Aston Villa boss Steven Gerrard ranks Jürgen Klopp’s current Liverpool team
Liverpool FC has seen some incredible sides over the years, but legend of the club, Gerrard, has his take on where this side fit into that.
Jürgen Klopp is overseeing “the best Liverpool team there has been”, according to club legend Steven Gerrard.
Liverpool remain in the hunt for an unprecedented quadruple this season, though a 1-1 draw with Tottenham at the weekend saw them slip three points adrift of Premier League leaders Manchester City. Despite the Reds winning the European Cup and Champions League six times in their history, Gerrard believes the current crop is the best they have ever had.
The best version of Liverpool FC
“Because of the way the game has changed – it’s gone quicker, it’s gone faster – I think you’re probably watching the best Liverpool team there has been. That’s due to the speed, mentality and intensity of this current group,” said Gerrard.
“But I say that without disrespecting previous Liverpool teams because I grew up watching them. The European Cup winners, serial league title winners – I grew up on all of that. I’m well aware they’ve previously had world-class players, managers and teams.”
Liverpool will have the chance to win the Champions League again when they take on Real Madrid in the final in Paris on 28 May.
But Gerrard’s Aston Villa will hope to put another dent in Liverpool’s lofty ambitions for the campaign when they meet in the Premier League on Tuesday. Villa won the corresponding fixture last season 7-2, but they have not won consecutive home league matches against the Reds since February 1998.
“We’ve got to make sure we’re brave enough and show enough quality to hurt Liverpool,” he said.
“I’m never going to set a team up to just suffer for 90 minutes, but I don’t want that to be gung-ho or careless. It has to be calculated.
“At times we’ll have to suffer but if we do that together and get through those situations, we believe with the form we’re in, we’ll have some interesting moments in the game. That’s what Tottenham did. They were organised, they were patient, and when their moments came, they did cause Liverpool some problems.”