‘Stevie will shoulder blame but players must stand up now’
STEVEN Gerrard has taken Rangers into the Europa League group stage and up to first place in the Ladbrokes Premiership this term.
And it’s down to accepting full responsibility for their setbacks.
That’s the opinion of Gerrard’s former teammate Joe Cole.
The Ibrox club atoned for their defeat to Rapid Vienna in Austria in their final Europa League game last Thursday night when they beat Hamilton 1-0 at home on Sunday to go above their city rivals Celtic in the league.
Cole, who played alongside Gerrard in midfield with both Liverpool and England, has been delighted to see his countryman, who is in his first job as a manager, do so well since moving to Scotland in the summer.
The former Chelsea player, who brought an end to his 20-year playing career last month, revealed that he may travel to Glasgow to see his compatriot at work on the training ground as he prepares to make the move into coaching or management himself.
Cole feels the 38-year-old has done so well since stepping into the dugout due to the grounding that he received at Anfield and by staying loyal to the players he has working under him.
“It is very rare for somebody as talented as Stevie to have such humility,” said Cole. “He will step up when things don’t go well.
“That is rare as a manager. A lot of the managers I played for wouldn’t hesitate to hang you out to dry. But that is the kind of man Stevie is. He will always be the man at the front. But what he did at Liverpool makes that second nature.
“I just hope the players up there respond to that. There will come a point this season where they have to pay him back. But I am sure that is what is going to get them over the line.
“I might make a phone call to Stevie and see if I can come up and spend a few days in Glasgow watching him. I just want to suck in as much knowledge and experience as I can.”
Cole will travel to Glasgow to play for England in the Star Sixes, a legends’ six-aside tournament being held at the SSE Hydro next month, and hopes to make an impact.
“I have been playing at a good level in America,” he said. “It is a very high standard with a lot of international players and that will mean I am in good shape for this event.”
Another of Cole’s former colleagues currently plying his trade at the top end of the Scottish Premiership is former Chelsea coach Steve Clarke, who worked with Cole when they were both on the books at the Blues.
Clarke’s success since taking over at struggling Kilmarnock at the end of last year has taken the whole of Scottish football aback.
But leading the Rugby Park club away from the relegation zone and into the top six last season and then taking them to first place in the top-flight table this term comes as no surprise to Cole.
The 56-time capped England midfielder said: “It’s no surprise to me how well Clarkey has done at Kilmarnock. He is a straight man. He will tell you how it is. He doesn’t waste his words. He is a tough guy, but he is a fair man and that is all you want as a player from a football manager. He is just a good football guy. He is very knowledgeable. I am really pleased he is doing so well.”
■ Star Sixes reunites the world’s greatest players in national team colours to renew old rivalries in six-aside action. SSE Hydro, Glasgow, January 4-6. Tickets £20/£10. visit: www. thessehydro.com