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Football

19th Aug 2018

Steven Gerrard clearly wasn’t happy with Kilmarnock’s pitch on Sunday

Rangers still picked up the win at Rugby Park

Darragh Murphy

Steven Gerrard hasn’t been shy about voicing his frustrations since his move to Scotland.

Gerrard hit out at referees’ treatment of Rangers players after his first Scottish Premiership game in charge and now he’s turned his attention to the pitches.

The Liverpool legend was not best pleased after losing winger Jamie Murphy to a knee injury on Kilmarnock’s synthetic surface on Sunday.

Rangers claimed a 3-1 over Killie in the League Cup, with Alfredo Morelos netting a hat-trick at Rugby Park.

But after the match, Gerrard suggested that Kilmarnock’s pitch was to blame for Murphy’s injury which forced him off in the early stages of the game.

“If you ask Jamie right now he’ll say it was a pitch incident,” Gerrard said.

“I’m not here to disrespect Kilmarnock and their playing facilities. I know it helps support the running of their club. But my opinion is elite football shouldn’t have any plastic pitches.

“I think for every club worldwide it’s safer to have a grass pitch. But I don’t want to dive in too quick, we’ll wait and see what the examinations say but we’re all fearing the worst.”

Gerrard admitted that he feared Murphy, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Ibrox before the move was made permanent this summer, would “be out for a long time”.

And some Gers players echoed Gerrard’s concern about plastic pitches after Sunday’s game.

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