27 Dec 2011

HOULLIER admits: Ex-Man United star is 'the best I've ever seen' at that...

Gerard Houllier has managed some exceptional players during his career but in a recent interview, Liverpool's treble-winning boss reserved special praise for former Man United player David Beckham.

Speaking to France Football, Houllier had nothing but good things to say about Beckham, who could be on the verge of a move to Paris St. Germain. Houllier enthused:

“He is a decisive player and very strong mentally. Whether it's the final pass, a free kick or a corner, He always delivers in the important matches

"For example, in the final of the Champions League in 1999 or in the match against Greece in 2001, but there were many others examples of this.

“He is somebody who is very effective in the centre; he has a great range of passing and is particularly good with diagonal, cross-field balls.

"When it comes to passing technique, and accuracy, precision and timing of passes, he is the best I've ever seen."


I would argue that Steven Gerrard is just as good as - if not better than - Beckham when it comes to passing technique and range.

Given the fact Houllier managed Gerrard for years, I can't believe he genuinely thinks that Beckham is the 'best he's ever seen'.

Jaimie Kanwar


22 comments:

  1. Gerrard has a lot more to his overall game than Beckham, but when it comes to solely passing I think Ged's right.

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  2. Beckham was a limited footballer who made the best use of his limitd talent. Brilliant at set pieces and corners. A fine player no doubt but not even in my top 100 of all time

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  3. im a big gerrard fan and for me gerrard is the most complete player ive ever seen.. he has all the qualities a footballer needs to have, and he is a great passer of the ball too, but i do agree with houllier, 'when it comes to passing technique, and accuracy, precision and timing of passes' he is better than gerrard. houllier never made any comparison bet gerrard and becks.. its you who are trying to do it. overall, we all know gerrard is a better footballer than becks but have to agree with houllier about that one

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  4. you must be judging beckham on his game after madrid.....beckham is a player who bloomed early...go watch his videos at man united when he was young.....he will make your top 20 at least

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  5. Gerrard looks great in a average/poor team that has everything geared to Lord Stevie G. Much harder to look great in a great team but it seems we'll never get to know whether Stevie would look great in a great team. A pity Gerrard's so-called greatness hasn't been tested like that but hey, as a Liverpool fan, who cares.

    Bit like Charlie Adam and Blackpool, where everything went through him. Now at a bigger club at Pool and he is hardly anything to sing about is he. 

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  6. Gerrard isnt anyway near as good at passing as Beckham to be honest though both fantastic players in their own way and Beckham doesnt get injured as much as Gerrard ,i would say Gerrard is stronger in build .

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  7. beckhams crossing from the wing are better, but gerrard as good at diagonal pinpoint passing. but becks cant find that through ball along the ground which cuts a defence in half as good as stevie g.
    becks was good though for club and country.
    gerrard still got few good years left though

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  8. Gerrard is way better. Becks had a great first touch. His excellent crosses were made excellent by Cole and Yorke, ie their timing; Also because Becks had no pace and no trickery he was never tightly marked. He had loads of space because defenders knew he could not hurt them. I think Georgie Best said as much.

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  9. What a load of nonsense. 

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  10. here comes another rare, unique knob-head who says ' Gerrard stands out in a team of many average players'.
    Didn't this 'average player' won the champions league and the FA cup single-handedly? Did the Queen bloody knight him for 'standing out in a team of average players' instead of ferdinand, rooney, lampard, or terry?!

    An 'average player' who has scored 140 GOALS and has made countless assists in the toughest league in the world. A player, who any club would break the bank to sign, if only he were to  ever leave his boyhood club. A player , who is ranked second only to Dalglish as one of the best players the club's ever had, ahead of Rush, Barnes, Hansen, Clemence, Roger Hunt, Fowler etc....

    A player that can play in any position, except for maybe the goalie!

    You idiot, playing in a team of superstars can in fact, can make an average player look over-rated because they can afford to make more mistakes! Cant you tell CLASS when its hits you right in the face?
     

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  11. GOBSHITE FRENCH NOB ED.. THANK FUK UR OUT OF LFC..

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  12. Scums boast of Beckham but at Liverpool we say Gerrard is just as great a player. George Best said that Beckham doesn;t score using his head, cant dribble and cant kick with his let foot. Torres has all those qualities. What are you trying to say Houllier?

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  13. Gerrard never turned up for his country. Plus he has always been at Liverpool where he is the big fish in a small pond. Beckham's proven his quality at united, real and milan. Everyone has good things to say about him. 

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  14. But but but, i thought Liverpool fans didn't take George Best seriously as quite a lot of Pool fans like to throw 'ah, he is drunk, who cares' jibes at him but now he is seen as the gospel truth expert. 

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  15. hes never turned up for England? In the last world cup he was the only player that turned up. He is a solid performer, even if the team around him are falling to bits. The only thing I would give Beckham is that he may have not been blighted by as much injuries and is the better crosser.  But I would take a Gerrard at his peak any day. 

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  16. Ye but Gerrard is class. He came on as a sub and what is the first thing he does besides getting fans on their feet. He puts in a dangerous curler off a free kick that Adam has been failing miserably at. 

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  17. Yikes, you must have very low standards or the usual rose-tinted-itis, if you think our Stevie showed up in the last WC. He was cack like the rest of them and been cack for most of his England career, like the rest of the so-called Golden Generation. 

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  18. id like to beckham play down the left or some other stupid position gerrard gets lumbared with

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  19. No. See his performance against the US for example, scored a goal, clearing crosses, getting in tackles, all round passing display was class. The way he took his goal was sublime. His other performances was good too, looking at the fact that he was played out of position too. He was easily the best player in the team that WC. He may not be he player that you can depend on like he has been for Liverpool, but he is  a solid player for England, and doesn't make mistakes. If he hasn't done "cack" to you, then you must be looking through rose-tinted glasses to think he should have the same effect playing for England. Even if he isn't on the same level of performances for England as he has been for Liverpool, he is still level  above other players. 

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  20. All been as bad as each other. A game here and there doesn't really cut it. Stevie G has been cack for England, the majority of the time. No where in my post did I say expected the performances like he has shown at Liverpool. I expected competent and mature performances at international level from a player of Stevie G's stature but no, he hasn't been able to do it enough. Beyond his Hollywood style and Roy of the Rovers' act, he hasn't got the subtlety to cut the mustard at international level, as proven time and time again. hehe, level above...my word.

    My backside, he hasn't made a mistake. E.g. the stupid and costly back pass against France in '04.

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  21. But but but I thought Stevie G can play anywhere and is a all-round machine...(!)

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  22. lets start counting all of Rio Ferdinand's, David Beckham's, and gary Neville's mistakes for England; wait we cant because each of theirs won't fit in one post

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