Liverpool FC continues to stir the rumour mill with many names still bouncing around with ties to the club. They have officially spent £60 million on four new additions, with another one coming soon.
Loïc Rémy is reportedly a done deal for Liverpool. Rémy had a medical midweek and seems to be a like-for-like replacement for Fabio Borini. And now, The Liverpool Offside is saying Divock Origi is in America for his medical with the team. Rémy would be signing for about £8.5 million and Origi is costing about £9.5 million.
While all these new additions are going on, the Reds have not forgotten about their local legend. With Steven Gerrard retiring from his international duties with the Three Lions, Brendan Rodgers says he will do everything in his power to keep Gerrard at Anfield for a few more years, and then some.
Rodgers told The Telegraph, yesterday, that he “knows that Gerrard can play beyond this season and now that he is done with international football, he will have that freshness.”
Rodgers went on to say that the deal will extend on top of the ambassadorial role that is already in Gerrard’s contract. That role promises Gerrard would move from a player straight to being on staff with the club, once he decides to hang up his boots.
Late Friday afternoon, The Daily Star said the deal was done. The 34-year-old has extended his contract until 2016, per the Daily Star, not that Gerrard wanted to play anywhere else.
Gerrard grew up in the Liverpool youth system and made his first appearance with the senior team when he was 18-years-old in 1998. He has scored 173 goals at Liverpool and he has captained the squad for the last ten years.
Steven Gerrard has benefitted greatly from Brendan Rodgers, who became the manager in 2012. While the two initially bumped heads, since then, Rodgers has created formations around Gerrard in an effort to save his aging legs and keep him on the pitch more. With Champions League games fixed in the midweek this year for the Reds, this becomes an even bigger point of emphasis.
The chemistry this team forged last year becomes even more important now. Liverpool is committing to Gerrard for a few more years now, which makes the work of Jordan Henderson and Philippe Coutinho all the more important to help cover the ground Gerrard may not be able to as time goes on.
And now the plethora of new additions become crucial fill-ins. Emre Can and Lazar Marković will get the chance to play on the sides of Gerrard and will be counted on to cover the flanks with their speed. And Adam Lallana will get to sit right in front of Gerrard and learn directly from him.
A lot of this sounds like Gerrard is aging and only coming back as an icon. He can still play, and play at a very high level. With all the youth that Rodgers is bringing in this summer, Gerrard’s experience and leadership skills will be trusted, and used often. He is a manager on the pitch and he will be able to help these new players mature quickly.
In the end, this is a great ‘signing’ as Liverpool get to keep their captain, and the face of the club. Liverpool have brought in some great additions during this transfer period, but locking up Gerrard for the future was an important step to take.
