Iconic former Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has spoken out on his frustration at the club's transfer attitude in his time as Reds skipper.
Gerrard left Anfield for LA Galaxy in 2015 after 17 seasons at Anfield with a final tally of 186 goals n 710 games on Merseyside.
That puts him third on the club's all-time appearances list behind former teammate Jamie Carragher [737] and Ian Callaghan [857] as the ex-midfielder won two FA Cups, one UEFA Cup and an infamous Champions League title in 2005.
The 45-year-old spoke candidly, as part of the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, about his regrets over missing out on an elusive Premier League crown and why England's 'Golden Generation' failed to win a trophy.
Gerrard also opened up on his annoyance at transfer decisions made by the club over the years including a key example after the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
Nicolas Anelka caught Gerrard's eye on loan at Liverpool on loan from PSG in the 2001/02 season, but the club opted against signing him permanently, and he joined Manchester City after the tournament.
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Instead the Reds completed a £10m transfer move for Lens winger El Hadji Diouf, who impressed for Senegal, as the African nation reached the quarterfinals in Japan and South Korea.
Gerrard clashed regularly with Diouf during his time at Liverpool - and in later spells at Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers - and he claimed that call was symbolic of a chaotic transfer strategy.
"We got recruitment badly wrong at times. Badly wrong at times," he said.
"I'll give you an example. We had the chance to sign Anelka or El Hadji Diouf. We bought Diouf on the back of a four to five game period in a World Cup. When we could have bought someone on the back of five to six years. That was the decision.
"I don't know who made the final decision. It's an example of the club getting it wrong because it's one of the biggest mismatches you could debate. El Hadji Diouf or Nicolas Anelka!
"He was ready to help Liverpool win more, get closer to you guys [Man United]. Anelka was a level above."
As an illustration of the sliding doors moment, Diouf scored just three Premier League goals in two seasons at Liverpool [2002/03 and 2003/04], at the same time as Anelka netted 30 at City.
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