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His will not be the only exit of the summer, as the club will undergo another round of personnel upheaval, but his will matter the most. Others may have superseded him on the pitch, of late, but for so many fans this man IS Liverpool -- the reason they began to support, the reason they began to care, the reason they continued to love.
There have been many tributes written in recent weeks and months, but few are as personally relevant as Trev's account of the captain's influence on supporters. Nearly nine years ago to the day, Steven Gerrard entered my worldview, and Liverpool came with him. Nearly nine years later, Steven Gerrard has been at the heart of nearly every sporting moment that's had any sort of emotional impact. Nearly nine years later, and suddenly nine years doesn't feel like very long at all.
Liverpool won't say goodbye to Steven Gerrard for good until next weekend, when they wrap up the season away to Stoke City, but today's match at Anfield is the symbolic, sentimental goodbye that most had marked on their calendar when the captain announced his planned exit back in January. Gerrard will take to the Anfield pitch one final time, and late in the match, he'll make his exit to a standing ovation, one that will resonate long in the memory.
It will join a collection of truly remarkable moments in what's been a stunning career in Red, which will be celebrated in full this evening. It's a celebration well deserved, and one that will only repay a small amount of the debt Liverpool and its supporters owe one of their greatest ever.
Video by LFC Norwegian Branch
