STEVEN GERRARD will give Liverpool the perfect Euro boost
by pledging the rest of his career to the club. The Kop skipper,
26, has agreed terms on a new £120,000- a-week contract to keep him
at Anfield for life. That will see him pocket £6million a year and
make him the best-paid English player in the
Premiership.
Reds boss Rafa Benitez hopes to officially announce the news on the
eve of the Champions League final against AC Milan in three weeks.
Liverpool revealed recently that the future of midfield man Gerro,
together with stars like Jamie Carragher and Xabi Alonso, would be
top of the agenda for new owners George Gillett and Tom
Hicks.
Now the two men have proved as good as their word, with the offer
that will make Gerrard the highest-paid player in Liverpool
history. Gerrards future has been the subject of speculation in
recent years. During the summer of 2004 he was tipped to join
Chelsea but, despite going close to moving to Stamford Bridge, he
eventually opted to stay put.
A year later, after Gerrard led the Reds to Champions League glory
in Istanbul, Chelsea were again close to a £32m swoop before a
late change of heart saw him commit to staying at Anfield, with a
new four-year deal. The England ace offered to give up the
captaincy after the controversy but boss Benitez insisted he kept
the job.
Last year he insisted he planned to stay at Liverpool until he was
no longer wanted. He was already contracted until 2009 but the
clubs American owners were determined to keep him at the club for
the rest of his career and opened talks over an extended
deal.
Negotiations were swiftly agreed and the announcement of a
four-year extension will send them into battle in Athens in the
highest-possible spirits. It means Gerrard will equal the pay of
Chelsea stars Andriy Shevchenko and Michael Ballack and put the
£110,000-a-week five-year deal signed by Cristiano Ronaldo at
Manchester United firmly in the shade.
