Steven Gerrard: Walking alone in a blaze of glory

December 8 (2004) - Calm before the storm?

Greek champions Olympiakos Piraeus lead Liverpool by a goal to nil at half-time, in an exciting Champions League group game at Anfield.

As referee Manuel Mejuto González brings proceedings to a close, the 42,045 strong crowd have gone dead quiet, knowing the fact that Liverpool now have a mammoth task at hand, if they are to have any hope to qualify for the knock-out stages.

Liverpool have been stunned by Rivaldo's spectacular free-kick in the 27th minute, and as Steven Gerrard leads his wards into the dressing room tunnel, the skipper very well knows that his side now needs to score three goals without reply, to barnstorm into the Round of 16.

So as the Greeks look jubilant, after tying down the Reds for the majority of the first-half, little do they know about the ensuing backlash that would later blow them to pieces!

Comeback kings. Anfield erupts!

Eighty minutes have passed and Liverpool have somehow fought their way back into the contest.

Goals from Florent Sinama-Pongolle and Neil Mellor have catapulted the Reds into a 2-1 lead, and as Gerrard hollers out orders, what happens next will forever be etched into Kop history!

86th minute...

As Liverpool slowly but surely marshal their way into Greek territory, Gerrard is flailing away, urging his boys to have one last go at the enemy bastion.

With the Greeks all but pushing the panic button, Liverpool are swarming all over the place, hoping to pummel the goal, in a bid to grab that elusive winner.

So as a wayward ball strays into Gerrard's path from the left, Anfield watches on with bated breath...

Gerrard, you beauty!

Goal!

Gerrard fires in a 22-yard cannon-ball which rockets past keeper Antonios Nikopolidis, leaving the Kop in a state of delirium!

Liverpool are leading 3-1 now, and as the shell-shocked Greeks gape on, Gerrard has just fired his side into the knock-out stages.

As the entire stadium erupts, with an hysterical Andy Gray forever getting himself immortalised in commentary history, Liverpool have pulled off a stunning comeback, which was all but unthinkable at the start of the contest.

With the final whistle going off, it is Liverpool - 3 Olympiakos - 1.

On march the Reds. Round of 16, here we come!

Hero of Istanbul

Steven Gerrard inspired Liverpool to a famous win in the 2005 Champions League final (Getty images)

That match symbolised the never-say-die spirit of Gerrard, who later replicated similar heroics on that famous night in Istanbul, as he inspired the club to a dramatic comeback win over AC Milan in the final.

The 2005 season saw Gerrard at the forefront of things for Liverpool, as the skipper resembled a hound-terrier, snapping opponents into submission.

If his headed goal against Milan eventually proved to be the catalyst for a famous Liverpool win, who can forget his superhuman efforts throughout the game, which spurred on a beleaguered side to knock out the mighty Italians.

The most notable memory of Gerrard banding together a battered side, would of course be his constant switch from attack to defence, throughout 120 minutes of enthralling football, as a stupendous tackle on Milan's Serginho showcased his fighting spirit.

As Jerzey Dudek parried off Andriy Shevchenko's tame effort from the spot in the subsequent shoot-out, Liverpool had sensationally beaten Milan, after being 3-0 down at half-time.

And as Istanbul got covered in a mist of red post that magical night, Liverpool and Gerrard had just come of age.

FA Cup magic

Post that sensational win at Istanbul, Gerrard lit up Cardiff in 2006, as he inspired Liverpool to another comeback win, this time against WestHam United in the FA Cup final.

Two sensational goals showcased the grit that he had instilled in Liverpool, as the team fought back from 2-0 down to clinch the tie on penalties.

Most memorable was his 35-yard piledriver at the fag end, to which Hammers' keeper Shaka Hislop had no answer to, which only shows that the skipper is the best man to go for when in trouble.

As Gerrard held aloft the FA Cup at the Millennium Stadium with his band of overjoyed teammates, the question arose as to whether Gerrard could keep conjuring such exploits.

Aftermath

Gerrard once again soldiered a crack Liverpool outfit to the Champions League final at Athens in 2007, where unfortunately they came up short against a Filippo Inzaghi inspired Milan.

Though Liverpool were outdone by Inzaghi's twin strikes, still Gerrard shut up critics who said that the 2005 win was a 'big fluke'.

Other notable highlights of his stellar career involved scoring in the famous 4-1 rout of Manchester United at Old Trafford in 2009, and also winning the 2012 League Cup after a tensed affair with Cardiff City.

The lows were of course handing over the Premier League title on a platter to Manchester City, after his disastrous slip in the crunch game against Chelsea in 2014, and also Liverpool's dismal run in European competitions post 2007, which saw them crash out in the first hurdle on numerous occasions.

Despite coming close to winning the Premier League title on two occasions (2008-09 and 2013-14), it was clear enough that Gerrard alone could not carry the massive hopes of a million Kopeites, and league glory was all but out of question for the lad from Whiston.

Steven Gerrard may well lament about not winning a Premier League title with Liverpool (Getty images)

As news filters in that Gerrard has all but decided to ply his wares in the United States, at the end of the ongoing season, the maverick skipper may well lament the fact that winning the Premier League with a rag-tag bunch was always going to be too big an ask.

If winning the Champions League and FA Cup did establish Gerrard as a true-blue Kop hero, still, not winning the League even once would be something that would haunt him in the years to come by.

So as Gerrard walks away from the shadows of Liverpool, into the mega-bucks of MLS, he has done enough to give some glimmer of hope to Liverpool fans, amidst the domineering era of Alex Ferguson and also the iron-fisted hold of cash-rich Chelsea and Manchester City.

Whether Liverpool do or do not win the League in the years to come by, as Andy Gray put it on that memorable night at Anfield, 'Oh you beauty Gerrard'!