Liverpool’s £15m Man Could Be Key To Prolonging Gerrard’sCareer.

With liverpool captain and England mid-fielder, Steven Gerrard ruled out of
England's friendly against Chile
on Friday night and potentially a
doubt for the clash with Germany
on Tuesday, Liverpool fans will
have breathed a sigh of relief.
The Reds captain's fitness has
been teetering precariously on
the edge, a combination of the
ravages of age and a succession
of injuries meaning that Gerrard
is never far away from being
ruled out for months at a time.
This season especially has
introduced a sense of mortality to
Gerrard's aura, a suggestion that
the midfielder can no longer keep
up his high standards week in,
week out.
There's always been a hint of
such weakness over the past few
seasons, but every time the issue
was raised Gerrard would
dismiss such absurd notions with
a barnstorming performance
against whichever unfortunate
team he would face that week.
That was the case once more
against Fulham at the weekend,
but such performances are
becoming far and few in between
nowadays.
Steven Gerrard's Squawka
performance graph in Liverpool's
4-0 win over Fulham.
Former Liverpool boss Rafael
Benitez recognised the warning
signs with Frank Lampard last
season, and managed him
effectively by reducing his game
time.
Brendan Rodgers must do the
same for Gerrard, by whittling
his time on the pitch slowly but
surely, prolonging his usefulness
to the cause much like Sir Alex
Ferguson has done with Ryan
Giggs and Paul Scholes.
And in Joe Allen, Rodgers has the
perfect rotation partner.
The Welshman has expressed his
frustration recently at the lack of
first-team opportunities and, with
Gerrard fading, perhaps this is
the right time to reintegrate Allen
back into the side.
Joe Allen's average passing
accuracy ratings from 2012/13.
Allen was superb in the opening
stages of last season, deputising
for the absent Gerrard with
aplomb and providing an assured
presence in a new regime under
Rodgers.
A shoulder injury would soon
cost him his place in the side, but
now that he is fully recovered,
there is no reason why the Wales
international cannot reprise his
role whenever Gerrard needs a
rest.
Gerrard has at most one or two
years left as a first-team regular
at the top level, which means
Rodgers needs to start preparing
for life without the Liverpool
icon.
Reintroducing Allen would be an
excellent first step in future-
proofing Liverpool's midfield.
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