Steven Gerrard Offers Sympathy to Bayern Munich Star After Slip Costs His Side UCL Final Spot
Former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has claimed that he sympathises with Bayern Munich goalkeeper Sven Ulreich, after the 29-year-old's slip proved to be costly in their semi final clash with Real Madrid on Tuesday.
The Bundesliga champions had looked in total control of the match after Joshua Kimmich opened the scoring in the opening two minutes, with Karim Benzema's quickfire equaliser not tempering Bayern's dominance at the Santiago Bernabéu.
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Just seconds into the second half though, Ulreich completely lost his bearings to make a meal of Corentin Tolisso's backpass, allowing Benzema to score his second of the match. Consequently, Bayern were dumped out of the competition by a 4-3 aggregate scoreline, despite James Rodríguez's striking against his parent club.
Former Liverpool star Gerrard admitted that he knows all too well how costly a slip at the highest level can prove to be, reflecting on his over publicised blunder that all but cost Liverpool the Premier League title back in 2014.
"I've been there when you lose your footing at a vital moment, it's a cruel way to lose a football match," Gerrard told BT Sport (via the Daily Mail). "[Manuel] Neuer hammers that 70, 80 yards down field."
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Ulreich has been one of Bayern's most impressive players this season, starring between the sticks during the Bavarians title winning campaign. The former Stuttgart keeper arrived at the club in 2015 to act as a back up to Neuer, but a long-term metatarsal injury has seen the 29-year-old take his place between the sticks on 44 occasions this season.
The shot-stopper will be hoping that he can redeem himself in the DFB-Pokal final later this month when Bayern Munich meet Eintracht Frankfurt, as they search for yet another domestic double.
