Steven Gerrard vs David Luiz: Stats Compared
Central Midfielder, England (born 1980, retired 2016) · Centre-Back, Brazil (born 1987, retired 2023)
Ask any fan to rank Steven Gerrard above or below David Luiz and you will get a passionate answer. It is in how they played, rather than what they won, that the comparison gets interesting. The raw numbers read 212 goals in 860 outings for Steven Gerrard (0.25/game), versus 35 in 650 for David Luiz (0.05/game). In chance creation, Steven Gerrard tallied 155 assists to David Luiz's 25. The honours ledger favours Steven Gerrard with 8 major trophies (1× UEFA Champions League (2005)) against David Luiz's 6 (1× UEFA Champions League (2012)). Stylistically Steven Gerrard was silky where David Luiz was rugged — two vocabularies of the same sport. The wider career context matters too: Steven Gerrard peaked around 2005 after representing Liverpool, LA Galaxy, while David Luiz's defining level came around 2013 across Vitória, Benfica, Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea, Arsenal, Flamengo. Greatness, in cases like this, is rarely a zero-sum affair.
152 words · comparison angle: style
Player profiles
Liverpool captain who led the famous 2005 Champions League comeback in Istanbul; one-club man for most of his Premier League career.
“A dynamic box-to-box midfielder with a hammer of a right foot and a habit of dragging Liverpool back into games.”
An eccentric, unpredictable Brazilian centre-back famed for his wild hairstyles and thunderous free-kicks, David Luiz won trophies across three major European leagues.
“An unorthodox, high-risk centre-back who combined bold attacking instincts and a huge shot with occasionally erratic positioning.”
Head-to-head stats
Career goals by season
Representative career seasons — goals per season for each player across their documented clubs.
Attribute radar
Attribute ratings are peak-era, 0–100. Different positions naturally skew the profile.
Attribute comparison
Trophy breakdown
- 1× UEFA Champions League (2005)
- 1× UEFA Cup (2001)
- 2× FA Cup (2001, 2006)
- 3× EFL Cup (2001, 2003, 2012)
- 1× UEFA Super Cup (2001)
- 1× UEFA Champions League (2012)
- 2× UEFA Europa League (2013, 2019)
- 2× Premier League (2015, 2017)
- 1× FA Cup (2018)
Trophy distribution
Career milestones
- 1998 Liverpool debut
- 2001 Won the UEFA Cup, FA Cup and League Cup treble
- 2003 Replaced Sami Hyypiä as Liverpool captain
- 2005 Lifted the Champions League in Istanbul
- 2006 Player of the match in the FA Cup final
- 2012 Captained Great Britain at the Olympics
- 2015 Left Liverpool for LA Galaxy
- 2006 Professional debut for Vitória
- 2012 Won UEFA Champions League with Chelsea
- 2018 Won FA Cup with Chelsea
- 2013 Reached the peak of his powers at Chelsea
- 2023 Retired after a final spell at Flamengo
- Finished his career with 35 goals in 650 appearances and 6 major honours. Finished his career with 35 goals in 650 appearances and 6 major honours.
The verdict
If forced to pick, Steven Gerrard is the choice: a decisive margin, with a sharper goalscoring record the deciding factor.
Steven Gerrard edges it (a decisive margin)
