Brendan Rodgers is well acquainted with Rangers manager candidate Steven Gerrard, the two having worked together at Liverpool and then having faced each other as rivals at the Old Firm.
It’s 1-1 in terms of Old Firm derbies, with Gerrard giving Rodgers a bloody nose before the Celtic manager jumped ship to Leicester City in 2019.
Steven Gerrard would go on to stop 10IAR and deliver 55 for Rangers in 2021, with the Ibrox manager candidate potentially set to be tasked with stopping Rodgers for a second time.
But whilst both parties insist there is no bad blood between the two, Gerrard once claimed he was ‘devastated’ after leaving Liverpool under Brendan’s watch.
Steven Gerrard ‘devastated’ by Liverpool exit under Brendan Rodgers
Steven Gerrard remains one of the most iconic Liverpool players of the modern era but left Anfield under Brendan Rodgers’ watch in 2015.
Gerrard and Rodgers narrowly missed out on guiding Liverpool to a first Premier League title in a generation back in 2014, Gerrard infamously slipping in a 2-0 defeat to Chelsea which proved crucial in the title race.
There has been a sense of tension between the two ever since – even if Gerrard branded suggestions of a rift as ‘nonsense’ – and the ex-Liverpool skipper has suggested he left Anfield prematurely under Rodgers’ watch.
Gerrard claims Rodgers told him his game time would be limited at Anfield, forcing the ex-Liverpool midfielder to turn down the offer of a contract and move to LA Galaxy in 2015.
Only a few months later Rodgers was sacked, and Gerrard admits he’s ’devastated’ he never hung around on Merseyside to hook up with Jurgen Klopp.
“I was devastated,” said Gerrard. “I obviously made a decision not to sign a year extension to go to America, whereas if I’d took the extension, I might have got six months under the guidance of Jurgen Klopp.
”But obviously being under Brendan’s management at the time, I was getting told my game time was gonna get less and less. I didn’t wanna be a sub for Liverpool, I didn’t wanna be a squad player. I still felt that I was the best midfielder there at the time.
”But in hindsight, if I’d have knew what was gonna come off, 100%, I’d have signed the year extension, and I’d have put up with four to five months of Brendan to get six months of Klopp, for sure.”
Could Rodgers run for the hills from Gerrard for a second time?
Brendan Rodgers might insist there is no beef between himself and Steven Gerrard, but the Rangers manager does have a point to prove against the Celtic boss.
Last time around, Gerrard was the first Rangers manager in a long-time to get a handle on Celtic and Rodgers left Parkhead not long after a 1-0 defeat at Ibrox in late 2018, Ryan Jack scoring the only goal of the game at a raucous Ibrox.
This time, Rodgers has once again had it all his own way in Scotland and if Gerrard is to be chosen as Rangers manager, that might not be the case against his old adversary.
With one year left to run on his Celtic contract, Rodgers could face embarrassment if Gerrard comes in and wrestles back the Scottish Premiership title.
Ex-Swansea boss Rodgers has always prioritised self-preservation, so maybe the threat of coming face-to-face with Gerrard could see the ex-Liverpool gaffer take to the hills.
We hear the Tottenham job might become available very soon…
