Any other name and the arrest of a footballer after a bar brawl would not have registered on the Richter scale of Christmas surprises. But Steven Gerrard is not any other name and this is not any other Premier League season for Liverpool. His detention by Merseyside Police yesterday and subsequent charge for assault and affray is a distraction Rafael Benítez needs as much as another kidney stone.
"Remain humble, keep our feet on the ground and keep working hard" were Gerrard's words as he left St James' Park on Sunday afternoon after scoring twice in Liverpool's 5–1 destruction of Newcastle United. They sounded hollow when news of his arrest emerged and a calendar year of giant strides on the pitch and major tremors off it for Liverpool received a depressingly suitable finale.
What will have pained Benítez most of all is that the distraction from Liverpool's outstanding performance on Tyneside and their growing credibility as a title-winning team should come from a player he trusted implicitly.
It may be a slight consolation to the Spaniard that Gerrard's arrest did not impinge on his professional workload. Liverpool's first-team squad were given a belated two-day Christmas holiday after the Newcastle game. Although the wisdom of a high-profile England international staying out on the town until 2.30am is always open to question, Gerrard is not due back in training until tomorrow morning and is one of the key players Benítez is considering resting in the FA Cup third-round tie at Preston North End on Saturday evening.
The day spent in a police station intruded more on the 28-year-old's family life than on his other devotion: delivering to Liverpool their first league title since 1990. Perversely, and without playing down the assault charge in the Lounge Inn, Southport, the incident may concentrate Gerrard's energies on that challenge to a greater degree than they already are. The midfielder will be mortified at generating unwanted headlines hours after the club's finest performance of the season brought their championship credentials wider recognition and he will be wary of being involved in a repeat between now and May. He wouldn't be the first player to turn a siege mentality to his professional advantage.
Gerrard's nocturnal habits have not been an issue since he was hauled over the coals by Gérard Houllier early in his Anfield career. "If his mates want to go to a nightclub, let them. By the time he has finished he can buy one of his own," the former Liverpool manager famously remarked of the man he appointed the club's youngest-ever captain. That sage advice struck a chord with Gerrard, by and large, and an instantly recognisable face has consciously avoided inviting trouble in the goldfish bowl of Merseyside.
All of which adds to the shock of Gerrard's arrest. As Liverpool captain the midfielder has been at the forefront of the club's attempts to place a lid on controversy and concentrate entirely on the Premier League this season. Even Tom Hicks and George Gillett have heeded that lesson after the mess they made of their first full season as Liverpool's co-owners.
Despite the impact of the global credit crunch on their personal fortunes and plans to construct a 60,000-seat stadium on Stanley Park, delayed indefinitely to the chagrin of supporters, sponsors, local residents and councillors, the Americans have made quiet progress with extending their refinancing package with the Royal Bank of Scotland by six months from 25 January next year. Even the delicate subject of extending Benítez's contract, with the manager seeking a longer-term deal than they envisaged and greater control over transfers, has progressed relatively smoothly. Plans to complete a new 4½-year deal with Benítez before Christmas were delayed by a kidney stone operation he underwent on 15 December.
Further disruption lies in wait for Liverpool in the form of Daniel Agger as the Danish defender delays extending a contract that has only 18 months to run.
"I hope to stay," Agger said yesterday, but the Dane is wanted by several European clubs and is holding out for a significant pay increase from Liverpool. "I don't know what the hold-up is. I let the club do the talking and I will try and do mine on the pitch. I am trying to improve. Of course I want to stay if it is possible." As I say, the club is dealing with my contract talks and we will take it from there."
With the exception of releasing Jermaine Pennant, now a loan-transfer target for Wigan Athletic after Juande Ramos thwarted his possible move to Real Madrid, Liverpool do not expect to be prominent in the January transfer window. The priority, as Gerrard knows only too well, is to lead the way in May.
"Remain humble, keep our feet on the ground and keep working hard" were Gerrard's words as he left St James' Park on Sunday afternoon after scoring twice in Liverpool's 5–1 destruction of Newcastle United. They sounded hollow when news of his arrest emerged and a calendar year of giant strides on the pitch and major tremors off it for Liverpool received a depressingly suitable finale.
What will have pained Benítez most of all is that the distraction from Liverpool's outstanding performance on Tyneside and their growing credibility as a title-winning team should come from a player he trusted implicitly.
It may be a slight consolation to the Spaniard that Gerrard's arrest did not impinge on his professional workload. Liverpool's first-team squad were given a belated two-day Christmas holiday after the Newcastle game. Although the wisdom of a high-profile England international staying out on the town until 2.30am is always open to question, Gerrard is not due back in training until tomorrow morning and is one of the key players Benítez is considering resting in the FA Cup third-round tie at Preston North End on Saturday evening.
The day spent in a police station intruded more on the 28-year-old's family life than on his other devotion: delivering to Liverpool their first league title since 1990. Perversely, and without playing down the assault charge in the Lounge Inn, Southport, the incident may concentrate Gerrard's energies on that challenge to a greater degree than they already are. The midfielder will be mortified at generating unwanted headlines hours after the club's finest performance of the season brought their championship credentials wider recognition and he will be wary of being involved in a repeat between now and May. He wouldn't be the first player to turn a siege mentality to his professional advantage.
Gerrard's nocturnal habits have not been an issue since he was hauled over the coals by Gérard Houllier early in his Anfield career. "If his mates want to go to a nightclub, let them. By the time he has finished he can buy one of his own," the former Liverpool manager famously remarked of the man he appointed the club's youngest-ever captain. That sage advice struck a chord with Gerrard, by and large, and an instantly recognisable face has consciously avoided inviting trouble in the goldfish bowl of Merseyside.
All of which adds to the shock of Gerrard's arrest. As Liverpool captain the midfielder has been at the forefront of the club's attempts to place a lid on controversy and concentrate entirely on the Premier League this season. Even Tom Hicks and George Gillett have heeded that lesson after the mess they made of their first full season as Liverpool's co-owners.
Despite the impact of the global credit crunch on their personal fortunes and plans to construct a 60,000-seat stadium on Stanley Park, delayed indefinitely to the chagrin of supporters, sponsors, local residents and councillors, the Americans have made quiet progress with extending their refinancing package with the Royal Bank of Scotland by six months from 25 January next year. Even the delicate subject of extending Benítez's contract, with the manager seeking a longer-term deal than they envisaged and greater control over transfers, has progressed relatively smoothly. Plans to complete a new 4½-year deal with Benítez before Christmas were delayed by a kidney stone operation he underwent on 15 December.
Further disruption lies in wait for Liverpool in the form of Daniel Agger as the Danish defender delays extending a contract that has only 18 months to run.
"I hope to stay," Agger said yesterday, but the Dane is wanted by several European clubs and is holding out for a significant pay increase from Liverpool. "I don't know what the hold-up is. I let the club do the talking and I will try and do mine on the pitch. I am trying to improve. Of course I want to stay if it is possible." As I say, the club is dealing with my contract talks and we will take it from there."
With the exception of releasing Jermaine Pennant, now a loan-transfer target for Wigan Athletic after Juande Ramos thwarted his possible move to Real Madrid, Liverpool do not expect to be prominent in the January transfer window. The priority, as Gerrard knows only too well, is to lead the way in May.
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