CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL 2005-ISTANBUL.-GERRARDS NIGHT

IT WAS A NIGHT NOT TO BE FORGOTTEN FOR AGES ESPECIALLY FOR ALL THE LOYAL ALL TIME LIVERPOOL FANS..IT WAS AN OUTSTANDING NIGHT IN ISTANBUL WHERE THE ALMIGHTY REDS WON THEIR FIRST CHAMPIONS LEAGUE CUP UNDER SPANIARD GAFFER RAFAEL BENITEZ.WHAT ELSE WOULD A NEW MANAGER FOR A CLUB WOULD WANT THAN HAVING WON THE CUP OF THE CLUBS AROUND THE WORLD.IT WAS A GREAT HONOUR FOR RAFAEL BENITEZ TO LEAD ALL LIVERPOOL ALL THE WAY FROM THE GROUP STAGES RIGHT TO THE FINAL AND WINNING THE ALMIGHTY CUP.WELL,NOW I WOULD LIKE TO SNEAK THROUGH SOME OF THE MAGIC MOMENTS PROVIDED BY LIVERPOOL'S SKIPPER STEVEN GERRARD IN LEADING THEM TO THE FINAL IN ISTANBUL.WELL,THE LAST GAME OF THE GROUP STAGES FOR LIVERPOOL WAS OLMPIACOS..SO IT WAS A MUST WIN GAME FOR LIVERPOOL TO QUALIFY TO THE LAST 16 TOURNAMENT AND WHEREAS THEY HAVE SCORE AT LEAST THREE GOALS TO QUALIFY BECAUSE LYON AT THAT TIME WERE LEADING LIVERPOOL BY A GOAL DIFFERENCE,SO LIVERPOOL HAD TO GO FOR IT ONCE AND FOR ALL.WELL,WITH THE MOST INSPIRATIONAL TALISMAN STANDING THERE,I MEAN STEVEI G U CAN ALWAYS EXPECT SOMETHING MAGICAL TO HAPPEN...THE GAME STARTED AND LIVERPOOL WERE ALREADY LEADING TWO GOALS TO GOOD BUT LATER ON RIVALDO EQUALISED FOR OLYPIACOS AND EVERYTHING SEEM BLUNT AT ANFIELD AS LIVERPOOL WERE YET TO SCORE THE THIRD GOAL..TO ADD TO THE FRUSTRATION,TIME WAS ALREADY RUNNING OUT AS THE CLOCK ALREADY REACHED 85 MINUTES AND ONLY 5 MINUTES PLUS EXTRA TIME REMAINING..THE ATMOSPHERE AT ANFIELD WAS PUT TO SILENT AS EVERYTHING SEEM TO BE OVER FOR LIVERPOOL.LIVERPOOL'S STEVEN GERRARD WAS ALSO IN NO MAN'S LAND AS HE WAS SO FRUSTRATED....IT WAS ALREADY 89 MINUTES...THEN,A PASS FROM XABI ALONSO TO FIND HARRYY KEWELL AT THE FAR RIGHT HAND CORNER WAS SUPERBLY CONTROLLED BY KEWELL...GERRARD WAS TOTALLY UNMARKED AT THE CENTRE AND KEWELL PLAYED A STUNNING BALL TO FIND GERRARD AND GERRARD MADE NO MISTAKE AND FIRED HOME THE THIRD GOAL IN A BRINK OF AN EYE....IT WAS A STUNNING GOAL FROM THE SKIPPER AS IT WAS ONE OF THE MOST NEEDED GOAL FOR LIVERPOOL TO QUALIFY FOR THE LAST 16.ANDFIELD WENT WILD AS THE GOAL WENT IN AT THE LAST MINUTE OF THE GAME.WOW...HAHA...GERRARD FOREVER..NOW,LET US NOW TURN OUR ATTENTION TO THE FINAL IN ISTANBUL...LIVERPOOL HAD TO FACE AC MILAN WHO KNOCKED OUT BARCELONA BY AGGREGATE 1-0 AND LIVERPOOL KICKED CHELSEA OUT OF THE SEMI FINALS IN THE SECOND LEG AT ANDFIELD BY A CONTROVERSIAL GOAL SCORED BY LUIS GARCIA...WELL,THE CROWD THAT ATTENDED FOR THE FINAL IN ISTANBUL WAS 75,000..WOW..THAT'S REALLY ALOT PEOPLE..HAHA..TWO OF THE MOST POTENTIAL CLUBS IN THE WOLRD AND ALSO THE MOST WANTED CLUB WINNING THE CUP..HAHA..SO,THE GAME THAT EVERYONE WAS WANTING FOR STARTED AND ALL THE PLAYERS ALREADY WERE ON THEIR BOOT READY TO PLAY SOME FOOTBALL..HAHA...AC MILAN TOOK THE LEAD THROUGH HERNAN CRESPO AND 5 MINUTES LATER CRESPO SCORED HIS SECOND AND PAOLO MADINI PUTTING THE ICICNG IN THE CAKE AND ADDING SALT TO LIVERPOOL...LIVERPOOL'S HOPES OF WINNING THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE BLUNTED AWAY JUST LIKE THAT WITH FIRST THREE GOALS SCORED BY MILAN IN THE FIRST HALF...IT WAS LOOKING DISSPOINTED FOR ALL THE TRAVELLING FANS....SUDDENLY,IN THE SECOND HALF,LIVERPOOL'S HOPES WERE REVIVED AS THEIR SKIPPER GERRARD PULLED A GOAL BACK 5 MINUTES INTO SECOND HALF..THE CRORWDS CHEERED AND GAVE SOME CONFIDENCE FOR LIVERPOOL AND THE WHOLE GAME CHANGED AND LIVERPOOL HAD THE MORE POSSESION....10 MINUTED LATER VLADIMIR SMICER SCORED A BRACE TO LIFHT UP THE GAME WITH A STUNNING HALF VOLLEY AT THE RIGHT FLANK..AND RIGHT AT 60 MINUTES,AC MILAN CONCEDED A PENALTY KICK AS GATTUSO BROUGHT DOWN GERRARD IN THE PENALTY BOX AND ALL THE PLAYERS WERE HOLDING THEIR NERVE AND WAITING TO CELEBRATE AS THE SPOT KICK TO BE TAKEN..THE HONOUR WAS GIVEN TO XABI ALONSO AS HE PREPARES TO TAKE THE SPOT KICK...DIDA MADE A STUNNING SAVE BUT UNFORTUNATELY THE BALL BOUNCED BACK TO ALONSO AND ALONSO SCORED IN THE REBOUND...PLAYERS WENT CRAZY AND LIVERPOOL'S FANS WERE STARTING TO MAKE NOISES AND MILAN WERE PUT TO PIN DROP SILENCE.THE SCORE STOOD THE SAME AS THE Y WENT TO THROUGH EXTRA TIME AND FINALLY IT HAD TO BE PENALTIES TO DECIDE THE GAME ONCE AND FOR ALL AND TO BE PUT TO BED.LIVERPOOL WENT ON TO WIN THE CUP AND IT WAS A MOST MEMORABLE DAY EVER FOR ALL THE LIVERPOOL FANS.

STEVEN GERRARD'S DAYS IN LIVERPOOL

STEVEN GERRARD-YOUTH TEAM IN LIVERPOOL
WELL,STEVEN GERRARD...HMMMM....ALOT OF THINGS TO BE SAID ABOUT THIS GLORIOUS PLAYER...SUPER TALENTED IN ALL HIS PERFORMANCES IN LIVERPOOL.A PLAYER THAT CAN ALWAYS BE COUNTED ON IF IN NEED OF ANY URGENT IMPACT DURING ANY CONTROVERSIAL MOMENTS IN FOOTBALL GAMES.THE AVERAGE LIFETIME OF A PLAYER AT A GIVEN CLUB IS AROUND 4 YEARS,AFTER WHICH HE NEEDS TO MOVE ON,EITHER DUE TO ENTERING A STAGE OF SELF SUFFICIENCY AT THAT CLUB,LOSING THE FIRST SQUAD SIMPLY WANTING A NEW CHALLENGE OR GOING FOR A HIGHER SALARY.THERE ARE FEW EXPECTATIONS WHEN IT COMES TO STABILITY AND HAVING A CONSERVATIVE NATURE,THE ENGLISH EXCEL.THIS IS HOW IT WAS POSSIBLE FOR A PLAYER LIKE STEVEN GERRARD TO ALREADY HAVE SO MANY YEARS UNDER HIS BELT AT LIVERPOOL,SINCE HE STARTED PLAYING FOR THE YOUTH TEAMS OF THE REDS IN 1989,AT 9 YEARS OF AGE.THE CHILDHOOD YEARS WERE NOT THE PROMISING THOUGH,AS HE WOULD RARELY PLAY FOR THE LIVERPOOL YOUTH SQUAD,HAVING PROBLEMS WITH LATE GROWTH SPURTS UNTIL HE WAS 14.ALTHOUGH STILL CONSIDERED A VERY TALENTED PLAYER THAT COULD BECOME AN OPTION FOR THE LIVERPOOL FIRST SQUAD IN A FEW YEARS,STEVIE WAS ALLOWED TO TRIAL FOR VARIOUS OTHER CLUBS IN ENGLAND.AS HE NOTED IN HIS RECENT AUTOBIOGRAPHY,THIS WAS TO FORCE LIVERPOOL INTO OFFERING HIM AN YTS(YOUTH TRAINING SCHEME)CONTRACT.HE ALSO HAD AN INCIDENT AT HOME THAT ALMOST STOPPED HIM FROM PLAYING SOCCER,BEING CLOSE TO LOSING A TOE TO A GARDEN FORK.FINALLY,IN 1997,AT AGE 17,STEVEN GERRARD WAS GIVEN A PROFESSIONAL CONTRACT FROM LIVERPOOL AND SAW HIS DREAM COME TRUE



STEVEN GERRARD-FIRST TEAM IN LFC
ALTHOUGH HE WOULD NOT GET A CHANCE TO PLAY IN HIS FIRST SEASON WITH THE SENIOR SQUAD,IT WAS A GOOD YEAR FOR STEVIE GERRARD IN THAT HE STARTED TO FIT IN THE TEAM,KNOW HIS FUTURE TEAMMATES AND GET SOEM TACTICAL TRAINING.HIS DEBUT WAS TO COME THE NEXT YEAR IN A MATCH AGAINTS BLACKBURN,AS A SECOND HALF SUBSITUTE FOR VEGGARD HEGGEM.FUNNILY ENOUGH HIS FIRST START DIDNT COME IN AN EASIER PREMIERSHIP GAME,AS IT WOULD HAVE BEEN EXPECTED,BUT IN A TOUGH UEFA CUP MATCH AGAINTS SPANISH TEAM,CELTA VIGO,IN WHICH STEVEN GERRARD DIDNT NECESSARILY SHINE OUT,BUT WAS A SAFE OPTION IN MIDFIELD.HIS LUCK CAME AT THE EXPENSES OF TEAMMATE JAMIE REDKNAPP'S AS THE LATTER SUFFERED A LONG-TERM INJURY THAT WILL ALLOW GERRARD TO START IN THE FOLLWOING13 MATCHES FOR LIVERPOOL AND EVENTUALLY WIN A FIRST TEAM PLACE.EVEN AFTER THE EXPERIENCED REDKNAPP CAME BACK FROM INJURY,MANAGER GERRARD HOULIER FOUND A PLACE FOR BOTH JAMIE AND STEVEN IN MIDFIELD



STEVEN GERRARD-REDS CAPTAIN
BY 2004,STEVEN GERRARD ALREADY BECAME AN IMPORTANT PLAYER FOR LIVERPOOL AND ENGLAND'S NATIONAL TEAM,BUT HIS CLUB'S SUCCESS WAS NOT THE KIND THAT THE FANS EXPECTED.WITH MASSIVE CHANGES IN THE SQUAD,AS WELL AS ON THE BENCH,GERRARD HOULIER BEING REPLACED WITH RAFAEL BENITEZ ,STEVEN GERRARD WAS NAMED CAPTAIN AND THE NEW COACH STARTED BUILDING THE TEAM AROUND THE POWERFUL MIDFIELDER.DESPITE BEING VIEWED AS A RATHER DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDER,A STRINGOF STEVEN GERRARD GOALS CONVINCED EVERYONE THAT HE WAS THE TYPE OF COMPLETE FOOTBALLER THAT COULD PLAY IN ANY FIELD POSITION HIS COACH WOULD NEED HIM