LONDON // Before yesterday, the last time Steven Gerrard had started a game, Tim Sherwood had not been appointed Aston Villa manager.
Liverpool, perhaps, will in time come to reflect that their biggest failing in the FA Cup semi-final was to allow themselves to become so bound up with the narrative of their captain’s farewell.
The script said that Gerrard’s last game for the club should be the FA Cup final, which happens this year to fall on his 35th birthday, but it turned out the biggest obstacle to Gerrard achieving his dream was Gerrard’s selection.
There is no way of sugar-coating it: Gerrard was dreadful.
Perhaps it was unfair to expect too much of him, given how little he has played of late because of his hamstring injury and the suspension after the red card against Manchester United. But everything was set up for him.
When he could not get on the ball in the first half, the shape was changed so he played deeper after half time. He still was unable to exert a positive influence on the game.
“I’m bitterly disappointed with the performance,” Brendan Rodgers said.
“You can always lose a game but you’d hope to play well and give yourself the opportunity. I thought we were second-best today. Maybe the occasion and the energy got to us.
“Sometimes you can want to win too much and the focus comes away from what allows you to win.”
It was Gerrard who let Fabian Delph run by him in the build-up to the second goal, which was created by a superb interplay between Christian Benteke and Jack Grealish.
Grealish, 19, whose great grandfather Billy Garraty won the FA Cup with Villa in 1905, was superb throughout, playing a key part in setting up the equaliser for Benteke, who has scored nine goals in his past seven games.
Villa, generally, were excellent, defending with energy and attacking with verve and imagination; the turnaround Sherwood has enacted in his two months in charge has been remarkable.
There were moments late on that evoked glimmers of the Gerrard of old.
With 10 minutes to go, Liverpool won a free kick 25 yards out. The Roy-of-the-Rovers Gerrard might have smashed it in, but this one hit the free kick so weakly it barely reached Shay Given in the Villa goal.
Then, in the last minute, he met a Philippe Coutinho corner with a looping header that recalled the shape of his goal in Istanbul a decade ago.
This time, though, Kieran Richardson was in the way to clear the ball off the line.
As the final whistle went, the ball was in the air. It fell to Gerrard who caught it and threw it down, his face a picture of frustration and dismay.
This, rather than lifting the trophy, was his last act as a player at Wembley Stadium.
His final game will probably come at Stoke: where there should have been poetry, there is only the Potteries.
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Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Five expert hiking tips
- Always check the weather forecast before setting off
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Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup – Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
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If you go...
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
One-off T20 International: UAE v Australia
When: Monday, October 22, 2pm start
Where: Abu Dhabi Cricket, Oval 1
Tickets: Admission is free
Australia squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Mitch Marsh, Alex Carey, Ashton Agar, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Chris Lynn, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, Darcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa, Peter Siddle
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