Steven Gerrard looked a devastated figure after Liverpool beat his Aston Villa outfit this evening.
Gerrard coming back to Anfield as an opposition manager was quite an interesting spectacle but, ultimately, he returns to the Midlands empty-handed.
Liverpool beat the 41-year-old’s outfit 1-0 courtesy of a second-half Mohamed Salah penalty.
Here’s a photo of Gerrard embracing his side’s primary tormentor after the full-time whistle – and other images of the Scouse-born trainer looking a tad forlorn.
Disappointment
If Gerrard was disappointed, it was probably at himself.
Okay there was some dubious penalty decisions – to award Liverpool a spot-kick and deny the Villans one at the death.
But ultimately, Gerrard didn’t set Aston Villa up to be anywhere near courageous enough on Merseyside.
Yes, Liverpool are an absolute wrecking ball for opposition teams, and had scored 17 goals in their last six outings before the Midlands outfit came to town.
However, parking the bus is never a smart strategy at Anfield and in retrospect Gerrard himself might acknowledge that the visitors should have potentially been a little more attack-minded.
Nonetheless, the iconic midfielder has still won three of his first five Premier League games since returning to England, losing only to Manchester City and Liverpool.
All things considered, this wasn’t a detrimental result for Aston Villa.
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