As Steven Gerrard's time at Liverpool comes to an end, Peter Smith takes a look at eight highs and eight lows of the legendary midfielder's Anfield career.
On Saturday, Steven Gerrard will play his final game at Anfield for boyhood club Liverpool before departing for MLS football next season. Peter Smith takes us through eight highs and eight lows of the legendary midfielder's Reds career.
The HIGHS
Champions League final (2005)
Gerrard's finest hour as he inspired a brilliant Liverpool comeback in the most dramatic European Cup final in history. Trailing AC Milan 3-0 at half-time, Rafa Benitez's men looked down and out. But Gerrard had other ideas, heading one back before creating space for Vladimir Smicer to add a second and winning the penalty for Xabi Alonso to equalise. Liverpool eventually won on penalties and Gerrard declared: "Lifting the trophy has to be the best feeling ever."
FA Cup final (2006)
A defining moment of Gerrard's career came when he smashed home a 35-yard, 90th-minute equaliser against West Ham in the 2006 FA Cup final. The Liverpool captain had earlier set up Djibril Cisse and scored himself to pull Liverpool back from 2-0 down, but produced something special to cancel out West Ham's third. Gerrard then made no mistake from the spot as Liverpool won what has become known as 'The Gerrard Final' on penalties.
Stunner against Olympiakos (2004)
Liverpool's famous Champions League win in 2005 would never have happened had it not been for another moment of Gerrard magic. With time running out, Liverpool needed a third goal against Olympiakos to progress from the group stages. The skipper stepped up and rifled a stunning strike from distance into the net to spark wild celebrations in the Kop.
Double over United (2001)
Gerrard has scored nine goals against Manchester United - but his finest effort was surely the long-range piledriver which set Liverpool on course to complete their first double over their rivals in 22 years. Fabien Barthez couldn't get close to the ball as Gerrard lashed it into the top corner, before celebrating in front of the Anfield faithful.
Hat-trick against Everton (2012)
Ahead of kick-off, David Moyes was celebrating 10 years in charge at Everton; by the final whistle it was Gerrard who was smiling, after scoring a superb hat-trick to defeat Liverpool's local rivals. It was the first time a player had scored three in a Merseyside derby at Anfield since 1935 and took Gerrard past Robbie Fowler's goal-scoring record in the fixture. A cool lob over Tim Howard was followed by clinical finishes from Luis Suarez assists, with Gerrard racking up his seventh goal against Everton in the final minute.
Double in 4-0 win over Real Madrid (2009)
Liverpool booked their place in the Champions League quarter-finals with a stunning 4-0 win over Real Madrid at Anfield in 2009, with Gerrard scoring twice. Former Atletico Madrid star Fernando Torres and Andrea Dossena were also on the scoresheet as Liverpool destroyed Los Blancos 5-0 on aggregate.
League Cup win over United (2003)
Liverpool may have finished the 2002/03 season 19 points behind Premier League winners Manchester United but their fans could treasure a League Cup final win, thanks to another long-range Gerrard stunner. The skipper's drive took a deflection off David Beckham, leaving Barthez with no chance, before Michael Owen settled the contest four minutes from time.
Liverpool win the treble (2001)
"The treble is actually a better achievement than Istanbul," Jamie Carragher has said. "Istanbul as a one-off will never be beaten by anyone but someone wins the Champions League every year. To win three cup competitions in one season, that's not something that happens very often, not just at Liverpool but anywhere." In 2001 Liverpool lifted the League Cup by beating Birmingham on penalties, the FA Cup with a 2-1 win over Arsenal and completed the treble in the UEFA Cup, where Gerrard scored as Liverpool eventually defeated Alaves 5-4 after extra-time in the final.
The LOWS
The slip against Chelsea (2014)
With three games to go, Liverpool were within touching distance of a first Premier League title. However, Gerrard's slip just before half-time allowed Demba Ba to put Chelsea ahead at Anfield and the Blues went on to win 2-0. The result meant the title race was no longer in table-topping Liverpool's hands and Manchester City - who were now three points adrift with a better goal difference, having played a game less - eventually came through to win the title. "It was cruel," said Gerrard.
Seeing red against United (2015)
Gerrard was a half-time substitute in his final clash with Manchester United - but lasted just 38 seconds after coming on at the break. The pumped-up Liverpool captain showed his passion with a thunderous - but clean - tackle on Juan Mata but just moments later stamped on Ander Herrera. Liverpool were already trailing 1-0 and went on to lose the match 2-1 and fall five points behind their top-four rivals.
Dropped at the Bernabeu (2014)
After returning to the Champions League for the first time in five seasons, Liverpool's trip to Real Madrid was one of the stand-out ties of the group stage. However, boss Brendan Rodgers dropped seven of his starting XI from the Premier League defeat to Newcastle - including Gerrard. The move drew strong criticism - and denied Gerrard the opportunity to take on the Champions League holders on their own patch. A little over a month later Gerrard confirmed he would be leaving for LA Galaxy - because he was no longer a guaranteed starter for the Reds.
The first red card (1999)
Gerrard has been sent off eight times for club and country, with his first coming as a 19-year-old against Everton. The teenager stepped off the bench midway through the second half but a reckless 90th-minute challenge on Kevin Campbell in a 1-0 defeat at Anfield saw him shown the first red card of his career.
League Cup final own goal (2005)
"It was a nightmare," Gerrard said of his League Cup final own goal against Chelsea in 2005. With Liverpool leading with ten minutes to play, Gerrard inadvertently diverted Paulo Ferreira's free-kick into the Reds' net and Jose Mourinho's men went on to win 3-2. "It was bad, one of the worst days I have had, especially against Chelsea," he said. "I was linked with them for a while before that cup final. Then to go and score an own-goal - there were Liverpool fans who probably thought I meant it at the time because I was linked with them."
Red card in Champions League 'play-off' (2003)
With Champions League qualification on the line, Liverpool went into their clash with Chelsea needing to win. An early Sami Hyypia goal seemed to put them on course for victory in the '£20m match' but Marcel Desailly and Jesper Gronkjaer hit back to secure victory for Chelsea. Gerrard's frustration was evident when he picked up a second yellow for a wild tackle on Graeme Le Saux in the final minute.
Heaviest defeat to United in 50 years (2003)
Gerrard may have been one of Liverpool's heroes in their League Cup win over Manchester United in 2003 but just a month later he was unable to prevent his club from suffering their heaviest defeat for 50 years to their arch rivals. Hyypia was sent off within four minutes and United went on to win 4-0.
Horror tackle on Naysmith earns retrospective ban (2002)
Gerrard's ugly two-footed tackle on Everton's Gary Naysmith may have been missed by referee Graham Poll during the 0-0 draw in the Merseyside derby but the FA disciplinary panel dished out a three-game ban for violent conduct. Gerrard apologised immediately after the match, insisting he didn't intend to hurt Naysmith, and denied the charge at the hearing. Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier said: "It was practically an accident."
Peter Smith
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