Ex Liverpool captain and club legend Steven Gerrard is back in the Premier League as Aston Villa has appointed him as their new head coach.
After a successful three-and-a-half-year stint at Rangers, Stevie G is welcomed back in the Premier League as a manager.
Gerrard was earlier linked with Newcastle United job after the takeover but Villa looked confident and were quite certain to hire Gerrard after sacking Dean Smith.
In a statement, Aston Villa’s CEO Christian Purslow said Gerrard’s “ambition, philosophy, and values” matched with the club’s.
Steven Gerrard comes with an impressive CV having previously completed a successful stay in his first managerial job. The Former Liverpool captain led Rangers to their first League title in 10 years last season.
And interestingly he is now one of the few managers to complete 38 games of top-flight season unbeaten in this century. He ended Celtic’s monopoly in Scottish Championship last season with style by completing a League double and as Invincibles.
According to stats, it reports Gerrard has a healthy win rate of 64.77% as a manager.
Villa finished last season at 11th place but this season Under Dean Smith they have been inconsistent. Villa are currently sitting two places above the relegation zone.
Birmingham-based club Aston Villa have a rich history in English Football. Moreover, they are also one of the few English Clubs to win the UEFA Champions League.
The 41-year-old has a huge task ahead of him. The Club owners are expecting top half finish at the end of the season after making some huge investments in the summer and now with the arrival of Stevie G, the expectation are certainly much higher.
Steven Gerrard – Once a Red now a Villian?
Steven Gerrard was, is, and always will be one of the greatest of all-time Liverpool legend.
Former England and Liverpool captain won many trophies during his 17 seasons stay in Anfield. Moreover, Gerrard was the first scorer in the famous comeback win in the UEFA Champions League final in Istanbul.
The 41-year-old has signed a 2.5-year contract with the Birmingham-based club.
Gerrard will take on Brighton in his first game in charge after the International Break.
But the most anticipated match for Liverpool and Gerrard will be on 11th December as Former Reds Captain will come up against Liverpool at Anfield.
Gerrard possesses all the necessary qualities as a modern-day football manager. Gerrard’s coaching team member Michael Beale regards him distinctly.
A self-discipline manager who communicates fantastically and is good at handling media.
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Currently looking into the Villa side, the squad looks decent who are far better than sitting just outside the relegation zone.
Gerrard who plays 4-3-3 attacking football would be interesting to see how he carries this team.
Previously in Scotland, winning the league title for the Ibrox Club is not the only reason to be considered successful. Apart from that, he also did a phenomenal job in building the team, the way he sets up his team is impressive.
Gerrard was clear with how his team should play and along the way he has improved a lot of players.
Meanwhile, when he will look into the Villa squad, he can definitely believe he can do lots of good things with this current group of players. Thus, it will be a good experience for Gerrard to coach a team at the highest level. Moreover, it could turn out to be a win-win situation for both parties.
Is Villa job, an audition for Gerrard to succeed Klopp at Liverpool?
Gerrard will be hoping he will bring good fortunes for Villa and their fans. But along with Villa fans, there will be another camp that will be closely looking at Gerrard.
Liverpool will be closely monitoring Gerrard, who is widely tipped to be the next Reds manager after Klopp. Gerrard’s Villa job is undoubtedly the pathway to becoming the future Liverpool manager.
Liverpool when they appointed Klopp in 2015, Klopp was well known established manager having won league titles, domestic cup, and reaching the Champions League final with Dortmund.
Although when he took the Dortmund job in the summer of 2008, the German side were struggling and finished 13th the previous season.
Similar way, Gerrard will have a mammoth task of improving and helping Villa in taking the next step. The Midland’s club will be eyeing a place in the top six in the next couple of years.
And Gerrard has now got the right platform to prove that he is worthy of managing a big club like Liverpool in the near future. It will be crucial for him how he stands out as a manager in the next three to four years.
For Liverpool, it’s important to consider looking beyond the Klopp era. But they can’t afford to be emotional and make major decisions with their heart just because of who he was as a player.
The world has witnessed how Manchester United are struggling on the pitch after the Ferguson era. And the appointment of former player ole Gunnar Solskjaer after Jose Mourinho hasn’t changed much in United’s fortunes.
And if Gerrard has to earn a big move to Liverpool, he needs to prove himself to be one of the best managers in the world over the next three to four years.
