38 seconds of madness that led to one of Steven Gerrard’s worst-ever Liverpool moments

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Steven Gerrard has been the orchestrator of some of Liverpool’s most iconic moments during his illustrious Anfield career.

Before the days of Mohamed Salah single-handedly carrying the Reds to a Premier League title, Gerrard was the main man on Merseyside.

His goal against AC Milan in the 2005 Champions League is one of Gerrard’s many highlights for Liverpool and the turning point of the greatest comeback in a final in European history.

He scored another highlight-reel goal in a 3-1 win against Olympiacos at Anfield to ensure the Reds progressed to the knockout stages of the competition, and the rest is history.

Nevertheless, the legendary captain also stole the headlines for all the wrong reasons during his final season at the club, and it came against none other than arch-rivals Manchester United.

Steven Gerrard sent off after 38 seconds vs Manchester United

Gerrard replaced Adam Lallana for the second half in a clash against Man United at Anfield in 2015 and 38 seconds later he received his marching orders.

The Scouser surprisingly went on trial with United during his youth days, but his hatred for Liverpool’s fiercest rivals always surfaced every time he took to the pitch.

With the Reds trailing by a single Juan Mata goal, Gerrard allowed the occasion of his final appearance in the fixture to get the better of him and he saw red after stamping on Ander Herrera.

Daniel Sturridge would pull a goal back on the day, but ultimately the ten-man Reds were unable to overturn the deficit after Mata scored his second, with a spectacular scissor kick past Simon Mignolet.

Gerrard is regarded as one of the best to ever grace the Premier League but his hot-headed moment against United marked a bitter end to 17 years of playing in the biggest match in English football and would cost Liverpool Champions League qualification that season.

The result summed up what would prove to be a torrid end to the season for the Reds culminating in a crushing 6-1 loss against Stoke City on the final day as United claimed the final Champions League spot.

How Jamie Carragher reacted to Steven Gerrard’s red card

Jamie Carragher played alongside Gerrard for 15 years at Anfield, but the former defender was working with Sky Sports at the time of the incident.

Carragher shared his verdict on the red card live on Sky Sports following the defeat and somewhat placed blame on ex-boss Brendan Rodgers for benching Gerrard for the big occasion.

“It was a moment of madness. There’s no doubt – there would be frustration. He’s always been the man, the captain. There’s never been a case where he’s been out of the team, and as soon as he’s fit, he goes straight back in the team.

“Watching the first time from the bench, he’d have been disappointed. Liverpool weren’t playing well, they were losing, but I think he’d have been watching players in his position, performing not great, and thinking: ‘Why am I not playing? Why am I not on that pitch?’

“Steven Gerrard is an emotional player – you see that in his career. He’s taken teams I’ve played in into some unbelievable moments. There’s no doubt being a local player, the emotion of these occasions, the frustration coming into this game, has contributed to the moment of madness.

“He’s been injured, he’s been out of the team, he could potentially have six games left in his Liverpool career. But it’s a straight red, there’s no arguments with that. You can’t do that on a football pitch, he’s been rightly given his marching orders.”