Gerrard off! That's nice, but . . .
CHRIS LAKEY
Norwich City manager Nigel Worthington has laughed off suggestions that the absence of Liverpool's captain fantastic Steve Gerrard could make his job a little easier at Anfield tomorrow afternoon.
The England midfielder, who has been in awesome form so far this season, was ruled out of action for at least two months when he broke a bone in his foot during his side's 2-1 defeat at Manchester United on Monday evening.
Wales boss Mark Hughes felt the absence of Gerrard would give his country a better chance of beating England in their forthcoming World Cup qualifier at Old Trafford – but Worthington isn't sure it will even things up at the weekend.
"You never like to see players getting injured but when I saw Steven Gerrard go off on Monday I thought 'well that's nice for us,'" he said. "Then I saw Dietmar Hamann come on and I thought, oh no! That's how good they are.
"Gerrard is a wonderful player and a big influence there but when one international is ruled out another ones comes in – that's how it is at clubs like Liverpool. I don't think it weakens them too much.
"There have been a few changes there during the summer, but you know that whatever players Liverpool bring in they are going to be quality. They've got a new manager in who is looking to change things around to his way of thinking and they've had a good steady start to the new season."
Worthington is hoping his players rise to the occasion at the weekend, just as they have done so far this season when visiting some of English football's great footballing arenas.
"Anfield is another wonderful place to play your football," he said. "The fans are very passionate about their team, they create a tremendous atmosphere and it's a magnificent stadium.
"It's an excellent platform for every player who goes there, every club that goes there. We'll go there to perform, enjoy it and hopefully come away with a good result.
"We've performed well so far at three other big grounds – Old Trafford, St James' Park and White Hart Lane - and we'll be looking to keep that going at Anfield. We know what we've got to do."
