearts of the Kop, especially after he celebrated making two goal-line clearances in a Merseyside derby as if he had scored the winning goal himself. "This lad is definitely one of us," we realised. His enthusiasm and passion was there for all to see and Gerrard was seemingly improving with every game. By the time he scored his first goal against Sheffield Wednesday is December 1999 he was already a household name. Gerrard's tough tackling, supreme passing ability and a knack of scoring spectacular goals became his trademarks and the midfielder played a crucial role in the cup treble success of 2001, scoring Liverpool's second in the UEFA Cup Final victory over Alaves. Houllier's final couple of season's at Anfield were not quite as glorious but, despite this, Gerrard continued to excel and almost single handedly pulled the Reds into the Champions League qualification places in 03/04 with a number of herculean performances and vital goals from the centre of midfield. His appointment as team captain by Houllier was warmly welcomed by fans, who had recognised his leadership qualities long before he was handed the armband. These attributes came to the fore in Rafael Benitez's first season in L4 as Liverpool boss. The Reds battled their way into the knock-out phase of the Champions League and no one will ever forget a certain night at Anfield in December 2004. Olympiakos arrived on Merseyside with Liverpool needing to win by two clear goals in order to progress into the next round of the tournament. However, the Greek side hadn't come to roll over and stunned Anfield by taking a first half lead leaving the Reds needing to score three times without reply in the second period. Backed by a vociferous Kop, the Reds forced their way into a lead before Gerrard unleashed a magnificent volley into the bottom corner to spark scenes of jubilation. It was a goal that made the rest of Europe sit up and take notice. For the younger generation, who had grown up fed on stories of Liverpool's European domination in the 70's and 80's, this was our St Etienne. Incredibly, each round seemed to better the last and, against all odds, Liverpool battled their way into the final to face the mighty AC Milan in Istanbul. Liverpool's league form had fallen away but their performances in the Champions League had given the fans hope and belief that the Reds could overcome Kaka, Crespo and co. That hope and belief had evaporated by half-time, however, and the sheer quality of the Italians was there for all to see as they raced into a three goal lead to shell shock Liverpool. A rendition of You'll Never Walk Alone during the break raised spirits on the terraces slightly, but this looked like a game too far for the Reds and fans were hoping for an improved second half performance if only to salvage some pride rather than dreaming of lifting 'Old Big Ears'. Gerrard joined Benitez in attempting to rally the troops during half-time. The skipper pulled an early goal back with a header but surely it was going to be just a consolation? It seemed as though Gerrard had other ideas as he gestured to the Reds fans suggested that he thought this game wasn't over just yet. The rest is history, as they say, made possible by the fighting spirit that had been instilled in the team by the likes of Benitez, Gerrard and Jamie Carragher. Gerrard had helped lead his side to victory in what is generally regarded as the best European Cup Final in history and one of the Reds' finest ever achievements. He claimed the man-of-the-match award and was later named UEFA's Club Footballer of the Year for his part in the heroics of Istanbul. Confidence was running high through the club and, in the following campaign, Gerrard enjoyed his finest season in front of goal, netting an incredible 23 times from midfield. Liverpool also marched into the FA Cup Final where it was expected that they'd see off West Ham and lift the trophy for the seventh time. However, us Liverpool fans know that this team of ours never seem to do things the easy way and the Hammer's took an early two-goal lead. The spirit of Istanbul was in need of resurrection and Gerrard duly delivered, allowing Djibril Cisse to pull a goal back with a pin-point pass before the captain got himself on the score sheet with a thumping volley to level the scoreline. West Ham, to their credit, weren't dead yet and regained the lead leaving Liverpool needing to dig deep in order to salvage something with time ebbing away once again. The fans looked to Gerrard but a long-season that had begun in early July had taken it's toll and the captain was crippled with cramp. As the game entered stoppage-time, it looked as though the trophy had eluded Liverpool but Gerrard is no average footballer and he somehow mustered the energy and strength to smash home an equaliser from fully 35-yards in the 91st minute. The Reds went on to lift the cup with a penalty shoot-out victory and Gerrard had etched his name in FA Cup folklore forever more. It was a goal that would not have been out of place in a Roy of the Rovers comic - the number of current players in world football who are capable of such a moment can be counted on one hand. Over the course of the last decade, Gerrard has established himself as an Anfield legend and a genuine world-class footballer. He can rightly be talked about in the same breath as the likes of Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush, Billy Liddell and the rest. The Premiership is currently the only major club honour that has so far eluded the 28-year-old but you can be certain that he'll be doing everything in his power to change that and, worryingly for the other teams, he seems to be improving and learning all the time under the guidance of Benitez. He has come a long way since that night at Knowsley Road.