Steven Gerrard can stand the heat, says Brendan Rodgers
Liverpool boss says his captain will not be haunted by the slip that cost his side the title last year when they meet Chelsea at Anfield
Brendan Rodgers insists there is no chance Steven Gerrard will crack under pressure when the Liverpool captain bids for redemption against Chelsea today.
Gerrard endured one of the worst moments of his career when the Reds midfielder last faced Chelsea in April as his disastrous slip allowed Demba Ba to score the goal that shattered Liverpool's challenge to win the title for the first time since 1990.
He has had hard moments in his career and he always responds magnificently. There was no blame. It was just an unfortunate thing
The 34-year-old has been below his best since that mistake and his spluttering campaign, which mirrors his team's own struggles, suffered another blow on Tuesday when he was restricted to a 20-minute substitute appearance in the 1-0 Champions League loss at Real Madrid.
"He has had hard moments in his career and he always responds magnificently. There was no blame. It was just an unfortunate thing," Rodgers said of the slip now immortalised by Chelsea fans in a taunting chant.
"He was instrumental in our run last year and how well we played. He is a big character and bounces back from that. It shows you the character of Steven."
Adding more spice to the clash is the lingering bad blood after Rodgers' criticism of Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho's cautious tactics in their 2-0 win at Anfield last season. Chelsea midfielder Nemanja Matic reignited the feud this week when he said Liverpool had only themselves to blame for failing to prise open the Blues defence.