Former England and Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard announced his retirement from international football on this day in 2014.
Gerrard, widely regarded as one of the best midfielders of his generation, made 114 appearances for his country, placing him fourth on the all-time men’s list.
But while he often tops fan polls as Liverpool’s best player, Gerrard rarely reached the same heights for England during his 14-year international career.
His decision came after the Three Lions’ dismal performance at the 2014 World Cup, where Roy Hodgson’s team fell in the group stage.
The Whiston-born midfielder made his debut under Kevin Keegan aged 20 in a 2-0 win over Ukraine at Wembley in 2000 and was named in the squad for the European Championships later that summer, playing Germany in the group stage. .
It was against the Germans that he scored his first goal the following year, a memorable strike in a famous 5-1 win in World Cup qualifiers which, along with two goals in the 2006 World Cup, were arguably his best. moments in the England shirt. .
He would have had a place in history as the only Englishman to play in four World Cups had injury not kept him out of the 2002 tournament in Japan and South Korea.
On a personal level, he enjoyed a great career in England, captaining his country 38 times and scoring 21 goals.
But the disappointing World Cup campaigns of 2010 and 2014 – England emerged from the latter in Brazil bottom of their group and without a win – were hard for Gerrard to accept and, like the rest of the ‘Golden Generation’ of the Three Lions, retired without a victory. great international honour.
