Richard Keys has come out with an astonishing rant on Brendan Rodgers, accusing him as the main reason Steven Gerrard will be leaving the club at the end of this season.
This is what he wrote on his blog:
Oh the ignominy for Steven Gerrard – sent off 38-42 seconds (depends who you’re listening to, but it doesn’t matter) after coming on against Manchester Utd on Sunday. Hang your head in shame Steven, and the apology was both necessary and welcome.
But there was something else that slipped through in the post match i/view that struck a chord with me – ‘I don’t want to say anything else right now’, he added, after bravely facing the cameras and taking full responsibility for a moment of madness.
What is it that Gerrard wants to say? I’ll tell you what I think it is. He’s steaming mad at the scandalous way he’s been treated by specifically Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool in general.
Rodgers has won his war with Gerrard. The skipper is out of the club at the end of the season. And make no mistake, despite Rodgers’ efforts to blame ‘time’ for Gerrard’s decision to leave HE is to blame. He’s won the war, but he lost Sunday’s battle. And it could yet be a very costly battle to have lost.
Liverpool made Gerrard an offer he COULD refuse when they put a contract extension to him earlier this season. That was the sole purpose of their offer, force Gerrard into making the decision to leave. Let him go public, thereby avoiding any blame for the outcome themselves. Rodgers wanted him out. With Carragher already gone Rodgers knew that with Gerrard on the way out too, the club was now his – all his.
Gerrard used his mate Carragher as his mouthpiece to hint at what was going on whilst remaining publicly very dignified. Rodgers has continued to heap praise on his inspirational skipper whilst quietly continuing to humiliate and frustrate him whenever he could.
This stand off started in Madrid remember, when Rodgers left Gerrard on the bench – and seething, watching the team he’d inspired into the C Lge, slip to defeat. You can imagine what was going through his mind. ‘Is this why I gave up playing for my country? Is this why I worked so hard to get this team into the C Lge last season. Will I ever get the chance to play here again?’
Rodgers made seven changes that night and told us the team he picked was the best one to do the job. No it wasn’t, they lost. And it’s why he restored the seven he’d left out for the following weekends league match, including Gerrard.
Rodgers picked the wrong team. He mistakenly believed he could steer Liverpool to the ko stages of the C Lge after tossing the Real Madrid game off. Wrong again.
He also got his team selection wrong this past weekend. Gerrard HAD to start against Manchester United. HAD to. It was a game that his name stamped all over it. Liverpool NEEDED their captain for this one.
I’m not buying into the hype that surrounds Liverpool right now. Yes, they’ve had a terrific run, but it hasn’t been without a great deal of good fortune and so far, their only real test has come against United. They failed it.
They were ordinary the previous weekend at Swansea. What was the answer? Send for Gerrard. His presence calmed them, gave them some structure, and they won. I’m sorry, they’re simply not good enough without him right now.
This nonsense that Henderson is the ‘new’ enforcer is laughable. He’s a good player, but that’s it. He might grow into a more dominant force, but at the moment he’s not.
Liverpool’s midfield was over run by Utd. In fairness to Van Gaal he got it spot on. He exploited the weaknesses in Liverpool’s system and bossed their ‘lightweight’ midfield. A midfield in the image of their gaffer – nice.
Gerrard is a legend for good reason. He’s one of few I’ve watched across 45 years that could ‘run’ a game. Bryan Robson was another. So too Ray Wilkins. There’s Souness, of course. Go back further – Mackay, Bonds, Ball, they are few and far between though. They were special. Gerrard is one of them.
Liverpool have let him go far too soon. I accept that he’s not the force he once was, but he’s still a force. His very presence at the club is a force. People listen to him, which is why Rodgers doesn’t want him there anymore.
Gerrard held his tongue at the weekend, as he has done since announcing ‘his’ decision to move on. I can’t wait to hear what he really has to say!
This is what he wrote on his blog:
Oh the ignominy for Steven Gerrard – sent off 38-42 seconds (depends who you’re listening to, but it doesn’t matter) after coming on against Manchester Utd on Sunday. Hang your head in shame Steven, and the apology was both necessary and welcome.
But there was something else that slipped through in the post match i/view that struck a chord with me – ‘I don’t want to say anything else right now’, he added, after bravely facing the cameras and taking full responsibility for a moment of madness.
What is it that Gerrard wants to say? I’ll tell you what I think it is. He’s steaming mad at the scandalous way he’s been treated by specifically Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool in general.
Rodgers has won his war with Gerrard. The skipper is out of the club at the end of the season. And make no mistake, despite Rodgers’ efforts to blame ‘time’ for Gerrard’s decision to leave HE is to blame. He’s won the war, but he lost Sunday’s battle. And it could yet be a very costly battle to have lost.
Liverpool made Gerrard an offer he COULD refuse when they put a contract extension to him earlier this season. That was the sole purpose of their offer, force Gerrard into making the decision to leave. Let him go public, thereby avoiding any blame for the outcome themselves. Rodgers wanted him out. With Carragher already gone Rodgers knew that with Gerrard on the way out too, the club was now his – all his.
Gerrard used his mate Carragher as his mouthpiece to hint at what was going on whilst remaining publicly very dignified. Rodgers has continued to heap praise on his inspirational skipper whilst quietly continuing to humiliate and frustrate him whenever he could.
This stand off started in Madrid remember, when Rodgers left Gerrard on the bench – and seething, watching the team he’d inspired into the C Lge, slip to defeat. You can imagine what was going through his mind. ‘Is this why I gave up playing for my country? Is this why I worked so hard to get this team into the C Lge last season. Will I ever get the chance to play here again?’
Rodgers made seven changes that night and told us the team he picked was the best one to do the job. No it wasn’t, they lost. And it’s why he restored the seven he’d left out for the following weekends league match, including Gerrard.
Rodgers picked the wrong team. He mistakenly believed he could steer Liverpool to the ko stages of the C Lge after tossing the Real Madrid game off. Wrong again.
He also got his team selection wrong this past weekend. Gerrard HAD to start against Manchester United. HAD to. It was a game that his name stamped all over it. Liverpool NEEDED their captain for this one.
I’m not buying into the hype that surrounds Liverpool right now. Yes, they’ve had a terrific run, but it hasn’t been without a great deal of good fortune and so far, their only real test has come against United. They failed it.
They were ordinary the previous weekend at Swansea. What was the answer? Send for Gerrard. His presence calmed them, gave them some structure, and they won. I’m sorry, they’re simply not good enough without him right now.
This nonsense that Henderson is the ‘new’ enforcer is laughable. He’s a good player, but that’s it. He might grow into a more dominant force, but at the moment he’s not.
Liverpool’s midfield was over run by Utd. In fairness to Van Gaal he got it spot on. He exploited the weaknesses in Liverpool’s system and bossed their ‘lightweight’ midfield. A midfield in the image of their gaffer – nice.
Gerrard is a legend for good reason. He’s one of few I’ve watched across 45 years that could ‘run’ a game. Bryan Robson was another. So too Ray Wilkins. There’s Souness, of course. Go back further – Mackay, Bonds, Ball, they are few and far between though. They were special. Gerrard is one of them.
Liverpool have let him go far too soon. I accept that he’s not the force he once was, but he’s still a force. His very presence at the club is a force. People listen to him, which is why Rodgers doesn’t want him there anymore.
Gerrard held his tongue at the weekend, as he has done since announcing ‘his’ decision to move on. I can’t wait to hear what he really has to say!
