LONDON: Former Liverpool and England captain Steven Gerrard announced his retirement from professional football on Thursday at the age of 36, calling time on an emblematic career.
Gerrard spent 17 years at his home town club Liverpool, 12 as captain, and won nine honors including the 2005 Champions League before finishing his career with an 18-month stint at LA Galaxy.
“Following recent media speculation surrounding my future, I can confirm my retirement from playing professional football,” Gerrard said in a statement.
“I have had an incredible career and am thankful for each and every moment of my time at Liverpool, England and LA Galaxy.”
Although the Premier League title famously eluded him, Gerrard did win two FA Cups, three League Cups, the UEFA Cup, the UEFA Super Cup and the Community Shield.
His finest hour came in Istanbul in May 2005, when he inspired Liverpool to come from 0-3 down against AC Milan at half time of the Champions League final to win the club’s fifth European Cup in a penalty shootout.
In total he made 710 appearances for Liverpool, the third-highest total behind Ian Callaghan and former teammate Jamie Carragher, scoring 186 goals.
Gerrard made 114 appearances for England, a tally bettered only by Peter Shilton, Wayne Rooney and David Beckham, and scored 21 international goals.
He appeared at six major tournaments, captaining England at the 2010 World Cup, Euro 2012 and the 2014 World Cup.
“I feel lucky to have experienced so many wonderful highlights over the course of my career,” Gerrard said.
“I am proud to have played over 700 games for Liverpool, many of which as captain, and to have played my part in helping the club to bring major honors back to Anfield, none more so than that famous night in Istanbul.
“At an international level, I feel privileged to have won 114 England caps and to have had the honor of captaining my country. I will always look back with great pride at every time I pulled on the England shirt.”
Gerrard has been linked with a coaching role at Liverpool, as well as Celtic and Newcastle United, where former Liverpool managers Brendan Rodgers and Rafael Benitez respectively work.
Liverpool’s current manager, Jurgen Klopp, said the club would welcome him back with open arms.
“If he wants to return, it’s an open door,” the German told a press conference. “We want to help him.”
Gerrard, who is reported to have turned down an approach from English third-tier side Milton Keynes Dons, said he would take his time before announcing his next move.
“I am excited about the future and feel I still have a lot to offer the game, in whatever capacity that may be,” he said.
“I am currently taking my time to consider a number of options and will make an announcement with regards to the next stage of my career very soon.”
Born in Whiston, Merseyside, Gerrard joined Liverpool’s academy at the age of nine and made his first-team debut aged 18 as a substitute against Blackburn Rovers in November 1998.
After quickly establishing himself as a dominant force in Liverpool’s midfield, he made his England debut against Ukraine in May 2000.
He got his first taste of silverware under Gerard Houllier in the 2000-01 season, when Liverpool won a treble of FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup honors.
He launched Liverpool’s fightback against Istanbul with a glancing header and scored a 35-yard thunderbolt the following season to inspire his side to victory over West Ham United in the FA Cup final.
Twice strongly linked with moves to Chelsea, he elected to stay with Liverpool, but apart from a third League Cup crown in 2012, the rest of his career proved fallow.
Liverpool looked to be on course for the Premier League title under Rodgers in 2014, only for a calamitous slip by Gerrard in a match against Chelsea to clear Manchester City’s path to the title.
He followed in Beckham’s footsteps with a late-career stint in Major League Soccer with LA Galaxy.
“Ability-wise, he was the best midfielder I’ve ever seen,” said former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy.
Liverpool tweeted simply: “Legend.”
Liverpool great Gerrard calls time on career
Liverpool great Gerrard calls time on career
Real Madrid face Man City, PSG draw Chelsea in Champions League last 16
- This is the eighth season in which the teams have played each other since 2012
- Liverpool will have a last-16 rematch against Galatasaray
PARIS: Real Madrid and Manchester City will face off in a Champions League knockout tie for the fifth season running after being drawn Friday to play each other in the last 16, while reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain will take on Chelsea.
The Spanish giants, record 15-time European champions, will host City in the first leg at the Santiago Bernabeu next month before traveling to England for the return the following week.
The clubs have already played each other this season, with Pep Guardiola’s City winning 2-1 in Madrid in December during the league phase, in which the Premier League club finished eighth and Real ninth.
That allowed City, Champions League winners in 2023, to advance straight to the last 16 while Madrid had to come through the knockout phase play-offs, in which they beat Benfica 3-1 on aggregate.
This is the eighth season in which the teams have played each other since 2012. Real beat City in the knockout phase play-offs last season, and in the quarterfinals on the way to winning the trophy in 2024. They also emerged victorious in the semifinals in 2022 with City winning at the same stage the following year.
PSG will be at home to Chelsea in the first leg after qualifying for this stage with a 5-4 aggregate win over Ligue 1 rivals Monaco in the play-offs. Chelsea progressed straight to the last 16 after finishing sixth in the league phase.
The sides played each other in the knockout stages in three consecutive years from 2014 to 2016, with Chelsea winning the first of those confrontations in the quarterfinals and PSG triumphing in the last 16 in the following two.
Their last encounter came in July’s Club World Cup final in the United States, when Chelsea won 3-0 against last season’s European champions.
“The draw is fascinating, as usual,” said PSG coach Luis Enrique. “It will be fascinating to play against one of the best English teams, who we know well, but it will not be about revenge. These are two different competitions.”
Chelsea have been coached since January by Liam Rosenior, who had previously come up against PSG in Ligue 1 as coach of Strasbourg.
- Arsenal face Leverkusen, Newcastle play Barcelona -
There is a record total of six English clubs in the last 16. None will play each other in the last 16 but there are two potential all-English quarterfinals.
Liverpool will have a last-16 rematch against Galatasaray, the Turkish giants having defeated the Anfield club 1-0 in September in the league phase.
The winner of that tie will play either PSG or Chelsea in the quarterfinals, meaning there is a chance Liverpool will get the opportunity to avenge their defeat by the Parisians on penalties a year ago.
Meanwhile, Newcastle United will take on Barcelona with the first leg at St. James’ Park — the Spanish side won 2-1 there during the league phase in September.
Barcelona’s only other possible opponents were holders PSG, but their coach Hansi Flick insisted: “We are not celebrating not getting PSG. We must respect our opponents. Everyone wants to reach the final and Newcastle will also be eager to win the Champions League.”
Tottenham Hotspur were drawn to play Atletico Madrid, with the winners of that tie then facing Newcastle or Barcelona in the last eight.
Arsenal, who finished first in the league phase, will come up against Bayer Leverkusen and if they win that would then be huge favorites in a quarter-final against Bodo/Glimt or Sporting of Portugal.
The last-16 meeting with Sporting is the Norwegian upstarts’ reward for knocking out last season’s beaten finalists Inter Milan in the play-offs.
Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes described Arsenal as “perhaps the top favorite for the title in both the Champions League and the Premier League. Everything has to go right, but then we’re capable of making life difficult for them.”
German champions Bayern Munich will play Atalanta, the sole Italian club left in the competition.
The first legs will take place on March 10 and 11, with the second legs a week later. The teams who qualified directly for this stage after finishing in the top eight in the league phase will all be at home in the return matches.
This season’s Champions League final will take place at the Puskas Arena in Budapest on May 30.
