CARSON, Calif. – Steven Gerrard’s recent form has not been up to the Englishman's high standards, but he insists that he needs to “shake off” any malaise heading into Wednesday’s decisive Knockout Round match against Seattle Sounders FC.
During the Galaxy’s 2-1 defeat to Sporting Kansas City on Sunday, Gerrard was utilized in a more advanced role than he in previous weeks. The move saw Gerrard pushed closer to Robbie Keane and Giovani dos Santos while Juninho was placed in a more holding role.
The shift seemed to work, as the Englishman was able to find spaces behind the forwards while also opening up room for LA’s attackers to behind the defense. But there was one thing was lacking: the final product.
“I think that we’ve done everything great until the last pass and the last finish. That explains the reason why everyone is a bit flat and a bit down today because we haven’t finished the good move and the good play off,” said Gerrard, who has tallied two goals and three assists in 13 appearances. “We haven’t rewarded ourselves for all the good play. Football can be a tough game if you don’t make that last play or score that important goal. It can make you feel this way.
“We’ve got to shake it off because there’s a massive game on Wednesday. No one is feeling more disappointed or down or flat than me at the moment. I’m one of the experienced players in the dressing room, and I need to lead the way.”
No play from Sunday sticks in Gerrard’s mind more than his chance in the 43rd minute. Set in acres of space by a well-timed pass from Dos Santos, Gerrard found himself alone on goal only to see his shot saved by Sporting KC goalkeeper Tim Melia.
“I’ve played it 50 times in my sleep. That’s the type of player I am, I over-analyze, and it got me to where I am today,” Gerrard said. “Nothing’s going to change on that. I drive myself batty all day. This game on Wednesday cannot come quick enough. The only time you can heal is when you should score or slip a teammate in. … Time to find that last, little piece of the jigsaw.”
Although Gerrard didn’t get on the score sheet against Kansas City, Bruce Arena was pleased with his performance.
“He was part of a lot of good attacking plays. Unfortunately, we fell short on all of them. I think we get that a little bit cleaner, where he and others have a chance to score some goals in Seattle,” said Arena. “The way we want to play is when we have the ball be dangerous. We’re not diagramming things on a napkin. I think the way they played yesterday we were real close to being real good.”
Will Gerrard play a similar role on Wednesday? Only time will tell, but no matter where he plays: be it as a more of a holding midfielder or in an advanced position, he’s got to get back to winning ways.
“I’ll be ready for whatever he has asked of me, but hopefully, I can go one better next time and try to make up for not contributing [on Sunday],” said Gerrard. “It’s been a tough overnight sleep being disappointed with not finishing that chance in the first half or finding Keane in the second half. But we’ve got no time to feel sorry for ourselves; the big game is in 48 hours. It’s a cup final.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog at www.LAGalaxy.com/Insider and contact him at LAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com.