Pictured is Liverpool FC captain Steven Gerrard during an exhibition match at Soldier Field in Chicago. Gerrard will leave the club in the summer in favor of the LA Galaxy of the MLS. Pit file photo
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his evening, reports quickly trickled out that Steven Gerrard — long-time Liverpool F.C. Captain — had signed an 18-month pro-rated contact with MLS to join the Los Angeles Galaxy.
The contract will apparently kick in sometime this summer (July 1st is the official start of the Transfer Window, so that would make sense) after his contract at Anfield officially runs out. The contract will pay Gerrard roughly $6 million each season, which means he’ll make roughly $9 million over the course of the contract.
These numbers are not official as The Telegraph in England is reporting that the contract is as high as £20 million, which is a hell of a lot more than what most MLS reporters are tweeting out this evening.
When there’s an official announcement, we’ll know as MLS makes all player salaries public knowledge.
The funny part about all of this is that nobody seems to be happy that this is even happening, with the exception of MLS and the L.A. Galaxy.
Contract talks started up towards the beginning of the season between Chairman Tom Werner and Owner John Henry with Gerrard, but it was quickly becoming apparent that the two sides were far apart on any type of deal. Gerrard’s reported wages are £140,000 per week, or roughly £7.2 million ($11.1 million) per year. While there were no numbers officially coming out from either side, the belief around Anfield is that Gerrard’s agent was looking to get close to that for his client as his final contract before retiring.
Liverpool, however, didn’t see it the same way and wanted Gerrard to move more into a player/coach role that would see him start far less matches.
After a couple of months of reported negotiations, contract talks broke down a few days ago and MLS swooped in quickly to get Gerrard to move state-side.
So, the big question is this: Is Gerrard making the right move? Let’s look at it from all angles before I give a personal opinion.
Firstly, Gerrard is getting the largest contract he’s going to get by moving to Los Angeles. Nobody was going to pay Gerrard anywhere close to what he was looking for, given that he will be 35 years old at season’s end and his skill set has broken down to the point where it’s hard to even classify him as a holding midfielder anymore. He had a solid season during Liverpool’s magical run last year, only to fall short in the end. Gerrard’s slip against Chelsea is going to be burned into everyone’s memory as the breaking point of the season, along with their collapse against Crystal Palace that allowed Manchester City to win the Premier League for the second time in three seasons. Most everyone who isn’t a delusional fan can see that he’s breaking down and simply can’t play at the highest level anymore. MLS, however, is more than willing to bring him in for star power, so that part of the deal works out very nicely for Gerrard.
Secondly, Liverpool made the right move in not caving in. Yes, Gerrard is a Liverpool legend and it will be strange to see him wearing anything other than the red kit, but Liverpool is going to be a better team without Gerrard on the pitch. The Reds have suffered through a horrendous first half of the season that sees them sitting 8th with just 29 points. While it isn’t crazy to think that they can climb back into the top four to earn one of the coveted Champions’ League positions, it just doesn’t seem plausible. Their talent that was purchased this summer with the money earned from selling Luis Suarez to FC Barcelona has fizzled at best. Dejan Lovren has been a massive disappointment on the back line. Adam Lallana has had flashes of good spells, but he’s been average at best. Divock Origi was sent out on loan, only for reports to pop up that he was being recalled and will cost Liverpool a rather large fee to do so. Mario Balotelli has been an utter disaster after coming over from A.C. Milan. In short, this has not been a great follow up to last year’s success. Liverpool failed to make the knockout stages of the Champions League and have fallen into the Europa League, drawn into a tough fixture with Besiktas J.K. of the Turkish Superlig.
Essentially, Liverpool needs to look towards the future, and that future will be without Steven Gerrard.
Nobody on Merseyside wanted this to happen, but it was inevitable with Gerrard’s lackluster form this season. It’s going to hurt the supporters to see this happen at the end of the season, but Gerrard kept his word by saying he would never play for another English team in his career. By moving to MLS, he’s guaranteed that he’ll never face Liverpool at Anfield in an opposing kit.
My personal opinion on this is that I think Gerrard is making a bad move (only if the reports of the player/coach deal are true), and here’s why:
MLS has been transitioning each season to a league that is more about pace. Gerrard will provide leadership in the midfield, but he’s going to have a hell of a time keeping up with the best strikers and attacking midfielders in the league like Bradley Wright-Phillips, Obafemi Martins, Kekuta Manneh, Federico Higuain, Osvaldo Alonso, Dominic Oduro, and so on. Gerrard will have a difficult time dealing with players like this, even on a Galaxy team that won the MLS Cup last season. Yes, this is more than likely a money grab for Gerrard to simply cash in for the final time in his career, but is it really worth it?
I’m not a Liverpool supporter as my allegiance lies in North London with Tottenham, but I’m still a fan of the sport. Steven Gerrard anywhere other than Liverpool just seems odd. The club has repeatedly said that Gerrard will always have a place at the club, no matter what, and that’s great to hear. They may not have come together on a deal for a final contract, but expect Gerrard back on Merseyside after his time at Los Angeles is done. It will more than likely be in some type of ambassador role if he isn’t interested in coaching or managing, and that’s what makes me question the move. Why not take the pay cut and opt to be a player/coach? Nobody questions Gerrard at Liverpool, and he would fit into a role such as that nicely. Perhaps he doesn’t want his legacy to be tarnished if he turns out to not be a good coach. It’s all speculation at this point.
Come July, MLS will welcome Steven Gerrard to Los Angeles. Fans of the sport will get to see him up close and personal for 18 months. It’s great for the league. It’s great for the fans. It’s great for Steven Gerrard.
Yet it just feels so, so wrong.
