It’s fair to say Steven Gerrard’s managerial journey hasn’t turned out as he expected it to with the Liverpool icon once touted as one of the brightest coaching talents in England
The disappointment of Steven Gerrard’s managerial career couldn’t be further from his achievements as a player.
Regarded by many as the greatest midfielder to ever grace the Premier League, the Liverpool legend has seriously underwhelmed in his post-playing career despite an extremely promising start.
From his days managing Liverpool’s U18s to being at the helm of a Rangers side who he led to a title-winning Invincible campaign in his last year at the club, it could be argued that Gerrard is essentially in the managerial wilderness in Saudi Arabia.
Currently in his second season as head coach of Al-Ettifaq after a woeful 11-month stint at Aston Villa, the club currently sit ninth in the Saudi Pro League and are on a dismal run of three defeats in four games with two losses on the bounce.
Their latest loss came against Al-Orobah, who bested the home side 2-1 in what was the club’s lowest home attendance of the league season with just 2,532 turning up to Al-Ettifaq Club Stadium.
The disappointing showing was the second lowest home attendance of Gerrard’s tenure as a mere 2,281 fans were present to watch Al-Etiffaq’s 3-1 win over Damac in September 2023 – not what he would’ve envisioned at the start of his coaching career.
While still only 44 years old, a relatively young age in the world of management, Gerrard’s reputation has nosedived in recent years. Previous suggestions that he’d be Jurgen Klopp’s potential replacement at Liverpool now seem a lifetime ago.
While it remains to be seen whether Gerrard has any immediate plans to return to England, he could very well stay in the Middle East until his contract ends in 2027. He previously admitted that he wishes to repay the loyalty shown to him by the Al-Ettifaq hierarchy.
“When I sign up to something I am loyal. I want to see it out,” Gerrard said in an interview with The Telegraph. “I would like to continue to build on the work that has been done on and off the pitch so far.
“I am on the pitch every single day. I am looking at other managers out here, competing against them. The league is going to continue to grow and I am in it, I am inside it. Now, I know what you are thinking – is it going to help me get back to where I eventually dream of getting back to? That’s for other people to decide.”
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