Steven Gerrard: Liverpool player 'scared' about ending career

Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard admits he is "scared" about entering the final stages of his career.

Greek side Olympiakos are the visitors to Anfield on Saturday to celebrate Gerrard's 15 years as a professional at Liverpool.

"It does scare me to be in the final stages but I also just want to make the most of it," he told BBC Sport.

The 33-year-old has also said his aim is to restore the club's Champions League status.

Gerrard signed a new deal to keep him at the club past his 35th birthday in July, having already made 630 appearances for the club since making his debut in 1998.

"I have two years signed and I want to make the most of those - who knows, I might even extend them further. We will have to wait and see," said the one-club man.

"We finished last season really strongly, in the last five months we showed Champions League form so the manager has asked us to continue where we left off and hopefully we can put a better challenge in for the top four places.

"While I've still got a couple of years left I have to make the most of it. And that is about adding more medals to what I already have and to leave this club in the Champions League. That is the challenge for me personally."

Liverpool last played in the Champions League in 2009 and, after only finishing seventh last season, Gerrard has stressed the importance of helping the club back towards the top four.

"All you can do is give everything on the pitch. If all the players in our dressing room do that we can put in a better challenge than we have done over the last few years.

"We need to break back into the top four to get back the pull we had four or five years ago when we were comfortably in the Champions League year in, year out and challenging to win it.

"Players who come and get the club back into the Champions League will experience some of the biggest nights of their career, because playing European football in front of this crowd is different to any other."

Gerrard rates his late goal against Olympiakos in December 2004, which put Liverpool into the Champions League knockout stages, as among his top three strikes.

From there they went on to win the competition in a dramatic Istanbul final against AC Milan.

"That goal is in the top three goals I have ever scored, that is why we picked them for the opposition," he said. "It was sentimental for the supporters to enjoy the occasion and look back on the memories of 2004. The most important thing is to get match fitness.

"Pre-season has been fantastic. We have yet to concede a goal, we have four wins out of four. The boys are in very good condition but we need to keep working hard and keep pushing hard because it [the new season] is only a couple of weeks away.

"At times the last 15 years have been a blur. It has gone like a flash. People say time flies when you are having fun and I have had the best 15 years of my life.

"I would not swap it for anything in the world, I am in a real privileged position and I am just glad I can celebrate the occasion with my family, friends and, of course, the supporters."

Money raised in his testimonial year will be donated to the Steven Gerrard Foundation, a registered charity.