Ex-Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet recalled Steven Gerrard‘s infamous slip against Chelsea, revealing the incident was taken personally but handled admirably by the legend. On April 27, 2014, Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool hosted the Blues while sitting three points clear at the top of the Premier League with only three games remaining.
Mignolet, who had joined the Reds from Sunderland the previous summer and played every minute of that league campaign, then witnessed the moment that followed and is now part of top-flight folklore. With the score standing a tense 0-0, Gerrard lost control of a Mamadou Sakho pass and then slipped, allowing Demba Ba to go through on goal and score.
This mishap and 2-0 loss eventually led to Liverpool‘s title collapse. The following game, they drew 3-3 with Crystal Palace and ultimately lost the crown to Manchester City. Despite Gerrard shouldering the blame, Mignolet praised him for his unwavering dedication and leadership.
“Looking back to it, now I’m older, and you can understand it a little bit better, especially being in his position when that happens,” Mignolet told Ben Foster’s Fozcast. “He’s done so much for the club, and it’s not only in that game but I think in any game he played for Liverpool. When you lose as a Liverpool player – especially as him – you take any loss personally.
“You feel for it, especially when this sort of thing happens. He took everything on his shoulders, and he took everything in his head. Looking back to it, it must have been so hard for him to deal with that.
“But, he was such a personality, and yeah, you can’t speak highly or more highly of a guy. Not only as a player. Because it was also off the pitch that he was such a role model for the club and for everybody who was there involved at the club.”
The legendary midfielder would play out one final season with his boyhood Reds before leaving for LA Galaxy in 2015, having been the club’s skipper since 2003, reports the Mirror.
“He was not the guy who was the big shouter,” admitted Mignolet when asked about Gerrard as a captain. “But he just let by example and all the things he did, how he behaved himself, how he was a professional.
“Also, the normal guy was still acting to be in his kind of situation; it’s not easy – it’s not straightforward. Being able to be part of a player in his dressing room, yeah, you learn so much from these kinds of people because it’s not only as a football player it’s also as a person. The way he was with every single individual on the pitch and off the pitch, it’s a credit to the person.”
Mignolet, now with Club Brugge, revealed he admired Gerrard for such characteristics, highlighting his personable nature over his football talents.
“Because he was such a good player but also such a personality, and then being able to just stay yourself, stay normal, for me, that’s more credit,” he added. “Of course, everybody looked up to his goals, the way he played, and all the talent he has. But then being able to stay yourself, stay calm, stay composed, and be normal, that’s actually a bigger credit, I think.”
