Steven Gerrard

A complete and fiercely charismatic midfielder, Steven Gerrard was the emotional engine and symbolic heart of Liverpool for more than a decade. He could play almost anywhere in midfield and still look decisive: box-to-box runner, deep distributor, attacking midfielder, wide midfielder when duty called, and occasional emergency saviour, because apparently normal job descriptions bored him. Powerful, technically clean and mentally explosive, he combined long passing, shooting range, tackling, leadership and late runs into one of the most dramatic midfield profiles of his generation. He was not always the most tactically restrained player, but that same fire made him capable of dragging matches out of disaster by force of will. Istanbul remains the obvious monument, but his whole career was built on responsibility, intensity and loyalty. A captain, a weapon and Liverpool’s modern standard-bearer.