STEVEN GERRARD WILL have the mental strength to bounce back from his Chelsea nightmare, former midfield partner Didi Hamann said.
Gerrard’s slip against Chelsea gifted Manchester City control of the title race and left Liverpool’s bid for a first league in 24 years teetering on the brink with just two games to play.
From leading the league by five points a week ago, Brendan Rodgers’ side could now be third by the time they kick off against Crystal Palace on Monday evening.
The irony of Gerrard losing his footing was particularly cruel following his rallying cry after the win against Manchester City last month.
But Hamann, who played alongside Liverpool’s skipper from 1999 to 2006, said that he’s the best equipped player to deal with such a setback.
“There’s not much to dwell on,” Hamann told TheScore.ie on Thursday. “It happened.
“It’s unfortunate that it happened to him but it happened to the best of them.
“I think everybody saw after the City game how much it would mean to him to win the title but I think he will cope with it better than other players would do.
“If you’re new to the club or a player who doesn’t have such a great influence on the team, something like this could break players or maybe even careers.
Some players never recover from things they have done or mistakes they have made. With him it won’t be the case. He knows what’s required and he’s a professional.
“He’s made mistakes in the past. Yes it’s unfortunate to have it in a game like that but I’d rather have the mistake happen to him than to anybody else because I’m sure he’ll cope better than anybody else.”
Liverpool will now look to their Merseyside rivals Everton who can do them a massive favour by taking points off Man City when the sides meet at Goodison Park tomorrow evening.
Everton’s own pursuit of Champions League qualification looks set to fall just short, with Arsenal needing just one win from their last two game to clinch the fourth and final spot.
If City fail to win, it would put Liverpool’s destiny back in their own hands — and while that might be unpalatable for some Toffees fans, Hamman says it won’t be a factor in how Roberto Martinez and his players approach the game.
Roberto Martinez wants the best for his football club, for his team and for his fans. If that means making Liverpool champions then he will do that because he gets paid by Everton. He’s got nothing else on his mind than the best for Everton Football Club.
“It won’t be on the players’ minds. They won’t care who wins the league.
“They’ve still got a chance to finish fourth so he will play their best team.
“They’ll miss Mirallas who is injured and Barry can’t play against his parent club but they had a disappointing result last week and they’ll want to bounce back. They’ll want to keep that small chance alive.”
Hamann, who was on the losing end in his first Merseyside derby in September 1999 — a game in which Gerrard was sent off late on — says there is a special rivalry between the clubs.
It’s hostile between the fans when the teams play against each other but apart from that, I think there is great respect.”
“You saw that at the Hillsborough memorial for the 25th anniversary — you saw Everton fans there, Everton flags, you heard the Everton manager talking.
“There’s a huge respect for the other club but obviously for the 90 or 180 minutes you play against each other, that goes out the window and you want to win, but apart from that there’s a lot of respect.”
“There’s always rivalry in cities where there’s two clubs but I think it’s as respectful as it can be in Liverpool.”
