Steven Gerrard: My Liverpool Story (31 page)

at end of May 2012

LIVERPOOL HONOURS (winners’ medals)

League Cup 2001, 2003, 2012

F.A. Cup 2001, 2006

UEFA Cup 2001

European Super Cup 2001

UEFA Champions League 2005

INDIVIDUAL HONOURS

PFA Young Player of the Year 2001

PFA Player of the Year 2006

FWA Footballer of the Year 2009

Steven was born on 30 May, 1980–24 days after Liverpool brought down the curtain on their 12th League title-winning campaign.

He has scored 38 goals for Liverpool in Europe, the most by any British player in the history of European competition.

Steven has netted 149 goals for the Reds in all competitions – his first was scored past Sheffield Wednesday keeper Kevin Pressman in a 4–1 win in December 1999.

He was the first Liverpool player to score under the managership of Rafa Benitez – doing so in a Champions League qualifier in Graz in August 2004.

When scoring against Arsenal in the Champions League in April 2008 Steven became the first Liverpool player to score in four successive European games at Anfield.

The Reds’ skipper lies 10th in the club’s all-time appearances list with 584. The player immediately above him is Alan Hansen who played 620 games.

He has won more International caps while with Liverpool than any other British-born Reds player – 96 for England.

Steven has scored five hat-tricks for his club – against Aston Villa and Everton in the league, Luton Town in the F.A. Cup and Total Network Solutions and Napoli in Europe.

The club he has scored most often against in a Liverpool shirt is Aston Villa – 10 of his goals have come against the Midlanders.

Steven was voted Man of the Match in both the 2005 Champions League Final and the F.A. Cup Final 12 months later.

He has captained Liverpool on more occasions in the Premier League than any other player – 249 times with a win ratio of 51%. In total he has been skipper in 354 Reds games.

Steven was awarded an MBE in the 2007 Queens New Years Honours List.

Steven became the second youngest captain to lift the European Cup when the Reds won the trophy in 2005.

He was appointed Liverpool’s club captain in October 2003 in succession to Sami Hyypia.

When scoring in the 2006 F.A. Cup Final, Steven became the first man ever to score in the finals of the F.A. Cup, League Cup, UEFA Cup and Champions League.

He captained England in Fabio Capello’s first game in charge in February 2008.

Steven is the last Liverpool player to be voted PFA Young Player of the Year, winning the award in 2001.

He started his Liverpool career wearing the number 28 shirt before switching to number 17 and eventually number 8 in 2004 following the sale of Emile Heskey.

Steven has been named in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year on seven occasions – 2001 and each year from 2004 to 2009.

He scored 28 goals in 248 games under Gerard Houllier and 104 in 292 while Rafa Benitez was manager.

In the 2006 World Cup Finals in Germany he was England’s leading scorer with two goals, while four years later in South Africa he was one of only three players to find the net for his country.

His most productive season for Liverpool in terms of goals was the 2008–09 season when he scored 24 times.

Against Kaunas in August 2005 Steven Gerrard became the first player in Liverpool history to score in five successive games in Europe.

He scored twice in his 100th appearance in Europe for the Reds in the unforgettable 4–0 home win over Real Madrid in March 2009.

His 149 goals have been scored against 83 different goalkeepers including five who at one time have played for the Reds – David James, Brad Friedel, Paul Jones, Brad Jones and Chris Kirkland.

Steven has scored a hat-trick for Liverpool in League, F.A. Cup, League Cup and European football. Only Ian Rush has achieved the feat in four or more different competitions for the club.

86 of his goals have been scored in front of his home crowd with 63 coming away from Anfield.

On 6 November, 2002 Steven captained Liverpool for the first time in a 3–1 League Cup victory over Southampton at Anfield.