Liverpool fans had an immediate reaction to club icon Steven Gerrard appearing on the big screen at Wembley during the Carabao Cup final.
Gerrard was shown on the big screens during the first half of Sunday’s showpiece game against Newcastle United, sitting alongside his friends and family. Seconds later, Sir Kenny Daglish was seen sitting in a hospitality area, prompting huge cheers from the packed-out Liverpool end.
After Gerrard’s brief cameo on screen, fans serenaded him with a deafening version of his song: “Steve Gerrard, Gerrard, he’s big and he’s f—— hard. He hits it from 40 yards, Steve Gerrard, Gerrard!”
The camera quickly switched away from Gerrard before fans could see his reaction to his song, but it’s clear to see he’s still adored by Reds fans.
Just minutes later, however, the smile was wiped straight off Gerrard’s face after Liverpool went a goal down right before the interval.
Newcastle center-back Dan Burn rose high at the back post to tower a header into the bottom corner, past goalkeeper Caomhin Kelleher – who could do little to stop the ball from trickling past him.
Arne Slot’s decision to drop goalkeeper Alisson Becker for Kelleher was the main talking point before kick-off, but Slot stated it wasn’t a tough call to make.
“It wasn’t difficult,” Slot said of his decision to start Kelleher. “It was only once when I played Alisson [in the League Cup] and that was only when he had been out injured and needed playing time to be back to his best. For all the other games, we have played the second choice. That was Jaros when Caoimhin was the No.1. Caoimhin has always done so well so deserves to play in this one.”
Things got worse for Slot’s Reds five minutes after the interval, as Alexander Isak found himself unmarked inside the area The Swede latched onto Jacob Murphy’s header to sweep the ball past Kelleher – to his right, again – and into the bottom corner.
The Reds got a late goal through substitute Federico Chiesa, but it was too little too late for the Premier League leaders, who miss out on a trophy for the second time this season. It’s been a terrible week for Liverpool, who crashed out of the Champions League to Paris Saint-Germain, now the focus will be on winning the title.
