‘I lost the Liverpool captaincy – I’m not bitter about it and I’m glad it happened’

Sami Hyypia was stripped of his Liverpool captaincy only a year after being handed it in favour of Steven Gerrard – a decision which the Finnish icon says benefitted them both

Sami Hyypia insists he was not bitter after losing his Liverpool captaincy to Steven Gerrard, claiming he was “very happy” when told the news.

The Liverpool legend, who turns 51 today, spent a decade with the Anfield club between 1999 and 2009. In 2002, he was entrusted with the captaincy by then-manager Gerard Houllier thanks to his leadership and towering presence at centre-back.

But Hyypia was stripped of the armband only a year later in favour of homegrown wonderkid Gerrard, who was just 23 at the time. Gerrard went on to become one of Liverpool’s greatest captains ever, leading the side to an iconic Champions League final comeback in Istanbul in 2005.

Hyypia, who was self-confessedly a boyhood Reds supporter and made the move to Merseyside from Dutch outfit Willem II, admits he went on to become an even better player after the snub. And while others may have felt disrespected in his shoes, the former Finland international was “happy” that Gerrard was able to flourish as a result of the decision.

He told the Liverpool Echo in 2022: “Coming from Finland and being the Liverpool captain is a great honour. I still remember the day I lost the captaincy to Stevie and I am very happy that happened.

“I knew it meant a lot to Stevie and he grew up as a man and a player so much after that. For myself, I started to play better when I lost the captaincy. It worked both ways.

“It may have even made our relationship even deeper as he saw I was okay with the manager’s decision and took it as a professional and a man. I think he [Gerrard] respected me more after that. I wanted to help Stevie and if he had a problem, I was always there.”

Hyypia made 318 appearances for Liverpool before joining Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2009. His long list of honours at Liverpool includes two FA Cups, two League Cups, two Community Shields, the Champions League, UEFA Cup and UEFA Super Cup.

After hanging up his boots in 2011, the Finn began managing Leverkusen, who are now coached by his former team-mate Xabi Alonso. A short stint at Brighton followed before he took charge of FC Zurich for the 2015/16 season.

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