Steven Gerrard has accused Manchester City of depriving other teams, including his Liverpool side, of memories and potential trophies during a period in which the club breached Premier League financial regulations. Gerrard, the former England captain, spoke in the wake of a recent independent commission ruling that found Manchester City guilty of over 100 breaches of Premier League financial rules between 2009 and 2018. During this period, City secured three Premier League titles, three League Cups, and one FA Cup.
Reflecting on the 2013-14 season, when Liverpool finished as runners-up to City by two points, Gerrard highlighted the impact of Manchester City's conduct on his career and others’. That season is often remembered for Gerrard's infamous slip against Chelsea, which contributed to Liverpool losing crucial points. “I’ve heard a lot of City players, a lot of City fans and celebrity fans say, ‘You can’t take those moments away from us,’” Gerrard said on The Overlap Daily podcast. “But what about the memories they’ve taken away from not just possibly me and the team that I played in, but [other teams] over that period of time, nine or ten years?”
Despite his criticism, Gerrard does not expect the club’s players to relinquish their medals or for titles to be reassigned retroactively. “I’ve come to terms with the fact I never won the Premier League,” he said, noting his respect for City’s players and emphasizing that his grievance is with the club’s ownership and governing bodies rather than its fanbase or individual players. Gerrard also revealed that if Liverpool had been found guilty of similar violations, he would find it difficult to engage with the club’s leadership. “If this was Liverpool and they had tainted or tarnished the memories, I couldn’t speak to the owners ever again,” he said.
On Sunday, Liverpool hosted Manchester City at Anfield in the first Premier League fixture since the commission’s findings were made public. Ahead of the match, Liverpool supporters displayed a banner reading “Gerrard Premier League Winner 2014” above the players’ tunnel. City won the game 3-0.
The fixture was marred by incidents of disorder and offensive chanting. Merseyside police reported a series of arrests related to what they described as tragedy chanting, a reference to offensive chants about the 1989 Hillsborough disaster in which 97 Liverpool supporters died. Five men from Greater Manchester were arrested under the Public Order Act ahead of and during the game for this behavior. Police also confirmed that one officer was assaulted twice by a man from Liverpool and that another officer sustained a serious facial injury requiring hospital treatment.
Chief Inspector Leanne Hobin condemned the chanting, saying it “had no place in football” and emphasized the distress such behavior causes to victims' families. The police presence was substantial due to the clubs’ rivalry and the sensitive context following the recent ruling.
Both Manchester City and Liverpool were contacted for comment but had not responded at the time of publication.