I'll say it again.
Had Stevie come on as a late substitute...do you think he'd have let Hendo take the pen because he was wearing the armband? Do you think Hendo wouldn't have gladly told Stevie to take the pen?
To me there are three issues (from what I saw). First, as captain, Jordan should have willfully conceeded that Balo should have been taking the pen. It's great that Jordan had the confidence (ego?) that he wanted to take it, but when you have a guy who's missed what....1 in his entire career), you give over to him. That's what a captain should be doing...making the smartest decisions in regards to the team.
Second issue was Gerrard giving his opinion as a commentator. Especially when he himself made the comment when Balo was acquired that if he (Stevie) wasn't on the field, Balo should be taking the pens.
The third issue is Sturridge getting involved. He successfully undermined two teammates at the same time. Balo because he was telling Jordan to take it and Jordan because it then looked like Hendo needed someone to "help" him stand up to big bad Mario.
The positive here is that Rodgers has addressed it publically in a very smart way and I'd assume he's already addressed it in the locker room and we shouldn't see this be an issue again.
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