HOUSTON –Despite being out for almost a month, Steven Gerrard didn’t miss a beat in his long-awaited return from injury, putting in one of his best performances ever in a Galaxy jersey.
Gerrard tallied an assist and had a hand in another goal as the Galaxy ran rampant over the Houston Dynamo in a 4-1 victory on Friday. The match was Gerrard’s first appearance since suffering a left calf injury against the San Jose Earthquakes on March 19.
After a frustrating start to the season for the English midfielder, Gerrard was satisfied with his performance in Texas.
“Well, you know it’s very early in the season,” Gerrard said. “You’re still fighting to get your match sharpness and your match fitness, I got an unfortunate injury at a bad time which was a bit of a set-back, but while I’ve been out I’ve worked so hard to maintain a certain level of fitness, and I’m really happy with how I looked tonight.”
Gerrard bossed the center of the park alongside Baggio Husidic, nullifying the Dynamo attack while also providing typically excellent service to the Galaxy attackers. The two midfielders combined for a goal in the 21st minute when Gerrard won the ball in midfield and then fed the ball to Giovani dos Santos’ whose dangerous cross was parried straight to Husidic eventual game-winner.
The 35-year-old midfielder was not done there, however, as in the 31st minute, he launched a trademark long ball to Dos Santos for the Mexican international’s second of the evening.
“Gerrard played great. He had a good game,” Arena said. “I think he’s been out three weeks. Certainly, there were some questions about whether we could get 90 minutes out of him tonight. It’s great to see he played 90.”
Added Husidic whose game-winning goal was set up by one of Gerrard’s outlet passes, “Stevie’s a class player. He did well in his first game in a really long time. All credit to him for his assist. It was a great performance.”
As dominant as Gerrard’s performance against the Dynamo was, the ever-professional veteran midfielder was most pleased to get the result.
“I think most importantly it’s about the team,” Gerrard, who donned the captain’s armband for the injured Robbie Keane, stated. “We haven’t won on the road for a long time, and I said before the game we need to make that right tonight, I think we deserved three points tonight on the road.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog atwww.LAGalacy.com/Insiderand contact him atLAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com
