Boss: Stevie showed his importance again
Steven Gerrard's performances during Liverpool's last two games have epitomised the sheer stature of the club's departing captain, according to Brendan Rodgers.
The skipper earned the Reds a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge as he headed home a Jordan Henderson free-kick in the final moments of the first half of Sunday's Barclays Premier League encounter.
Gerrard also played a starring role in the 2-1 win over Queens Park Rangers last weekend, nodding in during the final five minutes to steal all three points.
The 34-year-old now has just two games at Liverpool left before he heads to the United States to join LA Galaxy and Rodgers believes his departure will be felt significantly.
"I thought he was excellent, Stevie. In the last couple of games he's got the winner [against QPR] and he's got the equaliser today," he said.
"You see the importance he has to the team. He's taken a lot of stick here over numbers of years but I think the Chelsea supporters knew deep down it's only because he's a superstar player who's been a thorn in their side for many years.
"He's travelled up and down this country for 15 years and it was nice for him to get that [ovation from the Chelsea fans]."
Liverpool face the tough task of attempting to replace a legendary figure when Gerrard heads over to the MLS at the end of the season.
Rodgers hopes to see additional contributions from the club's existing core of players to help soften the blow.
"I’ve said before – he’s irreplaceable really, but we need to find the solutions one way or the other," he added.
"Whether it is players coming in, players that are here taking the step forward.
"That’s got to be crucial, because he’s a player that makes the big contributions when needed and has done for many years."
Rodgers went on to lament the visitors' slow start in the capital, which saw Chelsea take the lead through a John Terry header.
The manager also insisted the Reds deserved more than a point but had a lack of cutting edge to blame for their failure to take all three.
"I thought we started slowly and obviously we conceded a disappointing goal from a corner," he continued.
"Then we grew into the game and I think once we got the goal we started to find our passing and our rhythm much better and I thought second half we were outstanding.
"We just lacked that finishing in and around the box to get the winner which we deserved in the second half.
"That’s obviously been the issue for us this season – our lack of goals has really hurt us.
"But the players have done absolutely everything. It’s been a long season for them and we want to finish it well."