Congratulations are in order for Liverpool FC, not only have they appointed Roy Hodgson as their man to replace Rafa Benitez as manager, but it now appears that their captain has been talked into extending his love affair with the club. Add this to the acquisition of Joe Cole on a free transfer from Chelsea, and the red half of merseyside have possibly had their best week since the tail end of the season before last!
I have spoken before about the credentials of Roy Hodgson and I have every faith that he will eventually get Liverpool back towards the top four and maybe, just maybe towards a first league title since 1990. More of a major concern for me is why Steven Gerrard has seemingly committed more of his passing career to Anfield in the first place?
There had been strong rumours since the end of last season's anti-climatic campaign, that Gerrard would take the latest failure to end the Liverpool title drought as a signal to find pastures new. These were exacerbated when José Mourinho was made the new manager of Real Madrid, mostly due to how close that he had come to signing the Liverpool captain for Chelsea during the summer of 2005.
Less convincing, but still practical, was the rumour that Gerrard could well be tempted to follow Benitez to his new backdrop at Inter Milan. Either way, after the calamity of Liverpool's last campaign it would seem fair if at the age of 30 Gerrard was to be extremely tempted by a new challenge. Especially if it came via potentially the best club in either Spain or Italy.
Of course detractors of this argument (Liverpool fans mainly!) may angrily deny any need to move on for England's World Cup captain. After all, there is a new manager on board and an expectation for recovery, naturally fuelled by the signing of Joe Cole more than anything else. Plus there is the hope that last season didn't reveal the true value of Alberto Aquilani. This is all fair enough, and barring the blip back in 2005 Gerrard has on the whole demonstrated his loyalty to Liverpool throughout his career.
However the fact that Gerrard has played at Liverpool since his professional debut in November 1998 should mean that he has earned the right to try his luck elsewhere. As mentioned he has recently turned 30, but in today's game that is nowhere near the scrap heap. Instead it would be no surprise if he was to play on past the next World Cup, to do so for England may be beyond him but I wouldn't rule it out. And despite the current inquisition into the failure in South Africa it would seem a little daft if his services were to be shunned for the Euro' 2012 campaign.
Still, since the Premier League started in the 1992/93 season, there has been a paltry number of big-name English players willing to test themselves in Europe's other best leagues. Asked to mention such players in recent memory and you would do well to get beyond Steve Mcmanaman, David Beckham and Michael Owen- all of whom went directly to Real Madrid.
Owen Hargreaves is a bit of a unique case in having started his development and career with Bayern Munich. Whereas including Darius Vassell and his ill-fated move last season to mid-table Ankaragücü (of the Turkish Süper Lig) would clearly be scraping the bottom of the proverbial barrel!
We may not find out until an autobiography, but perhaps Gerrard had been hoping for a summer move all the while. The links with Real Madrid and Mourinho must seem like the right move at the right time, especially if he has ever had ambitions of testing himself outside the Premier League arena. Such a move could also arguably offer Gerrard his best chance of earning a league winners medal before his career dwindles out without one.
On the other hand it appears that any perspective move to Real Madrid may never have been as likely as expected. The 'Los Blancos' president Florentino Pérez was quoted as saying that Gerrard was too old and too expensive for 30. It appears that the man famous for the Galácticos era may actually be reigning himself in just a little bit! Gerrard's stock is still very high though, and if he really wanted to move there would be other similarly illustrious suitors.
The Liverpool skipper surely can't feel that he owes his boyhood club any more service. He has been their most successful captain since the end of the dominant era that came to pass upon the shock resignation of Kenny Daglish midway through the 1990/91 season.
His roll-call of honours as a player encompasses 2 FA Cups, 2 League Cups, an Uefa Cup and of course that European Cup. Beyond this there is the defeat in the 2006/07 Champions League final and the 2 runners-up in the Premier League. If only Liverpool had won the Premier League title in 2008/09, as they really should have done, perhaps Gerrard's conscience would then be eased enough to seriously consider other offers.
With only two losses in the league that season, Liverpool was defeated less than any other team including the eventual champions Manchester United. The net effect of drawing too many games throughout the campaign ultimately cost Liverpool the party they had craved for after what was then a long 19 years. Gerrard for his part was magnificent, contributing 16 goals and 10 assists for the greatest combined stats for any player that season.
So, with his former efforts and success there can be little begrudging Gerrard the 'reward' of a testing new environment somewhere on the continent, with an equally prestigious club. The news in the last few days would strongly suggest however that Liverpool and Roy Hodgson have succeeded in convincing their skipper that the grass really isn't always greener, even if it is in Spain or Italy.
This then just leaves the question; does Steven Gerrard honestly believe that the Hodgson era can finally deliver an end to their torturous title quest? Or is he simply happy in his comfort zone and unwilling to prove his mettle in a climate where he would no longer be the 'big fish in the little pond'?
I believe it is time for Gerrard to be 'selfish' and to end his Anfield connection, if another season or two passes the opportunity will otherwise surely be lost. Maybe he simply cannot bear to leave, regardless of the accolades. Possible, but I wager that only the elusive Premier League title will stop there being any future regrets. A triumph I fear that is not about to be any more forthcoming...