With a second final in three years secured, Liverpool's captain revealed that he will sign a new contract as soon as someone from the club puts a pen in his hand. Furthermore, Jamie Carragher, the other local terrace hero, will be right behind him in the queue. So, without being blinded by insularity, let's hear it for the local boys in this cosmopolitan age.

With one exception, the most successful foreign coaches to have made an impact working on these shores have quickly realised the benefits of encouraging native talent steeped in the ways of English football. Only Arsene Wenger, who found his Brits growing too old together on his arrival 12 years ago, has been unconcerned about it, and many Arsenal followers still feel that, for all their club's achievements, a little something has been lost as a result.

It was obvious watching the 2005 Champions League final that Gerrard and Carragher were the driving forces behind the second-half revival, having been those most affected by hearing the anthems of their fellow Scousers as they sat in a distraught dressing-room at the interval. Both came out to give heroic performances.

No surprise then to find the pair bubbling as the tension of another victory by penalty shoot-out slowly subsided last Tuesday. "It's right up there beside the great moments, " said Gerrard.

"Obviously we've still got one massive hurdle to get over but to beat Chelsea over two legs. . . they've been champions over the past two years, the players they've got, and they've got a special manager, it's a fantastic achievement. Before the game, we were 1-0 down, they had the advantage, it showed great character from the boys to come from behind and get through to the final."

Carragher could not resist a laugh and a little dig when told that the opposing manager thought Chelsea were the better team: "Well, I don't think [Roman] Abramovich will think that. If you've been at Chelsea three years and spent all that money and not made a Champions League final, he [Jose Mourinho] may be in trouble. That's three years running we've beaten them in a semi-final [two Champions League, one FA Cup] and hopefully we'll go on to win the trophy like we have done the last two."

In combining with Liverpool's unlikely goalscorer Daniel Agger to subdue Didier Drogba, who had been the key figure in the first leg, Carragher gave a performance to be proud of. "I know people go on about Drogba in the first game, " he said, "but he's probably the best striker in the world at the moment. A striker is allowed to get the better of you sometimes. But hopefully we did our job.

That's six Champions League games against them and we've only conceded one goal.

"There are no secrets in football. Work very hard in training every day, give everything you've got and be focused. Put it right on the training ground, and give it everything in every game.

We didn't really deserve it in the first leg, we didn't really do ourselves justice, but I think you get what you deserve in life and football."