The heart of Anfield...Captain Fantastic Steven Gerrard

For a team to truly inspire to greatness there must be someone willing to take it on his/her back during testing times and inspire his team mates to press on through tribulations. No one in English football possesses this ability more than Liverpool's central midfield captain Steven Gerrard. His team have learned over the seasons that in time of trouble they can look towards captain fantastic to provide a performance that will safely see them through to earning points even in positions where it looked like all was in vain. Anyone who has watched the Premiership can vouch for the awe inspiring performances the 6 ft ,28 yr old English man displays with consistency. Whether it is a through pass, beautiful cross, perfected corner kick or jaw dropping shot on goal, Gerrard has it all. He never gives up and finds ways to punish even the stubborn of defenses often time when Liverpool is facing an almost certain defeat.

His reward for his actions has been top 4 placements in the Premiership, winning the FA Cup, Carling Cup and the glory of holding up the most coveted prize in Europe the Champions League trophy. This season is no different with Liverpool in a good position to challenge long time rivals Manchester Utd for the Premiership title. A goal against Spanish kings Real Madrid during their Champions League match up has also placed Steven's team in pole position to advance towards the finals in Rome. Many critics have felt that Liverpool's recent success has little to do with their manager's questionable team strategies and more dependent on the drive and inspirations of Gerrard.

Gerrard is what I would describe as full footballer. This means he has not only garners the physical abilities of a top footballer but has the mental maturity that entails precise football intelligence and the ability to inspire and earn the respect of his team mates as well as his opponents. Gerrard is a very versatile midfield player, he has been utilized in central midfield or on the right. He is also a very effective supporting striker. He is masterful in dead ball positions such as free kicks and corners. When it comes to shots on goal he is one of the most deadly marksmen in the business. No angle is too difficult for Gerrard to shoot. He has defied the laws of Physics with shots that have made the ball bend at the last minute to elude a grasping keeper. He has an amazing array of shots that can consist of low perfectly angle shots or spinning aerial missiles. The outcome is usually the ball ending in the back of the net. He has the intelligence and ability to control the tempo of the game from a central position. He also can control the wing executing passes that open up spaces in defense. When he is utilized as a supporting striker, he becomes a potent attacking force. Last season Benitez placed him in this role to partner with his newly acquired striker Torres. The impact was devastating to opponents defenses . There developing partnership lead to both players scoring goals almost at will.

When it comes to his leadership qualities there is no question asked. One only has to look back to the 2005 when he placed Liverpool on his back and pushed his team to overcome a 3-0 deficit to go on to overcome AC Milan to win the Champions League. This season we have seen him provided a goal or assist in lacklustre performances to ensure that his team comes away victors. His team mates share the same sentiments as Liverpool's favourite adopted son Torres made it clear that Liverpool FC is Steven Gerrard. Gerrard who suffers from injuries regularly is immediately missed and the team seems to lose a bit of energy when he is on the sidelines. This season is a dream season because Gerrard has never come closer to winning the Premiership title and has expressed that he desires nothing more at the end of the season than to win it. There will be a number of obstacles including overcoming a recent injury to achieve this, but you can be assured that Gerrard will put in a 150% to achieve his goal.

The Future Before Us...Carlos Vela

Wenger has stated that he will not be spending much in the Summer and he may not have to. Wenger has a number of young stars away on long term loans and one that comes to mind is a talented 19 yr old Mexican international Carlos Vela (Carlos Alberto Vela Garrido) currently on loan to La Liga club Osasuna in Spain. Vela hails from the seaside resort town of Cancun and used the opportunity to sign with Mexican club Guadalajara to move his family away from the storm prone area. His appearances in the under 17 Mexican National team during the Youth World Cup found the eyes of European scouts and he soon became a target for Arsenal. Carlos was the tournament top goal scorer. The young man has been signed to Arsenal since 2005 but was unable to acquire a work permit in England. Wenger decided to loan him to Spanish clubs for a couple seasons until his papers were cleared. Last week Wenger made mention that he has decided not to extend Vela's loan period and expects him in England at the start of the pre-season schedule. Anyone that has paid attention to the La Liga this year will be excited to see this lad at the Emirates.

I would liken him to Theo Walcott. These two players are similar in stature and abilities. The most evident difference would be Walcott has a bit more pace but Vela has more control when running at high speeds. Both players are young quick and are able to play in midfield roles or forward roles. I think Vela is more developed as a striker than Walcott and will provide Wenger with options in his offensive line. Vela has already proven that he can take on the best, as was seen when Osasuna played against Spanish champions Real Madrid. Vela's pace saw defensive wall Sergio Ramos resort to scrambling and fouling the young Mexican in order to subdue his progress down the left wing. Carlos has made 27 appearances for Osasuna and has managed to hit the back of the net 3 times and has created 4 assists.

The inclusion of this young talent should provide Wenger with a number of options up front. One being filling the empty space in the left mid field left by the departure of Freddie Ljungberg. Vela's quick pace and dribbling skills should be able to compliment the forward moves of left back Gael Clichy. These two may be able to emulate the partnership that has formed between Eboue and Sagna on the opposing wing. Another option would be to place Vela in a supporting striker role. He would be able to drift out to wing to service Adebayor, or press into the box and take a shot on goal. Wenger also has the option of placing Vela and Walcott on opposing wings and then grant them the freedom to inter change. I dont think defenders will be having happy dreams of such a partnership coming towards them. I cant wait to see Vela don the colours of Arsenal, welcome home.

The Future Before Us....Luis Nani

Portugal is a sure destination to find quick paced, swift kicking entertaining players. From the Cape Verde Islands, transplaced into the European continent comes a 19 yr old young man that has decided to place the name Nani (Luis Carlos Almieda Da Cunha) on the back of his shirt. This youngman used to be a member of the talent breeding ground known as Sporting Lisbon. During his time at Sporting he made over 59 appearances in two seasons and scored 9 goals. Last summer he became part of a double swoop by Manchester United that brought Anderson and himself to England. This player has alot going for him. He is tall, strong, has great ball handling skills and a lethal shot. His natural position is on the left wing, but he is able to play on the right and even push upwards in a forward role. The similarities to another Portuguese Manchester United player are clearly evident. Nani and superstar Cristiano Ronaldo are both attacking midfielders that have emerged from Sporting Lisbon. They both have great dribbling skills, pace and have powerful outside shots. Sir Alex is preparing to create an offensive power on both wings using these two players.

Nani unlike his fellow team mate Anderson has not been granted a starting role in the first team. Nani also seems lack the maturity of Anderson. With this being said his raw talent makes him one to watch in seasons to come. He looks more developed physically than Ronaldo in his debut season and should be able to learn from the experiences of Ronaldo. The times Nani has been included in the team he has rarely failed to disappoint. He sometimes replaces Ryan Giggs whenever Sir Alex feels that it is necessary to inject some extra pace into his attacking line up. Nani so far has appeared in 34 games this season, scored 4 goals and has supplied his team mates with 11 assists. His goals have been quite spectacular. They include long range shots from outside the box to quick foot techniques that mesmerise goal keepers in the box. These goals are followed by an extravagant injury risking series of somersaults in celebration.

Nani's next step to perfection is to become mature mentaly. His goal celebrations and showboating of his techiniques sometimes leads to animousity from opposing players. During Manchester United's 4-0 win over Arsenal, Nani decided to perform a series of keeping up tricks that angered Arsenal's Brazilian midfielder Gilberto. Gilberto gave him a hard tackle to express his displeasure. Once Nani begins to emulate the professionalism of Ronaldo on the pitch he will truly begin to emerge into the next Portuguese attacking midfielder at Old Trafford. I believe that Nani has the ability to become as good as his counterpart or even better, however time will tell.