Gerrard does not seem to get it. I know that what Rafa says to the players and what Rafa says to the press are two different things, but what he has said to the press is that Gerrard should play for us like Ronaldinho plays for Barca
I don’t know what that means to Gerrard but to me that means he should be the heart and soul of our ATTACK!
And to me that means:
He should not,
1. Run around the midfield tackling people. ( We have Momo for that )
2. Run back to his own half to get the ball. ( We have Xabi for that )
3. Stay planted on the wing to get in crosses ( Pennant )
Simply put we don’t need him to run the game any more, we need him to win the game.
When Rafa says something like this he means it. Gerrard should be receiving the ball between midfield and defense with his back to the goal and turning to run towards goal. Or running into spaces in front of the defense, getting the ball and looking for a shot. He should always have a winger, a midfielder and two strikers running into space around him.
And the frustrating thing is he has all the attributes to play like this. Pace, technique, creativity, strength, power, an awesome shot, vision, finishing………
For me he could watch a number of players to understand what Rafa wants of him.
Ronaldinho, Zidane, Dalglish, Cantona to name but a few. Personally I would sit him down and have him watch Kaka. Because if Gerrard could just get it into his brain that he is an attacking player and he should be playing like an attacking player we would see in 4-6 years time his name up there with the likes of Zidane, Maradona, Croif and so on
Some managers would undoubtedly just use him in a two man midfield for the rest of his carrier and he would do very well, but it seems that Rafa sees that as a waist of talent. And I agree. This game is about scoring goals and that is where he contributes the most, end of story.
Rant over
I don’t know what that means to Gerrard but to me that means he should be the heart and soul of our ATTACK!
And to me that means:
He should not,
1. Run around the midfield tackling people. ( We have Momo for that )
2. Run back to his own half to get the ball. ( We have Xabi for that )
3. Stay planted on the wing to get in crosses ( Pennant )
Simply put we don’t need him to run the game any more, we need him to win the game.
When Rafa says something like this he means it. Gerrard should be receiving the ball between midfield and defense with his back to the goal and turning to run towards goal. Or running into spaces in front of the defense, getting the ball and looking for a shot. He should always have a winger, a midfielder and two strikers running into space around him.
And the frustrating thing is he has all the attributes to play like this. Pace, technique, creativity, strength, power, an awesome shot, vision, finishing………
For me he could watch a number of players to understand what Rafa wants of him.
Ronaldinho, Zidane, Dalglish, Cantona to name but a few. Personally I would sit him down and have him watch Kaka. Because if Gerrard could just get it into his brain that he is an attacking player and he should be playing like an attacking player we would see in 4-6 years time his name up there with the likes of Zidane, Maradona, Croif and so on
Some managers would undoubtedly just use him in a two man midfield for the rest of his carrier and he would do very well, but it seems that Rafa sees that as a waist of talent. And I agree. This game is about scoring goals and that is where he contributes the most, end of story.
Rant over
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