Steven Gerrard rejects ‘perfect’ job offer as Liverpool icon keeps himself busy | Football | Sport
Steven Gerrard has candidly confessed that he may not return to football management any time soon, having turned down what he deemed the “perfect” job at Rangers. Before Danny Rohl was announced as Russell Martin’s successor in October, Gerrard was deep in negotiations with chairman Andrew Cavenagh and Paraag Marathe of 49ers Enterprises. However, after several rounds of talks, he decided against a sensational comeback to the Glasgow titans.
The Liverpool legend achieved hero status during his previous tenure in the Ibrox hotseat, notably breaking Celtic’s dominance of the Scottish Premiership title in 2021. Since then, Gerrard has had less successful spells at Aston Villa and in the Saudi Pro League with Al-Ettifaq. Gerrard maintains that he is not in a hurry to take on another managerial role, acknowledging that he needs to select the “right” job following two unsuccessful tenures.
Discussing his current activities on The Smiths Brothers podcast, Gerrard revealed: “I’ve been busy-ish. Loads of free time with the family, with the granddaughter coming.
“We’re trying to be around as much as we can, which is why we’ve moved home. I’m sort of unofficially working with TNT covering Champions League and Premier League matches – they’ve been really accommodating, letting me pick and choose games due to my family situation.”
“So, trying to stay local with the Premier League games and just the odd Champions League. Then, endorsement stuff – a little bit in the Far East, meet and greets, that type of stuff. Spoke to a couple of clubs, opportunities that have come up on the phone and unfortunately nothing (is) there at the moment.
“I am comfortable and easy with that. I am not looking for a job or steaming for a job. After the last two I do have to make sure it’s the right one.”
The 45-year-old has been without a managerial position since departing Ettifaq in January, following an 18-month spell that saw the Saudi side struggling near the bottom of the Pro League. Gerrard emphasises that his next role must offer a “passionate” fanbase and genuine opportunities to compete for trophies.
Should the right opportunity fail to materialise, he acknowledges he may not return to management at all: “I think I suit a certain job; the passionate crowd – I need to try and feed off that. Something has to match my skillset, if you know what I mean.
“I am looking for the right match. Rangers was perfect, I was really close to going up there again. It’s just the timing and a few other situations that weren’t aligned.
“Rangers is my type of club – the fans, the passion, you can feed off it. It certainly suits the way that I go about it, but if something doesn’t come or something where I feel like I can compete for the prizes I am comfortable to do what I am doing.”
