The 10 most influential captains of the modern era: Steven Gerrard

On the 16th of April, 1989, just a day after the Hillsborough disaster had taken place in Sheffield, eight-year-old Gerrard ran to to open the door when he heard the doorbell ring. Standing on the other side was his grandfather, Tony, with a sombre look on his face. John-Paul Gilhooley, Gerrard’s elder cousin, had died in the stampede that had occurred at the stadium and his grandfather was one of the first to know. It was a moment that would shape Gerrard’s childhood.

John-Paul was ten years old.

And that is why, to this date, Gerrard has not opened the files of the Hillsborough Independent Panel. He does not wish to open the Pandora’s box of emotions that will surely swirl around him as he delves into the tragedies that befell his club so many years ago. And that is why he does not give up the fight to find justice for the ninety-six.

That is why there is an unspoken, impenetrable, everlasting bond between Steven Gerrard and the supporters of Liverpool Football Club. Their pain is his pain. Their suffering is his suffering. His triumphs are their triumphs. His victories are theirs, their victories are his.

He even stamped his authority on England

And that is why he is loved not just in England, but throughout the world. When Liverpool recently visited Australia, the MCG was filled with 95,000 fans, singing as one, a rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone that made the hairs on the back of one’s neck stand up. When they were in Indonesia, a fan broke down on seeing him in the flesh. Therein lies the global appeal of Liverpool.

Therein lies the global appeal of Steven Gerrard.

His dedication on the pitch for his club is matched only by the hard work he shows in the white of his country. His first goal for England came in their famous 5-1 drubbing of Germany in Munich and he was named captain of his country on the eve of Euro 2012, having kept it throughout the Three Lions’ qualifying campaign. He made his debut in 2000 and has been a regular part of his country’s team ever since.

“This club is all about winning trophies and we’ve got a chance of bringing the greatest trophy of them all back to Anfield, so it means a great deal obviously.”

- Steven Gerrard, Liverpool and England

Gerrard brought back to Liverpool the glory days of success at the highest level. But England’s finest trophy eludes him. On the first of May, 1990, the last of Liverpool’s First Division titles was paraded through the city. The applause sounded complacent, the attitude about the players was one of arrogance. But Gerrard bowed his head in presence of that famous trophy: he was not worthy to look at it until he lifted it himself.

Given that his hunger for the Premier League remains unsated, it would be poetic justice for a man who has given his all for the club he has loved. He recently signed a two-year contract extension with the club and his first target will surely be to return Liverpool to the top four. And when the Champions League nights do return to Anfield, the anthems that ring around the stadium will bring with them an emotion so powerful you cannot help but tear up.

Brendan Rodgers at Liverpool seems to have in place a long-term strategy to restore the club to its halcyon days. Whether silverware in the league will return to the club in the next two years and whether Gerrard will play on after his 35th birthday is not clear now. But one thing certainly is: Steven Gerrard is Liverpool through and through.

And for that reason, whenever the time, wherever the place, he will never walk alone.