Liverpool striker Andy Carroll feels fortunate to play alongside a player as influential as Steven Gerrard. The Reds captain has been the club’s driving force for the best part of a decade and is still the man they turn to when they are in need of a lift. It was no more evident than in the Merseyside derby a fortnight ago, when Gerrard scored a hat-trick as Liverpool beat near neighbours Everton 3-0.
“You see Stevie playing the way he did against Everton, scoring three and driving the team on,” said Carroll. “It was really inspiring. I used to watch him when I was younger and pretend to be him on the field with my mates. I’m very lucky to be able to share a dressing room with him now. It’s unbelievable.”
Unfortunately for Liverpool, the England midfielder alone has not been able to drag the team out of their current slump. The win over Everton was only one of two in the Premier League so far in 2012, and five defeats in six matches have put paid to their slim hopes of finishing in the top four.
February’s League Cup triumph, the club’s first trophy for six years, has ensured not all the gloss has been taken off a season which began with high hopes, and there could be further silverware to come as an FA Cup semi-final awaits next month.
‘‘I used to watch him when I was younger and pretend to be him on the field with my mates. I’m very lucky to be able to share a dressing room with him now. It’s unbelievable,’’ Andy Carroll on Steven Gerrard
Gerrard has won every major club honour except the Premier League title, and with his 32nd birthday approaching in May, time may be running out on that front. But he could still lift his second trophy of the season and if Liverpool were to win the two competitions in which they realistically had chances – competing for the championship was a pipe dream only entertained by the most optimistic of fans – then the campaign could be considered a qualified success.
Carroll still sees the determination burning bright in Gerrard, adding in LFC magazine: “He’s had an amazing career, but you still know he’s desperate to achieve more. It’s the hunger you see every day, the determination to win more games, win medals and trophies.”
Gerrard’s reputation extends much further than the confines of England – or even Europe for that matter. Liverpool’s Uruguay centre-back Sebastian Coates knew about the midfielder’s talents long before he joined the club last summer from Nacional in his homeland.
“His reputation is worldwide,” the 21-year-old centre-back told Liverpoolfc.tv. “When I was younger in Uruguay, I would see a lot of the Champions League games that Liverpool were involved in.
“He was always so influential, putting in some fantastic performances. He is the kind of player that everybody hopes to one day call a team-mate. It is an education to be on the same side as him.”
Educational it may be, but it seems a number of Gerrard’s team-mates are not learning the lessons. Since edging past Championship side Cardiff City in a penalty shoot-out to win the League Cup at Wembley, Liverpool appear to have gone backwards.
‘‘He is the kind of player that everybody hopes to one day call a team-mate. It is an education to be on the same side as him,‘‘ Sebastian Coates on Steven Gerrard
They have conceded eight goals in six league matches as a previously solid back four has looked increasingly wobbly, highlighted by the three goals they conceded to strugglers Queens Park Rangers in the final 13 minutes of their defeat at Loftus Road. Even second-bottom Wigan Athletic, the league’s lowest scorers, put two past them at Anfield at the weekend for only their fifth win of the season.
The absence of Daniel Agger with a cracked rib has had an unsettling effect with even regular centre-back partner Martin Skrtel, probably their best player this season, looking shaky. Most of manager Kenny Dalglish’s summer signings have come in for criticism with even Jose Enrique, probably the most consistent of all the new arrivals, losing his way in recent weeks. Midfielder Charlie Adam has lost his place to former youth team captain Jay Spearing, while Jordan Henderson and Stewart Downing, brought in at a combined cost of ?36m, continue to give supporters more cause for frustration than celebration.
Coates has escaped the criticism as his appearances have been sporadic, but he is keen to learn as much as he can as quickly as possible in order to be in a better position next season.
“During the [training] sessions, I watch all of my team-mates closely because you can learn from any position, not just your own,” he said. “It is a privilege to train and play with them.
“I feel more settled now and I am enjoying the football. I know I have to be patient to play more games, purely because the other defenders have been so consistent for a long time.”
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