Steven Gerrard is amongst the frontrunners being discussed for the Rangers manager’s job come the end of the season.
The Liverpool legend took his first job in management at Rangers, coming into the club in 2018 and delivering 55 within three seasons.
It remains to be seen if Rangers fans would be willing to forgive Gerrard’s exit to Aston Villa, the Scouser infamously reiterating his commitment to the project in Glasgow before moving to Birmingham days later.
But whether or not Rangers fans are ready to go soft on the Steven Gerrard – who remains a figure close to the Ibrox support’s heart – the Gers have been told the legendary midfielder is destined for managerial greatness.
Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images for Laureus
Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images for Laureus
Fabio Capello on Steven Gerrard the manager
Fabio Capello might never have been able to bring England’s so-called golden generation to glory.
But the legendary Italian manager, who is now 78, had a massive impact on the careers of some of the Three Lions’ most legendary players.
Amongst them is ex-Rangers manager Steven Gerrard, who was a key player in Capello’s England team between 2007 and 2012.
Whilst it was Capello’s successor Hodgson who would appoint Gerrard permanent captain in 2012 – Gerrard claiming the Italian ‘didn’t believe’ in him before the 2014 World Cup (BBC Sport) – the ex-Real Madrid and Juventus coach worked closely with the Scouser for years.
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Now, Fabio Capello has tipped both Steven Gerrard and once-Rangers linked Frank Lampard to etch their names into the managerial history books.
Lampard is impressing at Coventry City after being knocked back for the Ibrox gig in favour of Philippe Clement in late 2023.
Speaking to Flashscore, Capello explains that both Gerrard and Lampard have the mentality to succeed in management because they will always learn from their mistakes, the biggest of which the ex-AS Roma, Juventus and AC Milan claims is going into management too soon.
“When you start to play, when you finish playing, you have to do something different, you have to prepare something different,” said Capello.
”You can manage that one team immediately, one team in the first division. (Andrea) Pirlo managed Juventus, Lampard managed Chelsea.
“When I finished playing, for the first five years, I worked with the academy. When you work with the academy, you understand what you have to do, when you speak to the players, when you speak with the youngsters.
“It’s, for me, it’s a university. A university where you can understand what you have to do because when you finish playing at the top level like Lampard and Gerrard, you can enter immediately into another job. (But) you have to understand.
“I believe the players, they have to do something before to be a manager. I noticed these two fantastic players, two of the best players I managed, and I am sure that in the future they will also be very good head coaches in important clubs. Because they understand the mistake they made at the start.”
Steven Gerrard keen on Rangers manager return
Steven Gerrard is one of the leading names in the Ibrox manager conversation.
It wasn’t always plain sailing under Gerrard at Ibrox but the former England captain is out of work after leaving Al-Ettifaq earlier in the season.
Gerrard is also the only manager other than the great Walter Smith to lift the Scottish Premiership in the last 15 years whilst the ex-LA Galaxy star boasts a 64% win record in 12 games against Celtic.
A recent Instagram post involving Gerrard and Rangers’ official suit supplier got chins wagging and it might not be without good reason.
As Rangers News exclusively revealed, Stevie G is interested in a headline-grabbing return to Rangers and the club have discussed the Liverpool icon as an option.
Should Rangers move elsewhere and Gerrard likewise, Fabio Capello’s prediction suggests the Ibrox club might well live to regret it.