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Irreplaceable Gerrard the English ideal of Roy Race

By on January 5, 2015

There is something specific the English like in a football player, it isn’t solely technical skill. Players from other nations, like Spain, Germany, or Brazil, may be technically superior, but the English marvel at skills other than building out of the back, displaying deft first-touches, or even, as with Lionel Messi, making the game look easy. Whether it be a fault or strength, the English back players who play with heart. This is the ideal forever etched into the English by the classic “Roy of the Rovers” cartoon.

Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard, David Beckham, and John Terry are vastly different players but all passed the “heart” test. The English like players whose hearts lead them to hurl themselves into tackles, playing with urgency. For many, the recent generation has made up for their slight technical inferiority with this heart.

Arguably, nobody more defines this idea better than Steven Gerrard. Before his retirement from international football after the 2014 World Cup, Gerrard had been the official England captain for two years and an occasional backup for the past fourteen. He has also been the Liverpool captain for the past dozen years. From all accounts, Gerrard may be soft spoken but can deliver an amazing speech. He leads by example, an example that is one of the best English players ever.

“He delivered an incredible speech that still sends a shiver down my back when I think about it. It wasn’t the first time his words moved me.” – Luis Suarez in his autobiography

Gerrard has the ability to singlehandedly change a match, but not solely down to his skill. In famous moments, commentators have remarked something resembling, “It looked impossible, but Gerrard made it possible.” Gerrard never really did the impossible with his feet, but did the ordinary when nobody else could. He did what everybody else thought was impossible, with his heart. He famously dragged Liverpool by the scuff of the neck down 3-0 at halftime in the Champions League final, scoring Liverpool’s first then winning the penalty from which the equalizer followed. The Miracle of Istanbul was only possible because Gerrard made Liverpool recognize it wasn’t impossible.

Gerrard’s countless thirty or thirty-five yard drives were raw power. You felt as if Gerrard put his heart behind every one of those shots – he willed them into the back of the net. Gerrard never had the best pass completion average, or shots on target ratio. But darn did he give, and still gives his all every game. Reading tributes to him from current and former-teammates, the terms “Mr. Liverpool”, “king of the club”, and others akin often come up.

“He, for me, is Liverpool.” – Thierry Henry, as quoted by Liverpool FC Extra

This will be Gerrard’s legacy. He didn’t win that many trophies for a player of his quality, lacking a single league title, and this may be his main regret. However, moving onto the MLS, he will have a good chance to do so there. At the LA Galaxy, Gerrard would be the perfect short term replacement for Landon Donovan. A leader, and still one of the best players in the league. Gerrard is nearly the opposite of David Beckham – not an outspoken international celebrity, and a brilliant leader. He will be a short term replacement for Donovan, but not long term so close to retirement.

The opposite applies for Liverpool’s state when he leaves the club. It will be a massive problem for the club, but only in the short term. Currently, with the squad lacking any older experience bar from Gerrard, the twenty-four-year-old Jordan Henderson is set to take over from Gerrard. Liverpool’s only other viable option would be Martin Skrtel, at the moment they need to heavily invest in not just talent, but experience and leadership – even their manager Brendan Rodgers is the third youngest in the EPL. Eventually, they will move on. They will find another experienced leader, and it could even be Henderson in the future. It is a natural changing of the guard. However, it will be nearly impossible to replace Gerrard. Gerrard is a natural leader. He fell into the roll of captain more than taking it for both England and Liverpool. He is an Englishman born and bred; he is the personification of Roy Race.

About Alex Morgan

Alex Morgan, founder of Football Every Day, lives and breaths football from the West Coast of the United States in California. Aside from founding Football Every Day in January of 2013, Alex has also launched his own journalism career and hopes to help others do the same with FBED. He covers the San Jose Earthquakes as a beat reporter for QuakesTalk.com and his work has also been featured in the BBC's Match of the Day Magazine.