The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Steven Gerrard

  • Celtic dominance: Rangers turn to Steven Gerrard

     

    Liverpool’s’ Captain fantastic’, Steven Gerrard, has been appointed Rangers’ manager ,on a four- year contract.

    The ex-England midfielder will take over for next season after he was confirmed on Friday as the man tasked with breaking Celtic’s domination in Scotland.

    Though he has no senior managerial experience, the Ibrox outfit have turned to Gerrard in the hope his high profile and extensive contacts can help the club compete against their Glasgow neighbours.

    Rangers look set to finish third for a second successive season having struggled to challenge rivals Celtic since returning to the top flight in 2016, including losing four of the five Old Firm derbies this term.

    The last of those was a humiliating 5-0 hammering that led to Graeme Murty’s dismissal and paved the way for Gerrard’s appointment, which sees the 37-year-old – who previously turned down an opportunity at MK Dons – leave his role as a coach at Liverpool’s academy.

    Gerrard said: “I am honoured to become the next manager of Rangers. I have enormous respect for this football club, and its history and tradition.

    “I can’t wait to start this new journey at Rangers as we look to build on the many successes that this club has achieved.”

    Chairman Dave King added: “We are delighted to confirm today that Steven Gerrard will become the next manager of Rangers.

    “From the very beginning, talks have been extremely positive and we believe that Steven is the right man to drive Rangers forward.

    “He was extremely impressive throughout our negotiations and we are convinced that he has the necessary knowledge and temperament to lead the Club to the success we all desire.

    “This is a special day for our Club, our fans and for Steven.”

  • El Hadji Diouf:’Mr Senegal ‘bigger than ‘Mr Liverpool

    El Hadji Diouf:’Mr Senegal ‘bigger than ‘Mr Liverpool

     

    El Hadji Diouf’s long-running war of words with former Liverpool captain and team mate Steven Gerrard has been reopened.

    There has never been much love lost between the pair, who played together for two years at Anfield.

    And the dispute between the two has now been running for almost a decade, 12 years after Diouf ended his miserable spell on Merseyside.

    But, speaking to the BBC, the retired 36-year-old, declared he had ‘no problem’ with Liverpool’s Under 18s manager Gerrard, before taking an inevitable swipe.

    ‘I have no problem with him,’ Diouf said. ‘He [Gerrard] is a strong character and I am a strong character.

    ‘Stevie G was a very good player. People like him in Liverpool but he never did anything for his country.

    ‘I am Mr El Hadji Diouf, Mr Senegal but he is Mr Liverpool and Senegal is bigger than Liverpool and he has to know that.’

    The feud between the two began back in 2007, when Gerrard wrote about Diouf in his autobiography.

    ‘I wasn’t Diouf’s No 1 fan,’ the 37-year-old wrote in his book.

    ‘Being around Melwood and Anfield I knew which players were hungry, which players had Liverpool at heart. Diouf was just interested in himself.

    ‘His attitude was all wrong. I felt he wasn’t really a***d about putting his body on the line to get Liverpool back at the top.’

    Diouf responded five years later, calling Gerrard ‘jealous’.

    ‘Gerrard was jealous of me back then as I had the world at my feet. There’s no one more selfish… he doesn’t care about anyone else.

    ‘Gerrard would rather Liverpool lost and he scored. The old Liverpool guys can’t stand him. I won’t even start with [Jamie] Carragher.’

    In 2015 he made the outrageous claim that Gerrard ‘has never liked black people’, which the former Reds captain immediately rebuked.

  • Liverpool legend Gerrard quits soccer

    Liverpool legend Gerrard quits soccer

    Former Liverpool and England captain, Steven Gerrard, has retired, ending a 19-year playing career.

    Gerrard, 36, played 710 times for the Reds, winning eight major trophies, but joined MLS side LA Galaxy in 2015.

    He is England’s fourth most-capped player with 114 appearances and captained the “Three Lions” at three of the six major tournaments the side featured, the BBC reports.

    “I feel lucky to have experienced so many wonderful highlights over the course of my career,” Gerrard said.

    “I have had an incredible career and am thankful for each and every moment of my time at Liverpool, England and LA Galaxy.

    “I fulfilled my childhood dream by pulling on the famous red shirt of Liverpool.”

    Gerrard had been linked to a job in management with MK Dons after announcing he would leave LA Galaxy, but said on Wednesday the opportunity came “too soon” for him.

    On Thursday, the midfielder said he will take time to consider his options before making an announcement on the next stage of his career “very soon,” adding: “I am excited about the future and feel I still have a lot to offer the game, in whatever capacity that may be.”

     

  • Gerrard to play in U.S

    Gerrard to play in U.S

    Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard will join a Major League Soccer team in the United States when he leaves Anfield at the end of the season, the former England captain told the English club’s TV channel on Saturday.

    Gerrard announced on Friday that he was leaving the Premier League club he has played for throughout his career and moving to a foreign team.

    The 34-year-old has made 695 appearances and scored 180 goals for Liverpool after joining the club as an eight-year-old schoolboy, supersport.com reports.

    His former England teammate, Frank Lampard, left Chelsea last year to join New York City FC but he was loaned back to their Premier League rivals Manchester City and this week confirmed he would stay at the Etihad Stadium until the end of the season.

    Gerrard’s greatest moment in a Liverpool shirt was when he helped to inspire the Anfield giants dramatic comeback win over AC Milan in the Champions League final in 2005.

    However, he suffered disappointment last May when Liverpool missed out on the Premier League title.

     

  • Steven Gerrard confirms Liverpool exit

    Steven Gerrard confirms Liverpool exit

    Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard on Friday ended his long term relationship with the five-time European champions.

    The former England star described his decision to leave the club at the end of the season “the toughest” of his life.

    The 34-year-old, out of contract this summer, joined the Reds aged nine and has scored 180 goals in 695 games, the BBC reports.

    “This has been the toughest decision of my life, one both me and my family have agonised over for a good deal of time,” the BBC quoted Gerrard as saying on Friday.

    He added he would continue to play but not for a potential rival as he could “never contemplate” facing Liverpool.

    Gerrard is being linked with a move to Major League Soccer in the United States once the English season ends.

    He stressed: “I won’t be playing for a competing club and will not therefore be lining up against Liverpool.

    “My decision is completely based on my wish to experience something different in my career and life and I also want to make sure that I have no regrets when my playing career is eventually over.

    “From now until the last kick of the last game of the season, I will be as fully committed to the team as I ever have been and giving everything I have to help Liverpool win games.”

    Gerrard, born in the Merseyside village of Whiston, joined Liverpool’s academy when he was nine years old, making his first-team debut as a substitute against Blackburn Rovers in November 1998.

    He led the club to the Champions League title in 2005, scoring his side’s first goal as the Anfield giants came from three down to draw 3-3 against AC Milan and then win on penalties.

    He has also won the UEFA Cup, two FA Cups, three League Cups, one Community Shield and two UEFA Super Cups, and earned 114 England caps before retiring after the World Cup.

    Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers said: “It is almost an impossible task to find the words to appropriately sum up Steven Gerrard and his importance to Liverpool.”
    “This is an era where the word ‘legend’ is vastly overused, but in his case it actually doesn’t do him justice.”

  • Gerrard dismisses talk of Rodgers rift

    Gerrard dismisses talk of Rodgers rift

    Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has labelled suggestions of a rift between him and manager Brendan Rodgers as “nonsense”.

    Gerrard was left out of Liverpool’s starting XI for the first time in the Premier League this season for Saturday’s 1-0 victory over Stoke City.

    The 34-year-old’s recent performances had attracted criticism from certain quarters, with Liverpool having gone five games without a win in all competitions before the hard-fought success against Stoke.

    Saturday’s fixture marked the 16th anniversary of Gerrard’s first-team debut for Liverpool, and various reports had suggested that he was unhappy with Rodgers for omitting him.

    However, the former England skipper took to social media on Sunday to rubbish such speculation.

    Posting on his official Instagram account, with an accompanying photo of himself and Rodgers, Gerrard wrote: “Just to set the record straight talk of a fall out between us 2 is NONSENSE…have a nice Sunday #together #solid #ynwa.”

    Gerrard’s future at Anfield remains uncertain, however, with Rodgers telling his post-Stoke media conference that there has been no movement on negotiations over a contract extension for his skipper – whose current deal expires at the end of this season.

    “There’s no update I am aware of – I think the club is talking with Steven’s representatives,” said the Northern Irishman.

  • Gerrard quits England

    Gerrard quits England

    Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard has retired from international duty, Goal reports.

    Gerrard, who turned 34 in May this year, captained England during a disappointing 2014 World Cup in which the Three Lions crashed out of the tournament at the group stage.

    The Anfield veteran, who made his England debut against Ukraine in May 2000, was capped 114 times and scored 21 goals.

    “This has been a very difficult decision, one of the toughest I’ve had to make in my career,” Goal quoted Gerrard as saying on the FA’s official website.

    “I have agonised over this since coming back from Brazil and have spoken to family, friends and people close to me in the game before coming to this point.

    “Most importantly, Brendan [Rodgers, Liverpool manager] has been fantastic and obviously I have to look after my body as much as possible to ensure I can give everything when I take to the field.

    “To ensure I can keep playing to a high level and giving everything to Liverpool Football Club I believe this is the right decision, and having Champions League football back at Anfield is another big factor in my decision.”