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Gerrard would have won more trophies had he left Liverpool, says ex-England striker Emile Heskey

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Former England and Liverpool striker Emile Heskey believes that Steven Gerrard would have had a better trophy cabinet had he left the Reds.

"Chelsea wanted him, so did Real Madrid and I think it's safe to say that if would've taken those steps, he would have had championships. But he's won what he's won. He's still a wonderful player and person. Maybe he doesn't have the trophy cabinet, but that doesn't take away how people see him. Everybody loves him."

Heskey, who's on a visit to Mumbai to promote the English Premier League, feels that the Liverpool captain isn't as great as he used to be, but has shouldered a lot of responsibility throughout his career.

"Honestly, he isn't quite the player he used to be. He was the driving force for Liverpool and England for many years. That's two major teams. At Liverpool now, he still has a massive part to play, not only in the first team, but the younger kids. He can influence kids to take up the sport, just like I was influenced by some of the heroes I saw on the television."

More than influencing kids, Heskey says that Gerrard motivates the team when they're down. "Certain players have the ability to pick their team after a defeat or if they aren't having a good time of the field. (David) Beckham, and (Michael) Owen had it. (Wayne) Rooney has it, and Stevie too falls in that category."

Liverpool haven't been having that great a season as compared to last year, when they relied on the magic of a certain Luis Suarez, but Heskey believes that they just need a good game to resurrect themselves.

"Everyone thought that the game against (Tottenham) Spurs would be catalyst to go on for bigger and better things (Liverpool won 3-0), but they've gone kind of backwards after that. They've got a better squad, but not a better first team."

Heskey, who's training at Bolton Wanderers with a hope of earning a contract, feels that for India to become a super-power in football, it will take some time. He says that the only way forward is to have a proper grassroots programme.

"Grassroots is very important. We have a football culture in England. I grew up in that structure. I was part of grassroots programmes with Leicester (City) at the age of 10 and went on from there. So I think it's important to have some structure.

"The quality of Indians kids that I've seen is pretty much the same as those in my country. It's just that we have a better footballing culture. I'm 36, and England had a structure even before I was born so we'll progress better than you guys. With one billion people, you could produce could how many ever stars you'll want, if you'll follow the structure." anil.dias@dnaindia.
 

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