My Story

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Zidane's praise inadvertently betrayed that he actually knew very little about Gerrard. Sure, Gerrard ran more than most players and had a dynamic energy, but he was not the "engine room" in the way that Makélélé was at Real Madrid. In fact, it's difficult to think of a midfielder less like Gerrard than Makélélé. There are a couple of inexplicable errors. For example, in the section on the World Cup Group, Costa Rica is described as a “tiny island.” Of course, it’s not an island at all. It’s located on the Central American isthmus, between Nicaragua and Panama, as one look at Google Maps could have told the author.

Gonlum isterdi ki bu kitabi Arsenal taraftari bir hayalet yazar degil de Steven'in kendisi yazmis olsun. Cunku gercekten cok iyi bir is cikarmislar. Akici, guzel cumleler, duyuguyu tamamen yansitan sozukler. Anadilim Ingilizce olmamasina ragmen zevk alarak zorlanmadan okudum.There really are some great football biographies out there, to name a few I'd go with Paul Gascoigne's Gazza : My Story (which really is extraordinary with it's describtion of Gazza's trouble with alcohol and a struggle against a fragile psyche) or A Life Too Short: The Tragedy of Robert Enke (which is more of a story about a man battling [and losing to] depression in the macho-world of modern football). I also enjoyed Alex Ferguson's autobiography (and this comes from a diehard fan of Liverpool FC). Tidak hanya pencapaian karier, saya juga membaca kisah emosionalnya terhadap rekan satu tim--baik LFC maupun timnas Inggris--dan opininya terhadap pemain atau pelatih di luar klubnya. Saya baru tahu kalau Rafa Benitez dingin bahkan pada Gerrard, tidak pernah sekalipun memanggilnya Stevie seperti Brendan Rodgers. Stevie juga sangat mengagumi Mourinho--penyebab kegalauannya ketika ditawari Chelsea--hingga ia berkata bahwa idealnya Mourinho-lah yang memanageri LFC saja. Kuotasi dari Mourinho tentang Stevie yang masih saya ingat inilah buktinya:

Gerrard was never really a general. Deep down, he's always been a star. In 2009, he scored twice as Liverpool beat Real Madrid 4-0, prompting Zinedine Zidane to comment: "Is he the best in the world? He might not get the attention of Messi and Ronaldo, but yes, I think he just might be. If you don't have a player like Steven Gerrard, who is the engine room, it can affect the whole team. When we were winning league titles and European Cups at Real, I always said Claude Makélélé was our most important player. There is no way myself, Figo, or Raúl would have been able to do what we did without Claude. The same goes for Liverpool and Gerrard." Cinta kedua adalah khususnya pada Liverpool dan teman-temannya yang bermain bersamanya. Tugasnya sebagai kapten tidak hanya berlaku di lapangan, tapi juga di luar. Siapakah yang akhirnya menolong Suarez dari berbagai kejadian penuh skandal? Stevie. Mereka bersahabat, dan sahabat saling membantu. Ketika Suarez akhirnya tak tahan dengan Liverpool, ia meminta Stevie membicarakannya pada manajemen agar dia dibolehkan pindah. Stevie justru menahannya setahun dan berjanji, 'Jika Barcelona datang lagi tahun depan, kau boleh pindah.' Namun ada satu hal yang ia tak mau lakukan demi klub--hak citra. Memang sudah kewajibannya tampil di iklan yang menjadi sponsor LFC, namun kalau menyangkut soal hak citra, ia tak akan mengambilnya. Baginya, sekalinya kau terikat pada LFC, jiwa ragamulah untuknya, tanpa pamrih. Itu sudah jadi kewajibanmu, dan bonus memang menarik, tapi ia tak mau akhirnya dikenal sebagai bintang iklan. Namun, Stevie memberi pengecualian pada Messi dan Christiano Ronaldo.Jika kamu bertanya pada Kopites--sebutan penggemar Liverpool FC di luar kota Liverpool--generasi 90an terutama dari Indonesia bagaimana awalnya mereka menyukai LFC, jawabannya hampir selalu sama. Steven Gerrard. Setidaknya itulah yang saya tangkap dari cerita-cerita fans di situs LFC Indonesia. Dan, saya setuju. Ada satu kualitas--selain kemampuan bermain sepak bola dan kepemimpinannya--yang saya tangkap dari Stevie di layar kaca dan saya temukan juga di buku ini: kejujuran. Buku ini seolah konfirmasi atas kejujurannya yang saya temukan di media lain. Tidak ada fakta yang betul-betul mengejutkan. Ini bisa dilihat dari ceritanya tentang pemain favorit untuk bermain bersama--Fernando Torres, Xabi Alonso, Luis Suarez. Saya sudah melihat semua bukti nyatanya di lapangan, betapa Stevie menyayangi mereka semua bahkan sampai mereka meninggalkan Liverpool. But the first thing Gerrard must do is repair Villa’s defence. That was a job Smith accomplished in his first season after promotion, and the signing of Emi Martínez brought even more solidity last season. But those gains have somehow got lost this season, with only Newcastle and Norwich conceding more goals. Curiously, Villa even became more vulnerable at set pieces despite hiring a specialist coach in the summer. Gerrard will be bringing a new one. Not a top, top player" might not sound like the most scathing verdict – it allows for being merely "top" – but make no mistake: Ferguson was saying that Gerrard was really nothing special, and coming from someone like Sir Alex, that hurts. Ferguson is above showing his workings; he leaves it to readers to work out why he doesn't rate Gerrard among the elite. The clue is in that word bravado, with its connotation of pretence, of something feigned. I got really nostalgic at times, and amazed. I laughed a lot and cried a little. I'm not ashamed to admit this. This is what football can do. It can make grown men get really emotional. And a few players have the ability to enhance this even more. None more so than Steven Gerrard. With his talent and determination. His unbelievable goals. His leadership. Countless Captain Fantastic performances. And most of all with his passion and love for the game and for Liverpool Football Club.

I tried to bring him to Chelsea, I tried to bring him to Inter, I tried to bring him to Real Madrid--but he was always a dear enemy." Kala itu Stevie kecil menangis di kamarnya setelah mendapat surat penolakan. Kemudian ia berteriak pada ayahnya bagaimana bisa seorang kapten Liverpool Boys tidak bisa lolos tes dan bersumpah tidak akan bermain sepak bola lagi. Ayahnya kemudian mengatakan begini, El Hadji Diouf certainly won't be pleased after reading this. Rafa might have mixed feelings as well. But, it is great to see the regard that Gerrard has for great football players, irrespective of the club rivalry with their teams. In particular, the chapters on Istanbul and 'the slip' are brilliant to read. On more than a few occasions, I had moist eyes as I recalled the ups and downs of the legend's career.Stevie G, layak dikenang sebagai salah seorang pemain terbaik di dunia. Mungkin tidak dalam mendekati level seperti "Messi" atau "Ronaldo-CR7". Namun eksplosivitas, kemampuan terbaik mengangkat tim, dan kinerja memukau di lapangan membuat sang Skipper berada di hati banyak penggemar berat Liverpool. Saya rasa hal yang sama juga berada di benak khalayak pecinta sepakbola.