Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard has revealed that he once had to dissuade then-Reds manager Rafael Benitez from signing ex-Aston Villa, Manchester City and Everton midfielder Gareth Barry to replace Xabi Alonso.
Gerrard has claimed that Gareth Barry, who is set to become the Premier League’s outright top-appearance maker when West Bromwich Albion face Arsenal on Monday night, was Rafa Benitez’s first choice to replace Xabi Alonso when he left the club for Real Madrid. Speaking to BT Sport (via Goal), Gerrard said:
He wanted to move Xabi on and bring in Gareth,
Now, for me that wasn’t the right move, although I’m a big fan of Gareth Barry
Alonso signed for Liverpool in the summer of 2004 and helped Liverpool to a dramatic Champions League title in his first season with the club — and made 210 appearances for the Reds before moving back to his native Spain to play for Real Madrid in 2009.
Gerrard thinks that not enough was done to keep the midfield maestro at Anfield:
I don’t think it was the right move from a Liverpool point of view to replace Xabi with Gareth. The fans love Xabi, he’s a world-class player, and for me, Rafa should have been doing everything to keep him and not have him move on.
Gareth Barry was an Aston Villa player at the time that Alonso moved to Real Madrid and in hindsight would have been a good replacement for Alonso — as it is, the Reds have never really replaced the Spanish midfielder who retired this year after three seasons with Bayern Munich.
