Gerrard defiant after Athens 'heartbreak'

May 24 2007 Ian Doyle, Liverpool Daily Post

DEFIANT Steven Gerrard believes Liverpool will bounce back from the “heartbreaking” Champions League final defeat last night.

The Anfield outfit were beaten 2-1 by AC Milan in the Olympic Stadium in Athens as the Italians gained revenge for their defeat in Istanbul two years ago.

Filippo Inzaghi put Milan ahead on the stroke of half- time after he unwittingly deflected an Andrea Pirlo free-kick beyond Pepe Reina.

Inzaghi added a second eight minutes from the end before an 89th-minute Dirk Kuyt strike gave Liverpool hope of another famous comeback.

But Rafael Benitez’s side ran out of time in their attempts to claim a sixth European Cup.

And Gerrard said: “The feeling is the complete opposite to what happened two years ago.

“It’s difficult to take but that’s football.

“You’ve got to take it on the chin, move on and try to pick yourself up.

“But at the moment it’s heartbreaking.

“I thought we started well and were in control, just how we like to be, but when you do that you have got to score and instead they got the first goal with a bit of luck, but it was a big lift for them. We gave everything but it wasn’t to be.”

Gerrard believes Liverpool can emerge a stronger team next season following their defeat.

“It’s one of the lowest points of my career so far but it’s how you bounce back from setbacks that counts,” he added.

“The finals I have lost in my career have made me stronger as a person and now we have to bounce back and we will be a better side next year.

“Before the game, you know that if you win you will be on top of the world and if you lose you’ll be right down at the bottom.

“It’s about me picking myself up and the team picking itself up and being better next season.

“As a Liverpool player, you can look forward to next season with optimism and excitement.

“The new people have gone on record saying they will back Rafa and it is exciting but at the moment my heart is in two pieces.

“We can be proud of ourselves. We played better than two years ago but two years ago we won it, and tonight we did not. But that’s football.

“This game is decided on small details and that first goal was a hammer blow.”

Gerrard, who was employed as an attacking midfielder behind lone striker Dirk Kuyt, reckons luck was against Liverpool on the evening.

“The manager asked me to do a job but as a team we never got the rub of the green,” he said. “But I don’t want to make excuses.

”Hopefully we can deliver for the fans next season.”