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Gerrard announces departure from LA Galaxy

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After a tumultuous two seasons in MLS, Steven Gerrard has announced he will join fellow expat Frank Lampard and depart from his team.

The LA Galaxy announced that Gerrard would not return to the team for the 2017 season, ending the former Liverpool star’s tenure in MLS. Over a season and a half, Gerrard appeared in 34 matches, scoring five goals and notching 14 assists for the Galaxy en route to two playoff appearances.

“When I left Liverpool, I came to Los Angeles with the goal of helping the Galaxy lift another MLS Cup,” said Gerrard. “I am of course disappointed to have not achieved that objective, but I can look back at my time at the club with pride at what we accomplished, including two straight playoff appearances and countless memorable moments on the pitch.

“As someone who spent the whole of their career in Liverpool, it has been an incredible experience to come to Los Angeles and play for the LA Galaxy. I would like to thank Mr. Anschutz, Dan Beckerman, Chris Klein and Bruce Arena for this opportunity. I would also like to thank my teammates, the coaching staff, all of the support staff and most importantly the fans for their fantastic support during my time at Galaxy; I am excited to see this league and this great club continue to grow.”

Gerrard has made no secret of his continued desire to return to Liverpool in some capacity, with most pundits pegging him for a coaching position in the near future. He has not stated his intent to return to England at this time, but it surely remains an option as he considers his next move.

“I am now looking forward to spending time with my family as I consider the next stage of my career.”

Comments

  1. I like the class and heart Gerrard brings, and I think this is the right move for all parties. Steve was a great player for Liverpool, but his legs have gone. MLS is a physical, tough league played in various climates, from very hot to very cold, that incorporates a lot of traveling at levels that perhaps foreign league players aren’t used to. It’s tough on anyone, but especially on an aging war horse like Gerrard.

    I wish him the best of luck, and it will be nice to see him retire in a Liverpool shirt. Additionally, I hope this spurs teams like the Galaxy, LAFC, Red Bull NY, NYCFC, etc. to look for the giovincos out there as opposed to the big, bling names like Lampard and Gerrard, because in the end the league may not be one of the elite yet, but it’s not a retirement league either.

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  2. Good, waste if money and time. Wasn’t a good fit, was a up pises to be Lamps anyway. Then Sascha, but MLS magically blocked that. Take that money to South America or Africa and get a 21-27 year old. And a new keeper

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    • Or get picked up by another MLS team. Robbie has talked about wanting to stay in the league, whether it’s with LA or not, and I’m sure that if LA don’t pick him back up some other team will be willing to pay DP money for him.

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  3. Couldn’t cut it… the aging stars don’t understand what they are getting into if they think they can just play a little knock around exhibiton style football when they come to the US… you have to be hungry like Robbie Keane… MLS is a physically taxing league if your heart is not in it.

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    • The most fun I’ve had at an MLS game in a long time was Gerrard’s first game in Houston, in which he ran all over the field for the first 15 minutes before succumbing to the Texas heat and slowly walking up and down the pitch for majority of the remaining time, while getting lustily booed by two Sunderland fans in front of me every time he touched the ball

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  4. When will MLS stop paying these older players to come here and semi-retire for a year or two!! Gerrard, Lampard, Drogba (probably), imagine what those millions could have been spent on instead

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