Steven Gerrard admits Liverpool captain must be 'thick-skinned' for extra fan scrutiny

Gerrard skipped the Reds for 12 years

Jordan Henderson succeeded Gerrard as Liverpool captain (Getty Images)

Steven Gerrard has warned you have to be “thick-skinned” to be Liverpool captain and you must only take the armband if you are prepared to take the added pressure that comes with it.

Gerrard left his boyhood club last year for LA Galaxy having taken the armband himself from Sami Hyypia in 2003 at the age of 23 years old under former boss Gerard Houllier.

As captain, the former England skipper lifted the Champions League and FA Cup, inspiring the side to famous comebacks on each occasion, but Gerrard admitted he felt the fans’ scrutiny on him more than most, as they looked to him to get them out of trouble.

Quoted in a new book by Ragnhild Lund Ansnes, called Liverpool Captains, Gerrard said: “You need to be thick-skinned to be captain.

“Before you accept the responsibility of being captain for Liverpool Football Club you’ve got to tell yourself: ‘There will be good days and bad days.’

“On good days you’ll feel on top of the world. On bad days you’ll feel sad and lonely. If you can’t handle the low days, when the s*** hits the fan and everyone’s out to get you, if you can’t handle those days mentally, don’t take the job.

“Every single day, even when I wasn’t playing badly, I felt that pressure. But I loved it, even on bad days. When we’d had a bad game or if I’d played badly, I used to tell myself: ‘I’m the captain. I need to put this right, and I’ll have another chance to do that in three or four days.’

“I dreamed about wearing the captain’s armband from when I was about 10. So when I got it, I wanted to enjoy it, even on bad days.”