I’M LEARNING FAST . . . AND JURGEN IS THERE IF I NEED HIM
Steven Gerrard on cutting his teeth as a coach with Liverpool’s Under 18s
SO here is Steven Gerrard at Christmas: top of the league, through to the next phase in europe and ticking along smoothly in the FA Youth Cup. Management must be a walk in the park?
‘Actually,’ comes the reply. ‘I’ve aged about two years in six months!’
There is a telling glint in Gerrard’s eye. The days when he was the pre-eminent midfielder in english football may be a thing of the past but, after a difficult period that followed his retirement from playing, he is being challenged once more. And he loves it.
Gerrard is six months into his job as Liverpool Under 18 head coach and results have exceeded expectations. After 11 matches, his side lead the field in the Premier League Under 18 North, showing the same desire and determination that characterised his career.
Many believe this is the start of a journey that, one day, will lead him to the dug-out at Anfield but over the course of a 30-minute discussion at the club’s Kirkby academy it becomes abundantly clear that an impressive start has not led to an inflated sense of his own worth.
There is a reason Gerrard has been given the Under 18 role. he could have launched his management career immediately after he stopped playing in November 2016 but his closest confidants, including Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, urged him to cut his teeth away from the glare
‘Jurgen said to me, “I only want you to shadow for a short period of time because you need to have a couple of years of making mistakes”,’ says Gerrard. ‘he painted a picture of how it really is and you don’t get that when you shadow because someone else feels all that.
‘When you manage the youth team, the next day after a game you are thinking what went well, what didn’t go well, what individuals do I need to work on this week, who do I need to praise, who do I need to speak to? Who has been naughty at school? There is a lot more to it than you think.
‘Now I’m feeling all the highs and lows. I’m experiencing all the daily stuff they deal with. I have more respect for coaches and managers now even though as a player I always respected the ones I worked with. But I didn’t realise how much was involved in their roles until I have tried it myself.’
It is, he says, all-consuming. he meets the local media the day after his team beat Wolves 2-1 in the most dramatic fashion, scoring twice in the final six minutes having gone behind in the 81st minute. his mind, clearly, is still racing from the events of that contest.
‘I’ve learnt loads,’ says Gerrard. ‘I’ve shouted things I shouldn’t have shouted on, I have said things to officials and players I shouldn’t have said. I’ve made mistakes. I’ve made loads of them. I made one yesterday that nearly cost us the game. But this was the sensible route. I had options to go into the Premier League and Championship. I had other offers to lead in other leagues. They were tempting, of course they were. But I feel this was definitely the sensible and best decision to take in terms of where I want to be in the long run.’
It also helps having an open line to Klopp. The German insisted when Gerrard took the reins that he would ‘give him all the support he needs’ but it is not an offer that the 37-year-old has abused. If his own job is all-consuming, the pressure on Klopp is on another level completely.
‘I can knock on his door every day of the week if I want to,’ says Gerrard. ‘We exchange messages quite regularly. I’ve been down to Melwood probably three or four times since the beginning of the season but I don’t need to be around Jurgen every day.
‘I know he’s there if I need him. he was really good in the process before I took this role with the advice he gave me and it was great to bounce a load of questions off him. he gave me every minute that I needed to make sure I was making the right decision. his support has been fantastic.
‘But he’s got his own worries, so I don’t want to be knocking too much. But yes, he has been top drawer and I know if I pick the phone up asking for a meeting it will be done instantly. I’m not sure there are many people who are lucky enough to be in that position.’
Lucky is a curious choice of word.
earned this opportunity, it has not been given to him as some sort of PR gimmick. The club have high hopes he will go all the way to the top, in the same way that the Football Association are watching his progress from afar.
The thing about Gerrard is he still carries the sense of authority that was with him as a player. The squad may have been awestruck at first but now there is a bond, one which was illustrated when the team engulfed him in celebrations when they came from behind to beat Everton 3-1 in September.
There will come a point in the future when he is ready to make the next step but, for the moment, he is in the right place, helping guide the futures of shimmering talents such as young England striker Rhian Brewster and learning as he goes.
‘I’m not sitting here thinking I’ve done it for six months so I’m ready and bring the job interviews on,’ says Gerrard. ‘Am I closer to that now? Yeah, of course. But I am happy where I am right now. Things are good, I’m learning loads. The timing isn’t right to change that.
‘In a year’s time, I might have three opportunities and three of them might not be here. Then it will be time to think. I can’t sit here and say to you, “Oh no, I only want to work for Liverpool, blah, blah, blah”. In a perfect world everyone knows what I want. Right now it’s not worth thinking about.’