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This season of the EPL has often been described as the most interesting, particularly due to the instabilities created by managerial changes across top clubs at the start of the campaign. And unsurprisingly, the 2 more consistent clubs till now in top 6 were the ones which chose to retain their managements: Arsenal and Liverpool. Liverpool infact was top at Christmas, and stats from the last 20 years assured them a spot in the Top 4.
But right after their Boxing Day defeat to City, the Merseysiders have gone through a rougher patch, with a defeat to Chelsea and a couple of unusually hard fought wins against Hull and Stoke. To tip it all off was the latest 2-2 draw at Anfield against Villa which was an undeserved point for the Reds to say the least, and now Brendan Rodgers suffers another major setback with the loss of the vital Lucas Leiva for the next 2 months.
Though most might consider Luiz Suarez’s return to the first team as the lift that the Reds needed, and the Uruguayan’s stats definitely promote this judgment. But Gerrard’s injury early in December saw Rodgers switching Henderson and Joe Allen into the midfield trio, and despite all the criticism that this British duo have received since joining Liverpool, when in form this midfield trio form the perfect combination of a tackler, distributor and runner in midfield.
In fact the trio’s performance against Spurs, Cardiff and Manchester City on Boxing Day, raised many a question on Gerrard’s importance in this Liverpool team. Apart from being an ever present in the team, Gerrard has definitely lost pace in his midfield tackling, and his tracking back with the runner when Liverpool are not on the ball has always been lacking. Right from the Rafa days, the managers always preferred Gerrard as an attacking midfielder who puts in a few tackles rather than a tactically sound holding player in the centre. The game against Villa saw Gerrard start in exactly the latter role description, and this allowed Henderson to continue in his box-to-box energetic role. This move though prompted through Lucas’s niggle, left Liverpool lacking seriously against the likes of the quick Wiemann, Agbonlahar and El Ahmadi.
Despite Sturridge’s goal just before the break, Liverpool’s midfield situation was so dire that Rodgers had to bring on an unfit Lucas for Coutinho. Liverpool’s top scorer was shifted to the left of the now front 3 with the more one dimensional Sturridge as the lone striker. Lucas’s impact was instantly visible as El Ahmadi’s runs from midfield were immediately trimmed. Even Gerrard’s impact on the game changed majorly as the captain returned to his role of spraying 40-yarders upfront.
Gerrard passing range in the first half against Villa reduced due to his deep positioning
Gerrard’s range drastically improves after Lucas’s entry
Another player majorly affected by Gerrard’s return is Rahim Sterling, who has had a decent run of games in the last couple of months. When Gerrard was out injured and Rodgers shifted to a 4-3-3, Sterling’s role became much more central as the youngster often found himself overlapping Suarez in the centre. This could majorly be put down to the fact that Suarez received many more short passes in deeper positions, which allowed the likes of Sterling from the wings and Henderson from midfield to make runs into the box. Gerrard’s return now sees Sterling in a much wider role with the captain finding him with long balls. Another factor for this shift is also Danny Sturridge’s return.
Sterling’s heat map agaisnt Spurs when Gerrard was not playing
Sterling’s heat map against Villa when Gerrard comes back into the team
With Lucas set for a lengthy time on the sidelines, Rodgers will be looking for playing Gerrard in a much deeper role with Joe Allen coming in at times beside him. The Reds have not entered the transfer market yet for a DM, and it seems more than likely that Rodgers will settle with the likes of Henderson and Luis Alberto as other option at that position.
Though Liverpool can still look forward to a steady run due to Suarez’s fine goal scoring knack, Gerrard’s deeper role could mean more troubles for Roy Hodgson and England. It has often been pondered whether giving Gerrard the captain’s armband would be forcing a restriction on the manager’s team selection, because despite his mere presence and drive that has won the Three Lions plenty of games and his pin point deliveries in set pieces, Gerrard no longer has the legs to play a holding role in midfield. Hodgson has played his captain as the deepest midfielder on plenty of occasions in the Qualifiers, and despite couple of crunching tackles put in at times by Gerrard, his sense of tracking or positioning off the ball is nowhere near someone like Michael Carrick.
Carrick’s selection criterion has often been a contentious issue for England and the midfielder’s personal opinion of not choosing to wait on the bench does the manager no good. And now especially with Lampard’s form putting him out of contention for World Cup, it leaves only Carrick, Wilshere and Phil Jones as realistic options for the role next to Gerrard. Phil Jones has often been used by his managers as a big-match option in midfield and has risen to many a challenge against the likes of Ronaldo, Ozil and Hazard recently. But with Jones being played as a man-marking option in midfield, Michael Carrick would be much more suited to the tireless role besides him rather than Gerrard.
Considering Jack Wilshere case; if the Arsenal man is indeed able to come through the remainder of the season without any injuries, he becomes a direct choice in Hodgson’s team majorly due to media and public pressure. And again referring to his performance against Brazil last year, his selection in the role in front of the holder becomes certain. But here again the choice of the holder becomes important, as a Carrick-Wilshere combination seems much more stable than a Gerrard-Wilshere, especially considering that Wilshere is as bad as Gerrard in terms of tracking back or defensive positioning.
In terms of team managements, Gerrard’s role is certainly huge in the next 4 months as Liverpool is currently one of the 4 clubs fighting for the 4th spot. The England captain has made himself un-droppable, and rightly so when one considers his set pieces and distribution from midfield. The first test for this system that Rodgers seems to desire will be in the next Game Week itself as Everton come calling for the 2nd Derby of the season. Gerrard against the trio of Barkley, Pienaar and Mirallas is as disastrous as it gets.
