Jurgen Klopp won Liverpool a first league title in three decades and a sixth European Cup. In Steven Gerrard’s four, he does not feature.
Gerrard, 46, laid out his picks in a conversation with SportBible and did not include himself either. His four: a founding manager, a player-manager, a record goalscorer and the forward now in Turkey.
Dalglish is “our king”
Bill Shankly was non-negotiable.
“You’ve got to always go back to the roots, the start of the whole Liverpool family, and Bill Shankly was the one who represents us all,” Gerrard told SportBible.
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Then came Kenny Dalglish, under whom Gerrard broke into the senior squad.
“I’m going to go for Kenny Dalglish, my dad’s hero. So we were sort of educated on Kenny first and foremost. We watched every game, every clip, every goal. I was lucky enough to represent him when he was our coach. Top person, top coach, he’s our king basically.”
Ian Rush went in as the club’s record scorer. Gerrard called him “our top scorer” and said he deserved his seat.
Gerrard backs Salah’s Trabzonspor move
Mohamed Salah is the modern pick. The 34-year-old left Anfield after nine years, mutually agreeing to end his contract a year early following a season in which he was dropped and fell out publicly with then-head coach Arne Slot. He signed a two-year deal with Trabzonspor on a free transfer on 6 August.
He left Liverpool as the club’s third-highest goalscorer of all time, with 257 goals in 442 games and seven major trophies to his name.
Gerrard defended the move.
“I don’t think necessarily every footballer has to finish their career at the club where they’ve shone for so long. I think what’s important when you come to the latter stages of your career is that you enjoy it, and that the manager appreciates you, and that you’re still starting football matches.”
Paisley also missed out
Klopp was not the only big name left on the cutting-room floor. Bob Paisley, who won three European Cups and six league titles at Anfield, did not make Gerrard’s four either.
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Salah scored a hat-trick as Trabzonspor beat Galatasaray 4-0 in the Turkish Super Lig on 19 September, his first hat-trick for the club. He has seven league goals in six appearances this season.
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