On a roll: Liverpool's Steven Gerrard celebrates
his side's defeat of local rivals Everton
Wednesday, 10 February 2010
Liverpool skipper Steven
Gerrard has insisted
Arsenal are there for the
taking in his side's seventh 'cup final' in as many
games.
The Reds are now just five points behind the
fast-fading Gunners in the Barclays Premier League and play them at
the Emirates tomorrow night.
Liverpool are back in the top four but Gerrard now believes a
top three finish is not beyond them - especially with Arsenal
having taken just one point from their last three games.
The Anfield captain told TalkSport: 'It’s a massive game for us
and the target is to try and get a result where we can push on and
try and get third place.
'Obviously our target is a top four finish, but if Arsenal give
us any sniff of catching them then we want to grab it and hopefully
that will be on Wednesday night.
'We’re treating every game like a cup final at the moment
because we’re desperate for this top four [position]. We
understand the pressure coming from
Manchester City,
Tottenham and
Aston Villa, and also teams behind them.
'Arsenal will be a bit of a wounded animal but we’ve got to do
what
Manchester United and
Chelsea have done to them, which is to give them very
little space and hit them on the counter attack.
'Everyone knows that if you give Arsenal time and space they
will crucify you.'
Gerrard added that although Liverpool have been impressive in
the last six games, they are still not playing well.
'I wouldn’t say confidence is sky-high in the dressing room but
it’s on the way up and improving.
'We’re on a good run but we’re not playing terrifically well -
the last few performances have been more about being solid
defensively and nicking important goals. We can certainly
play better.
“There have been games this season where we have been beaten and
not shown enough fight, enough good attitude and commitment but I
don’t think anyone can criticise us over the last six games for the
level of commitment because every single player in the squad has
rolled his sleeves up and everyone is fighting for the same
thing.'
