Gerrard Hopeful of String of Successful Results

Steven Gerrard's performance against Manchester United was, as you'd expect, one of his best of the season. It wasn't necessarily for the reasons you'd expect, however--yes, there were the ranging cross-field balls and bursting runs, but there were also signs of restraint that we haven't seen from the player under Brendan Rodgers. He's needlessly given away possession far too often this season, with a few leading directly to goals for the opposition, but against United he was more responsible and composed, and Liverpool will only benefit if he can continue to find that type of form.

And according to him, the club will also benefit from getting through the first month and a half of the season, one that saw them host the league's top-three finishers from last season while visiting away grounds that haven't been overly hospitable to Liverpool over the past few seasons. Now, a day away from a fixture that they dominated last season, Gerrard's anticipating a successful run of results that will launch Liverpool into the rest of the season.

"We have a run of games coming up now where there are points we should be taking but the longer it [not winning] goes on the more difficult it is going to get, so it is important against Norwich we take maximum points. If you look at the performances against City and United we should have six [more] points so it is not a case of: 'They're out the way now, let's go beat the sides we should beat.' I think what we need to do is keep playing like we have done and hopefully we'll get the rub of the green, get referees' decisions in our favour and we will go on and take maximum points."

It'll come as no surprise that we're most hung up on the "let's go beat the sides we should beat" piece, as that's proven to be one of Liverpool's most frustrating qualities over the past few seasons--play well against the sides challenging at the top of the table, stutter and stumble against the sides that everyone thinks they should be beating.

So now, with Norwich tomorrow and Stoke and Reading to follow before hosting Everton in the Merseyside Derby, Liverpool have a chance to assert themselves as a club headed in a different direction, one that sees them as capable of meeting--and eventually surpassing, hopefully--expectations.