Club legend to leave his post as U18s manager to take over the vacant first team position at Ibrox…
Steven Gerrard has been confirmed as the new manager of Scottish Premier League side Glasgow Rangers.
The 37-year-old will leave his position within Liverpool’s Academy to take up the role on a four-year deal this summer.
Speaking via the official Rangers website on Friday afternoon, Gerrard said: “I am honoured to become the next manager of Rangers. I have enormous respect for this football club, and its history and tradition.
“I can’t wait to start this new journey at Rangers as we look to build on the many successes that this Club has achieved.”
Gerrard made over 700 appearances and won seven major trophies during an illustrious playing career at Liverpool before hanging up his boots in November 2016 following a short stint in America.
The former Reds and England captain returned to his hometown club at the beginning of 2017 to take up a coaching role before spending the past season managing the club’s U18s to a third-placed finish in the U18s Premier League.
Reacting to his departure, Liverpool first team boss Jürgen Klopp told Liverpoolfc.com: “If Stevie thinks it’s the right moment then I’m sure it is the right moment. If he thinks he’s ready then he’s ready.
“Rangers are a big club in a little bit of a difficult moment still but a much better moment than a few years ago. It could be a really good fit, it could be nice, coming closer to Celtic.
“I’m pretty sure Celtic supporters don’t think, ‘Thank God, Steven Gerrard’. They think, ‘Wow, Steven Gerrard’. That can always be a sign.
“Stevie is one of the best midfielders ever. Now he wants to be a manager. He has the passion for football and the knowledge about football. All the rest is to learn; I’m sure he learned a lot in the last year.
“I’m really happy for him to have the opportunity.”
Rangers parted ways with predecessor Graeme Murty earlier this month. The Gers currently sit third in the table, 13 points behind champions Celtic with three games to play.
Vital Comment
This is a bold move by Gerrard and everyone at Vital Liverpool would like to wish him all the best. He will always have a home at Liverpool, so even if it doesn’t work out he can easily return. Taking charge of Rangers, whether it ultimately proves to be a positive or negative experience, is likely to aid his development in the long-term. That said, with current Reds assistant Željko Buvač on a hiatus and unlikely to return, there might have been a possibility for Gerrard to become part of the first team setup at Liverpool had he remained. By doing that he could have learned directly from Klopp with an eye on directly succeeding him somewhere down the line.
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Wish Steven good luck in this position at Rangers. Maybe a stepping stone for a similar post at Liverpool