Gerrard meets players by accident in Dubai!
Steven Gerrard insists he’s desperate to take Rangers to the group stages of the Europa League as the countdown to his first official game begins.
He officially started his new job at Ibrox on Friday, but has spent the first couple of days in his new job working at the Toulon Tournament in France.
But the Liverpool legend has revealed that he’s already met with Rangers players because they were staying in the same hotel as him on holiday in Dubai.
The Liverpool icon is based in Marseille and has watched three games, including England’s win over Qatar in Fos-sur-mer on Friday night.
He has also been combining the completion of his UEFA Pro Licence through the English FA with scouting for new talent at the prestigious French youth tournament.
Gerrard flew back to the UK last night, and is due back in Glasgow just before he takes his team to Spain for a pre-season training camp later this month.
They will find out their opponents for the Europa League first round qualifiers when the draw is made on June 19, with the first leg of that tie scheduled for July 12.
Gerrard has made it clear he will demand Rangers hit the ground running in his first competitive match, even if he hasn’t assembled his best squad by then.
The Light Blues manager said: “Every game for Rangers is a priority.
“Of course, it’s going to be very difficult to have everything done and dusted by that first game because clubs shut down for a certain amount of time.
“It can be difficult to get deals over the line in a short space of time.
“But in terms of that first Europa League game, I don’t prioritise any game.
“The fact of the matter is, we want to be in the group stages of the Europa League in September.
“So whatever players are available to me at that time will be expected to get results. “And I’ll be expected to get results.” Although Gerrard hasn’t yet officially met his new squad, he revealed he’s already made progress on that front.
He stressed: “I’m ahead of the game in terms of speaking to certain individuals, and I’ll be speaking to more as we go along.
“The idea is to try and speak to the majority of them before we get back.
“But I also have to respect that some are on family holidays or international duty.
“There’s plenty of time from now until the first game of the season to have meetings and chats.
“I’m definitely ahead of the game.
“I’m not sure whether some of the players followed me to Dubai – but a few were staying in the same hotel as me!
“So that gave me a chance to speak to them.”
Gerrard’s arrival in Glasgow has generated enormous interest around the world. But he accepts the spotlight will firmly be trained on him even more now.
He admitted: “I’ve not been surprised by the level of interest or intensity. “I knew it before I was announced. I knew all about Rangers from the outside. I knew the size of the club, I knew the opportunity and size of the task.
“I’m surprised how many Rangers fans I’ve bumped into so far. I was in Dubai for nine or 10 days on a family break.
“The support and welcome I’ve had has been superb.”
Meanwhile, Graeme Souness insists it’s not beyond Gerrard to depose Celtic as champions in his first season as Rangers boss.
The former manager won the title in his debut season, but had the financial clout that allowed him to recruit England internationals like Terry Butcher and Chris Woods.
Despite Rangers clearly being way behind their greatest rivals on and off the field, Souness doesn’t rule out Gerrard working a minor miracle.
“I’m not saying it’s going to happen, but it wouldn’t be impossible,” said Souness.
“With a large slice of luck, and a bit of luck with the players you bring in, why not? “I’m hoping that he’s got some money to spend and he can attract some loan players.
“With that mix, along with what he brings, I’m hoping Rangers can have a really good season.
“And a really good season means they have to catch Celtic and finish above them.
“I’ve got a sneaky feeling he’ll do well. Lady luck has to shine on us to finish first.”
Souness believes Gerrard may well return to Anfield and persuade Jurgen Klopp to let him have a talented youngster or two.
The former Reds skipper has an in-depth knowledge of the Anfield youth programme after spending time as Under-18 boss.
Souness went on: “I’m not sure he’ll be bringing big names in, but what he’ll bring in is maybe a younger player who is about to burst onto the scene, but are not quite good enough for Liverpool or maybe another Premier League team.
“Steven is highly thought of down in England, well respected, and he’ll have no problem picking the phone up and having people do him favours.
“There’ll be an element of that but no doubt he’ll want to buy a couple as well.”