Over his 17-year career at Liverpool, Steven Gerrard watch dozens of players come and go through the doors of Anfield.
However, there’s one name that stands out among the rest as a leading example of when the Reds got their recruitment ‘badly wrong’.
Speaking as a guest on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, Gerrard was asked whether he was ‘frustrated’ by the elements of Liverpool’s recruitment throughout his lengthy stint at the club and was even given the good grace by Ferdinand to avoid directly naming anyone.
But Gerrard was more than happy to name-drop one player who he felt was a clear example of when Liverpool did not spend their money wisely.
Which player did Gerrard name as an example of Liverpool fumbling their transfer business?
“We got recruitment badly wrong at times,” Gerrard said.
“Badly wrong at times. I’ll give you one example.
“We had the chance to sign Nicolas Anelka or El Hadji Diouf. And we bought El Hadji Diouf on the back of a four, five-game period in a World Cup. That was the decision. I don’t know who made the final decision.
“That’s one example of us as a club getting it wrong because that is one of the biggest mismatches you could debate, El Hadji Diouf or Nicolas Anelka.”
Why were Liverpool convinced to sign Diouf and how did his Anfield career pan out?
Diouf joined Liverpool in June 2002 after a stellar World Cup for Senegal.
At the tournament, Diouf delivered a man of the match display for the Lions of Teranga in their shock 1-0 win over France, who went into that World Cup as the defending champions.
Senegal made it all the way to the quarter-finals, where they were eventually knocked out by Turkey.
The run to the final eight remains Senegal’s greatest performance at a World Cup.
Diouf failed to score a single goal in 33 games for Liverpool during his second and last season at the clubAFP via GettyDespite his brilliance at the World Cup, Diouf failed to replicate his form for Liverpool as he scored just six goals from 80 appearances across all competitions.
He failed to find the net in 33 appearances during his second and final season for the club. The forward was then shipped off to Bolton Wanderers prior to the 2004/05 campaign.
What was Anelka like behind the scenes at Liverpool?
As for Anelka, Liverpool had the opportunity to sign him after the tricky forward spent the second half of the 2001/02 season on loan from Paris Saint-Germain.
The Frenchman had already proved himself capable of playing in the Premier League having spent two-and-a-half seasons with Arsenal in the late 90s, where he scored 23 league goals from 65 matches.
Even though Anelka netted just four times for the Reds, Gerrard and the rest of the squad were convinced of his qualities thanks to his wizardry with the ball in training.
“He came into our sessions, Anelka, coolest man ever,” Gerrard said.
Liverpool was one of six Premier League clubs Anelka called home during his glittering careerGetty“Calm, relaxed. You just knew he had that aura and that confidence in himself.
“He was ready to win. He was ready to help Liverpool win more or get closer to you guys (Manchester United) or wherever it was.
“Anelka was coming in and he was a level above. He was a level above.
“And then a decision was made and honestly, it was a complete mismatch. That was one example, I’ll give you, where I couldn’t believe what was happening.”
Gerrard and Liverpool could have done with a player of Anelka’s mentality and ilk in the 2013/14 Premier League season.
The Reds came agonisingly close to winning the top flight for the first time in the Premier League era but fell short by two points as Manchester City took home the spoils.
How Liverpool finished in the Premier League during Steven Gerrard's career at Anfield
1998/99: 7th
1999/00: 4th
2000/01: 3rd
2001/02: 2nd
2002/03: 5th
2003/04: 4th
2004/05: 5th
2005/06: 3rd
2006/07: 3rd
2007/08: 4th
2008/09: 2nd
2009/10: 7th
2010/11: 6th
2011/12: 8th
2012/13: 7th
2013/14: 2nd
2014/15: 6th
What made Liverpool’s fall at the final hurdle all the more soul-crushing was the fact they were in pole position with three games remaining.
But a 2-0 loss to Chelsea – a match made famous for Gerrard’s slip that allowed Demba Ba to steal the ball and score – coupled with a 3-3 draw against Crystal Palace having led 3-0 up until the 79th minute meant Liverpool’s agonising wait for a maiden Premier League title rumbled on.
Gerrard speaks out on how he felt after the infamous slip against Chelsea
Unfortunately for Gerrard, he had long departed Anfield as a player when Liverpool won the Premier League title in the 2019/20 season, but the infamous slip against Chelsea still haunts him to this day.
“I feel good speaking about the good stuff,” Gerrard said.
“Istanbul, Olympiacos, the FA Cup, England… anyway, you feel great.
“And when I do interviews or I see a clip on the telly and I see a s*** back pass I gave away for England, or I underperformed for England, missed a penalty for England, I feel s***.
Gerrard’s slip lives long in the memory of Liverpool fans for all the wrong reasonsSky Sports“The Chelsea thing is exactly the same. It makes me feel s***. It is what it is. I’ve got to live with it, I’ve managed it, control it.
“Does it pop up every day of my life? No, it doesn’t. Do I have to accept it and be man enough? Yeah, I can’t change it.”
Gerrard added: “I hate underachieving. And I sit here now still here not winning the Premier League. Not just that year, every single year I competed in it.
“Because I felt at Liverpool Football Club, being the captain, I should have delivered that. So I have to take responsibility and own that.
“But I don’t overthink about individual moments, good or bad. I just deal with them as they come up. But they do come in and out of my thoughts because, I suppose, I’m human.”
Listen to the full interview with Steven Gerrard on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast here.
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