Former Rangers boss Steven Gerrard has admitted he should have stayed at Ibrox to gain more experience before making the move to Aston Villa in 2021.
The Liverpool icon guided Rangers to the Scottish Premiership title in 2021 before leaving later that year to take charge of Villa. Since his departure, Rangers have not won the league again, with Celtic resuming their dominance of Scottish football.
Brutal lesson at Villa Park
Gerrard's own managerial career has not gone smoothly since leaving Scotland. He was sacked by Villa after less than a year in charge and then moved to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq. He has been out of work since January 2025, having left the club during a relegation battle.
In October last year, Gerrard held talks with Rangers owners Andrew Cavenagh and Paraag Marathe of 49ers Enterprises about replacing Russell Martin, but he walked away from a potential return to the Glasgow club after several rounds of discussions.
Advice for the next generation
Gerrard now says he would advise younger coaches to get more matches under their belts before jumping to the English top flight. Asked if his move south was "fast-tracked", he told Sky Bet: "Yes, possibly. I would accept that opinion. It's open to debate, because I'd done three and a half years in Scotland.
"My argument, my side, would be, well, how long do you do? But in hindsight now, for my own personal development and the decisions I made, I probably would have done more games in Scotland, or looked for something in between the Scotland level, with all due respect, before I went to the Premier League level."
Experience is key
Reflecting on his time as Villa manager, Gerrard said: "Because what I realised in my experience of being the Villa manager was, from a coaching perspective, when you're on your own or with your group of staff, it's a lot more brutal than when you play as a player.
"It can unravel extremely fast. It can shock you. So my advice to coaches, I don't know whether the likes of Frank (Lampard) and Michael (Carrick) agree with this, is experience is key.
"Get as many games as a coach and a manager as you possibly can before your opportunity comes.
"In my shoes, at that moment when Villa came, you're also thinking, could this be your only opportunity? So it's difficult and it's challenging. It pulls you in different ways. But in hindsight, if I could have my time again, I would get another couple of hundred games in.
"I'm just thinking about the likes of Sam Allardyce now, and Harry Redknapp, and Alan Pardew, ex-managers, my coaches, thinking, he's saying the right thing there, because you can't fast-track experience.
"You've got to go and get those games and those experiences and learn and grow. But these opportunities come, and when you get the call, you have to make that decision in the moment."
