Steven Gerrard had to feature in his 700th match for his club Liverpool the other day versus West Ham United, but, he, unfortunately, missed out as he was not match fit.
He was there at Anfield though, but, not in the player’s dug out. He was actually enjoying the game with his family and friends in one of the VIP boxes built in the spectators’ area.
According to the Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers, Gerrard’s problem was not that big, but, he is too important a player to be risked considering how frequently the Reds have to play in the next couple of months.
Not only the fans of Gerrard, but, the veteran himself was also awaiting the West Ham encounter.
He had even uploaded a picture of the shoes that were presented to him by his sponsors for that special game. There was that no. 700 written on those shoes.
Gerrard had been on the ground during that entire Cup game versus Chelsea the other day. That game had gone into the extra time.
For somebody of Gerrard’s age, to be on the pitch for that long a time, it’s tough. He was always going to be a bit sore after that.
Talking about Gerrard, Rodgers said, “He was struggling just a little bit with his hammy. No major issue, it was just tightness, but, hamstring is a delicate thing. You never know. You risk a player and the next thing you know is that you have lost him for a longer period of time. So, it was better to play safe and that’s why we thought we should rest him.”
Now, Gerrard will have to wait for at least a couple of more days to get into the 700-game club.
Liverpool’s next game is against Bolton Wanderers on Wednesday.