EPL: Liverpool shock Man City at Anfield
Liverpool's defeat of Manchester City
demonstrated his passion for the club, says
Jamie Carragher.
The Reds captain played a key role as
Liverpool responded to a second-half
comeback from their visitors to grab a 3-2 win
and take control of the Premier League title
race.
At the final whistle Gerrard could barely
contain himself and delivered a chest-
thumping speech to his team-mates who had
huddled around him.
And former Liverpool colleague Carragher told
Sky Sports Gerrard's reaction was a result of
realising that, after over 15 years of personally
striving to bring the league crown to Anfield,
the club are just four games away from
reclaiming the title.
"That comes from being at this club so long
and not winning the league," said Carragher.
"That's not just [about winning] today.
"I talked before the game about a lot of these
Liverpool players looking like they're playing
without that pressure and that they haven't got
that burden on their shoulders, they've only
just come to the club or don't know the history
of it - but he does.
"You talk about pressure on someone's
shoulders but how many times has he carried
the club through his own performances? I
think he's the one feeling it the most.
"If I was involved I'd probably be struggling to
sleep and he's the one who will be going right
through that. We saw his reaction at the end,
shouting to his family and friends in the box -
that's the build-up of going so long without
winning the league."
Jamie Redknapp reckons Gerrard may have
given up his hopes of winning the Premier
League with Liverpool after the Reds finished
28 points behind champions Manchester
United last season.
However, Philippe Coutinho's winner on
Sunday, after a Glen Johnson own goal and
David Silva strike had cancelled out first-half
goals from Raheem Sterling and Martin Skrtel,
put the title race entirely in Liverpool's hands.
They are now five points clear of Chelsea,
ahead of the Blues trip to Swansea - with Jose
Mourinho's men visiting Anfield on April 27 -
and out of reach of Man City, even if Manuel
Pellegrini's side win their two games in hand.
"Whether you're a Liverpool fan or not, that's
the sort of thing, as a football fan, that makes
your hair stand on end," Redknapp said,
reflecting on Gerrard's post-match
celebrations.
"Gerrard got his players in a huddle and his
character, everything about that man, was
coming out there. It was pouring out of him.
That was great to see.
"He knows now that they're in touching
distance of something very special. He
thought he'd never get that opportunity to win
the league - but they're four games from
changing Liverpool's history."
In his post-match interview, Gerrard was
quick to point out the league is yet to be won,
and insisted Liverpool must be at their best to
beat relegation-threatened Norwich next
weekend.
But Carragher suspects his former club's 3-2
triumph over Man City may be the vital
moment in this season's title race.
"Liverpool have been playing great and they've
won ten in a row now but, if they go on to win
the league, this will be what will be looked
back at," he said.
"There's always a game when someone wins
the title and you look back at and say 'that
was the difference, that was the turning
point'."
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