CELTIC v RANGERS
HATED and abused. That’s how Steven Gerrard describes his experience of going to Goodison Park as a Liverpool player.
And he LOVED every minute of it.
The Rangers boss admits that victory in the Merseyside derby was always better away from home than at Anfield – because it felt so great to win in front of hostile fans.
Now, as an Old Firm boss, he hopes his Ibrox players feel the same way going to Parkhead to face Celtic.
Gerrard never feared a visit to Liverpool’s city rivals – in fact he thrived on it. And he knows the Gers will need a similar attitude.
Gerrard said: “Celtic Park is a hostile environment. It’s similar to Ibrox in that both sets of home fans make a hell of a noise.
“We respect that. But I’m a firm believer that you should embrace and enjoy it. Let that motivate you.
“The players have to be excited by that, not fear it.
“It’s important to come out of the blocks ready and not get caught cold. If you suffer a negative start it can be tough to recover.
“But as a player I preferred it when Merseyside derbies were played at Goodison.
“I was hated and abused there, but it felt different winning there.
“At Anfield we never knew we were going to win, but we were expected to. So the win didn’t feel as big.
“Going to Goodison and outplaying Everton in front of their crowd and atmosphere – then enjoying it with your fans – was more special.
“I’m not sure whether all players thought like that but I loved playing at Goodison.
“Is that the same now going to Celtic Park? I haven’t experienced winning yet, so hopefully one day we can come back to that question.
“I would like my players to have that attitude because it would be fantastic for them to win there. At Liverpool we had