Gerrard Comes To Liverpool Rescue

Steven Gerrard today urged his
Liverpool teammates to quickly
overcome their Carling Cup
disappointment - and insisted
they will learn from the
experience of being knocked
out of the competition in the
same way he has done during
his Liverpool career.
The Reds were on the receiving
end of a cup shock as
Northampton battled to a 2-2
draw after extra time before
celebrating a 4-2 victory in the
penalty shoot-out as youngsters
David Ngog and Nathan Eccleston
missed from the spot.
Gerrard admits there's a feeling
of frustration inside the Reds'
camp following their unexpected
exit from the competition, but he
believes the defeat could
ultimately reap rewards in the
future.
"They will learn from this
experience. Football isn't just
about highs," he told
Liverpoolfc.tv in an exclusive
interview.
"Throughout my career I have
experienced both highs and lows
and probably learnt more from
the lows because you look at
yourself first, look at what went
wrong and try to learn from your
mistakes. The players are allowed
to be down today but it's up to
players like myself to pick them
back up because playing for this
club there are big games every
two or three days and we need
to get everyone's head focused
on Sunderland now.
"I can understand everyone's
frustration but I think the Carling
Cup now, when you're part of a
big club and a big squad, is all
about giving young players the
chance and the experience
because if you put a strong side
out then the kids will never get
the chance to experience playing
in front of big crowds and in big
competitions. There are still some
positives underneath the
frustration.
"Although we've gone out and
everyone is down and
disappointed, the experience
that would have given the lads in
the dressing room might be vital
for the future.
"The amount of ability and talent
in that squad was good enough
to roll Northampton over and I'm
sure nine times out of ten it
would have, but in cup football
sometimes a shock happens and
you slip on the banana. Those
players are still good players,
we're still a fantastic squad and
there's still a lot of things to
achieve this term and a lot of
football to be played. The last
thing we want now is for people
to be sulking with their heads
down because there's a massive
game in three days.
"No-one is hurting more than the
players who played. We've all
been there and all experienced it.
Everyone is disappointed and
down but it's not the end of the
world. It's gone now, it's
important we move on and think
about Sunderland and try to get
the three points."

Although one route to Wembley
has now been blocked, Gerrard
insists the players will be going
all out to give the fans a Cup final
day to look forward to when the
FA Cup gets underway in January.
"Even though it [Carling Cup]
wasn't the number one priority,
at the start of the season one of
the targets was to get to
Wembley," he added. "There are
only two chances so to lose one
so early is really frustrating. We
just need to try even harder now
in the FA Cup and make sure we
give it everything we've got
because the fans deserve a trip
to Wembley.
"All the main prizes are still out
there and there's still a good
chance to achieve them all, so
let's be upbeat and positive
moving forward.
"What I would ask all the
supporters is to trust the players
and what the players are saying.
I've been reading and listening
to what they've been saying and
they've all said we'll get it right in
the end - and we will."