EMOTION? NO CHANTS
Gerrard strictly business on Anfield return
STEVEN GERRARD will have seen it all before, of course.
Incessant waves of Liverpool attacks towards the Kop yielding nothing but near misses.
Anfield’s baying masses getting frustrated with the opposition and angry with the match officials.
Then another Liverpool foray, this one led by Mo Salah.
That the Egyptian’s balance and trickery was too much for Tyrone Mings was clear.
But whether the Aston Villa captain’s desperate attempt to get a toe to the ball produced enough force on the back on Salah’s leg to send him spinning to the turf like a rag doll is another question.
Referee Stuart Attwell had no doubts it was a penalty. Not after 67 minutes of frustrating Jurgen Klopp and his supporters with some of his
Gerrard will always be a Scouser, but it hasn’t taken him long to buy right
into the Brummie
spirit.
decisions, he didn’t. Mings complained it wasn’t a foul, that Salah had impeded him first before slaloming into the box.
But the Reds forward duly picked himself up to ram home the 21st goal of a remarkable season.
Oh yes, Gerrard will have certainly seen something similar happen during the 710 occasions he wore the liver bird on his chest.
Forget the G7 meeting being held in Liverpool this weekend, it was the return of G8 that mattered most on Merseyside.
Gerrard looked a little embarrassed as he walked out to take his place in the away dugout.
There was a wave to Villa’s travelling fans and a nod of appreciation for the applause from supporters whose dreams he carried for 17 years.
But by the time the Kop started singing his name midway through the first-half, there was already a realisation that Gerrard had not returned to have his tummy tickled.
The chant was quickly drowned out by a majority of supporters who realised their team needed galvanising far more than the opposition manager.
Gerrard will always be a Scouser. But it hasn’t taken him long to buy right into the Brummie spirit.
Klopp realised pretty quickly what it must have felt like to be paid a visit by the Peaky Blinders.
Reward
Gerrard’s Villa play in-your-face football, no prisoners are taken.
But it would have driven their manager to distraction that his side’s inability to keep the ball only invited Liverpool forward to claim their eventual reward.
On another day, the hosts would have been home and hosed by halftime after their supporters had paid a fitting tribute before the start of the game to Reds and England legend Ray Kennedy, who passed away last week.
Gerrard, hands plunged deep in his trouser pockets, cut a cool figure in contrast to the cheerleading Klopp a few yards away.
There were a few choice words between the pair when Klopp complained about a Liverpool counter-attack being halted by an offside flag. It all ended with smiles.
But the home side’s frustration grew when the breakthrough wouldn’t come.
Klopp picked an argument with John Mcginn next, when the Villa midfielder required treatment after having his ankle trampled on by Sadio Mane.
Then fourth official Graham Scott found himself in the firing line after Attwell ruled neither Mane or Andy
Robertson had been fouled as they rampaged into the Villa box.
The visitors’ goal continued to lead a charmed life when Liverpool cranked it up again kicking towards their favourite end.
Pain
Klopp must have really feared the worst when goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez pulled off a terrific save to tip over Virgil van Dijk’s close-range header.
He asked Diogo Jota to play through the pain of the injury that had forced him to start the match on the bench. And, nine minutes later, Villa’s resistance was broken. There could and should have been more Liverpool goals.
But in the end, they were grateful Danny Ings didn’t snatch an equaliser after a mix-up between Alisson and Joel Matip gave him a glimpse of goal, before the keeper managed to flick the ball off his toes.
Reds fans paid tribute to Gerrard, singing his name at the final whistle as he trudged off the pitch in disappointment. Klopp, meanwhile, was in front of the Kop leading the celebrations.