Oh to be in England - to see Steve Gerrard leaving it

THERE ARE MILLIONS of die-hard fans of the Liverpool Football Club in Thailand, but unfortunately the Nation Channel (our very own TV station) could only fit about 30 of them on the trip to England it’s organised to see all-time favourite Steven Gerrard – affectionately if minimalistically known as “SG” – play his final match with the club today. 

Those 30 intense fans are paying their own way, mind you, scrumming in with Nation reporters and photographers for what is sure to be an historic event. Liverpool’s captain is ending a glorious 17-year run with the team to join the Los Angeles Galaxy, the squad David Beckham has promoted in a quixotic effort to stir up American interest in soccer.

Today’s match at Anfield isn’t of much importance in itself since the opposing side is merely mid-table Crystal Palace, but it’s Gerrard’s last appearance with the Reds at home and he’s one of the few football stars to constitute a “one-man team” in the English Premier League.

For that reason tickets are sold out, and according to the Liverpool Echo, you’d have to pay a scalper 2,000 pounds (Bt106,000) to get in the gate. Seats are also available on Ticketbis.net at 5,000 pounds for a pair, adds the Daily Mirror, and a single pass can be had on the same website for 234 pounds. That’s still insane compared to the usual price for a Liverpool match of between 37 pounds and 49 pounds. 

The mob of Thai fans travelling with the Nation Channel has as its “guides” TV hosts Nantakwang Sirasoontorn, who happens to fly the flag for Manchester United, and the usually unwavering Evertonian Kanok Ratwongkul, but they too obviously appreciate the significance of this event in Liverpool. In fact Kanok appears to have overcome his fear of flying in order to make his first long-haul journey by plane. 

They departed Thailand on Thursday night and will today join the masses of SG groupies blowing him kisses at Anfield. Meanwhile those who can’t make it to Liverpool can tune into the Nation Channel for cheerful reports on the atmosphere at the stadium and possibly a few snide remarks about Man U and Everton being more thrilling to watch. 

And then on May 31 you can go to Siam Paragon for a big “Thank you Gerrard from Thai Fans” farewell event in Parc Paragon. That’s the day after SG’s 35th birthday. Celebrity fans of Liverpool will be on hand at the gathering sponsored by AP Honda, hosted by former England footballer John Barnes. The plans also include “something special” that the organisers are refusing to reveal beforehand. The whole affair will be recorded and sent on to Gerrard as a slightly belated birthday gift. Get your picture taken with the wax replica of SG from Madame Tussauds Bangkok and wave for the video camera.