Football Manager Daily

Before he’d even begun his managerial career in Glasgow with Rangers, speculation started around when Steven Gerrard would return to Anfield as manager, with most suggesting that it was a case of when not if. It’s quite disrespectful towards both the club and current incumbent Jürgen Klopp in many respects, not least because there is no vacancy. But when you are talking about a club legend, a one-club man and former captain, such talk is almost inevitable. And when Klopp eventually departs Merseyside, the Gerrard talk will go into overdrive; tipsters at casino online already have him as odds-on favourite.

Indeed, the talk of Gerrard’s possible return to Anfield has been much louder in recent weeks as Liverpool’s form deteriorated and Rangers clinched their first Scottish Premier League title in ten years after Celtic could only draw at Dundee United, leaving the Gers twenty points clear with only six games remaining.

And it became almost deafening just two days later when Germany manager Joachim Löw announced his intention to step down from his role following this summer’s European Championship and people linked Jürgen Klopp with the job, though Klopp immediately made clear that he is unavailable.

It’s fair to say that Steven Gerrard has done a very good job since his arrival at Ibrox. Rangers’ financial collapse led to Celtic’s total dominance of Scottish football, and breaking that dominance was his one big challenge. Gerrard commanded instant respect throughout the club, and was afforded time to build a squad capable of overhauling their fierce rivals. It has taken Gerrard three seasons, but Rangers have got there. At the same time, he has made the club competitive in European competition, and at the time of writing, they are in the last sixteen of the Europa League.

But there is a huge gulf between the Scottish and English Premier Leagues as Gerrard himself knows only too well, and he will be thinking that he will need to get a few more years’ experience under his belt before returning to the club that he gave his entire playing career to and served with great distinction. And he will also be wary that a club legend’s return doesn’t always turn out to be a fairy story as his former England team mate Frank Lampard will testify.

Gerrard has been asked on a fairly regular basis about a potential return to Anfield, and while he’s always made it clear that it’s something that he’d welcome, he’s also been respectful and made it clear that it’s something for the future.

While Gerrard to Liverpool isn’t something that is going to happen anytime soon, there is definitely an inevitability about it, and the countdown is on.