Aston Villa manager Steven Gerrard's goal reaction is already a meme online

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Steven Gerrard celebrated Aston Villa's equaliser against Manchester City – before hilariously tempering his joy

Aston Villa Manager Steven Gerrard and Manchester City Manager Pep Guardiola during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Manchester City at Villa Park on September 3, 2022 in Birmingham, United Kingdom.
(Image credit: Daniel Chesterton/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)

Steven Gerrard is well used to being a meme. The Aston Villa manager has had plenty of moments during his playing career… including the one that Liverpool fans would rather forget. 

Now, Stevie G has produced a moment to rival Ralph Hasenhuttl's iconic "Calm down" hands following a celebration of a goal that his Southampton side scored against Arsenal. The moment came after a stunning Leon Bailey equaliser against Manchester City, even prompting Gerrard to rethink his tactics.

The Villa boss was about to make attacking substitutions before the goal went in. 

Steven Gerrard reacts to Aston Villa's equaliser

Gerrard side had only had a couple of opportunities prior to the Bailey stunner against City. The champions had been dominant, with Erling Haaland scoring his 10th of the season (yes, 10 in six games) to open the scoring. 

But Bailey's goal came against the run of play somewhat – and Villa were unlucky not to have a second when Philippe Coutinho was incorrectly judged to have been offside before walloping a ball into the top corner after the referee's whistle sounded. 

The original meme from Ralph is still timeless, isn't it?

Mark White
Mark White
Content Editor

Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.