Former Crystal Palace chairman (turned talkSPORT pundit) Simon Jordan doesn’t believe Steven Gerrard’s track record as Rangers manager merits him being a contender for a Premier League role.
Gerrard has been heavily linked with the vacant manager’s job at Newcastle in recent days but Jordan says the Light Blues boss isn’t ready to make the step up:
“Steven Gerrard has obviously gone up to Scotland with Rangers and broken the dynasty Celtic had of nine years of success, on the cusp of doing 10. Do I think that qualifies him to manage in the Premier League? No, I don’t. Not yet. I think the league in Scotland is a certain quality and I’m not going to veer into being disrespectful about it but I saw the most recent Old Firm derby myself [and] the quality wasn’t there.”
“I think he’s learning his trade, I think he’s overcome the obstacles at the same time there’s been a descent at Celtic. Whilst there’s a lot of noise around Steven Gerrard, I think he’s got a long way to go before he gets a high-end Premier League club.”
It is always disappointing to see English pundits, who don’t watch enough Scottish football, making judgements about the quality of the league. As well as winning the Scottish Premiership title last season, Gerrard has guided the Gers to the last 16 of the Europa League on two separate occasions.
While it isn’t the Champions League, the likes of Leicester (who finished 5th in the Premier League), failed to reach the same stage of the Europa League as Rangers did last season.
Fans will hope Gerrard is overlooked for the Newcastle job but there is no doubt that he is more than qualified to take up the position.
