Steven Gerrard was by some distance the greatest Liverpool player of his generation. Not only was he one of the Reds' top performers, but the Englishman is perhaps the best midfielder ever to grace the Premier League.
As the most talented player to never win the Premier League, Gerrard was often let down by his teammates at Anfield failing to reach his level. Always the man dragging an average football side over the line, he never quite achieved the biggest honour in English football.
One of the many factors that played into that lack of success is the transfer recruitment, which left a lot to be desired at times. One instance of poor decision-making by the higher-ups at the Merseyside club that particularly annoyed 'Stevie G' came in the summer of 2002.
Steven Gerrard on Liverpool's Nicolas Anelka Mistake
'We should have taken Anelka'
French striker Nicolas Anelka spent 12 months on loan at Liverpool during the 2001/02 season, and impressed despite only netting five goals in 22 appearances. More importantly, the electric forward left a strong impression on Gerrard.
Speaking to Sky Sports in 2008, the Liverpool captain spoke of his disappointment at his club deciding against the signing of Anelka on a permanent deal. The retired England international said: "Every club makes a couple of mistakes in the transfer market, and we made one when we didn't sign Nicolas Anelka in 2002. Nicolas was top class for us and I thought he'd done enough to stay. He was a good lad around the dressing room as well.
"I've always thought it was a shame he's not still with us. What made it doubly disappointing was that I knew how desperate he was to sign on a permanent deal at the time. Unfortunately, these decisions are taken, and it's only when you look back later that you can make a judgement. I don't think anyone will deny we got that one wrong."
It's not the only time Gerrard has been vocal about his discontent at Anelka being snubbed by the Reds' transfer team. Per talkSPORT, the 114-cap Englishman expressed his dissatisfaction at Liverpool signing El-Hadji Diouf instead:
"I think at the back end of the treble season, I was like if we get the next two or three signings right then we can compete for it, but we never, and we got them drastically wrong.
"El-Hadji Diouf wasn’t the right signing, we should have taken Anelka. Salif Diao stiffened us up but never took us to the next level. But I think the signings at that time never went in our favour."
Gerrard and Diouf Never Saw Eye-to-Eye at Liverpool
He even called the striker 'the biggest waste' of money
It's no secret that Gerrard and Diouf were never best friends while sharing a dressing room, and even after both hanging up their boots. The Senegalese forward was signed ahead of Anelka after an impressive 2022 World Cup campaign, but turned out to be a disaster at Anfield.
Steven Gerrard with the Champions League trophy Related
The Liverpool Player Steven Gerrard 'Hated' and Had a Fight With During Game
Steven Gerrard and El-Hadji Diouf didn't see eye to eye during the pair's time together at Liverpool.
Gerrard hasn't been shy about going on record to express his dislike for the retired forward. Labelling the ex-Sunderland and Blackburn Rovers man a 'waste' of money, he even went as far as calling Diouf the signing he 'liked least' throughout his Liverpool career: "I don’t really want to waste time thinking about El Hadji Diouf highlighting his wasted seasons as an example of how it can all go wrong.
"We had finished as runners-up to Manchester United the season before and a combination of Diouf, Salif Diao and Bruno Cheyrou was supposed to drive us to the title. It was probably the biggest waste of £18m in Liverpool’s history.
"We finished the season in fifth place and Diouf had sealed his place at the top of the list of Liverpool signings I liked least."
Statistics in this article are courtesy of Transfermarkt. Correct as of 08-07-25.