Oh the good ol’ days; Istanbul ’05, West Ham ’06, from Steven Gerrard to Jamie Carragher, the bedrock of Liverpool, Kings of Anfield. You’d think that for all those events the boys have been through, there would be pretty much nothing that pisses the other one off. A bit like a really decent housemate, who can be a bit of an arse – but so can you – but it doesn’t really matter; no dramas.
That’s why it comes as a surprise that Jamie has called out Stevie G so publicly on Sky Sports. And, in turn, Liverpool’s newest captain, Jordan Henderson following that Bournemouth defeat..
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“Look at what happens at the kick-off [from 3-2]… The referee blows his whistle – so just relax. You don’t have to take it then, you can slow it down. Pass it back to the centre-back and knock it long, that’s what they should have done.
“Some of the players aren’t back in position but Divock Origi passes it quickly and allows Bournemouth to press. It goes straight to Jordan Henderson, he passes to James Milner who is getting pressed and panic sets in.
“He passes it straight out and the crowd are straight up again. Thirty seconds later, Lovren runs out of defence, doesn’t make the defence and fouls.
“Panic has set in and instead of Jordan Henderson keeping his position, like he would do at 0-0, he rushes into the back four. Steven Gerrard used to sometimes do it and I hated it when he did it.”
Wow. Did not expect Carragher to criticise Stevie G so publicly, and say how he hated something his former mate used to do. It must be seriously frustrating, though, the midfielder has no business there, and it’s a catalogue of errors from rushing the kick-off, to panicking, and to then losing your positional discipline.
So, perhaps before people start jumping down the ‘keeper’s throat, they should look elsewhere in the face of defeat. Liverpool need to realise if they’re going to win a title they need to be more savvy in closing games out, and not just relying on outscoring teams. Still, saying that, Loris Karius, did have an absolute shocker…
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The defeat still showed how Liverpool are missing that clinical edge to close games out. You can’t always rely on outscoring the opponents; they got away with it at Selhurst Park in October, but it was a different story against the Cherries.
Henderson needs to move away from these Gerrard habits that Carragher is referring too. You can’t always blame the ‘keeper or defenders, sometimes, you just need to do the basics, and play your own game in moments of panic. Easier said than done, sure, but it has to be enforced by the captain if you’re going to win the league. And, maybe that’s why Liverpool never won one under Stevie G…
Have a look at Liverpool’s greatest ever teenage goalscorers…
Michael Owen
Michael Owen – The King of Cool himself, Michael ‘White Noise’ Owen was the previous record holder before Woodburn’s goal against Leeds. Owen’s first came on his debut against Wimbledon in 1997 and he went on to such career highlights as his World Cup wonder goal against Argentina, playing for Real Madrid in the Galácticos era and bullying that teenage goalkeeper on Michael Owen’s Soccer Skills, eliciting the timeless "Well done, he's 13" from Neville Southall in the process. Image Source: Twitter
Raheem Sterling
The most recent of Liverpool’s teenage scorers before the Leeds game, Sterling’s name had been heard in dimly lit bars all over Merseyside following his incredible form for the youth team, and he confirmed the hype with a well-taken far post finish to give Liverpool a 1-0 victory over Reading in 2012. Image Source: Twitter
Robbie Fowler
"I'm sat in the chair and she's gone round me and she's started placing her hands all over my head, all over my arms, all over my shoulders and she said I had two demons inside me, which was not bad because Gazza had five – I was happy with that.” This is a quote from Robbie Fowler about going to see infamous mystic, Eileen Drewery. Like Gazza, Fowler was never far away from controversy during his career, but had immense talent to match. Image Source: Twitter
Jamie Carragher
Perhaps an unexpected addition to the list, Carragher went on to score only three goals in 508 games for the club. He may have had an illustrious career with the Reds, but to find him in a goalscoring list wedged between such legendary names as Robbie Fowler and Florent Sinama-Pongolle is surprising. Image Source: Twitter
Florent Sinama-Pongolle
Here he is: A man who brings a wry, nostalgic smile to Premier League fans and takes them back to halcyon days before Anthony Le Tallec became the new Zinedine Zidane. Sinama-Pongolle scored just four days after his 19th birthday to help Liverpool beat, funnily enough, Leeds. He then took the typical route up the footballing ladder, enjoying spells at Atlético Madrid and Sporting CP before securing a dream move to Dundee United and later Chainat Hornbill FC. Image Source: Twitter
Jamie Redknapp
It’s hard not to live in the shade of your father when he is both famous and as shady as ‘Arry, but Jamie Redknapp managed to make a name for himself. He was regarded as Liverpool’s – and England’s – next big thing when he got a winner against Chelsea in September 1992. Injury curtailed his impact on English football, but did he win an FA Cup, make millions, marry Louise and then secure a cushty punditry role at Sky; it’s not all bad, is it? Image Source: This is Anfield
Steven Gerrard
Probably the biggest hero the Kop has ever had, which takes some doing when you think of all the greats to have played on Merseyside. His recent retirement means all the superlatives have already been recently used, but this is probably the player Woodburn grew up hoping to emulate. Perhaps Gerrard will even be tutoring the youngster if, as rumoured, he returns to the club in a coaching capacity. Image Source: Twitter
David Ngog
Through a quirk of David N'Gog being the oldest teenager to have scored his first goal for Liverpool, we’ve managed to save you the best until last. They say sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, so I’ll stop there rather than tell some long, imagined success story about Ngog’s career. Things didn’t really take off. Image Source: The Anfield Wrap
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