Steven Gerrard's private dressing room message to Rangers stars who questioned him spoke volumes
Steven Gerrard told his players in no uncertain terms where his priorities were after walking in on a dressing room conversation during his spell at Ibrox
Steven Gerrard made his feelings on the importance of domestic glory abundantly clear after being pressed by his Rangers players.
Gerrard famously halted Celtic’s dreams of 10 league titles in a row by winning the 2020/21 Scottish Premiership crown, before departing for an ill-fated spell at Aston Villa early the following season. League title number 55 remains Rangers’ last, with Celtic resuming their dominance of the domestic scene.
The Gers already look incapable of stopping the Hoops this season following a torrid start. They are already four points adrift and are probably heading out of the Champions League following their first-leg play-off round humbling at the hands of Club Brugge.
With the pressure already on new boss Russell Martin, Gerrard has been touted for a potential return to Ibrox. He was linked with the job in the summer, only to pull out of the running as he wasn’t ready to relocate back to the UK following his spell managing Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia.
If he does return to Rangers one day, he will not need to be reminded of the importance of halting their Old Firm rivals. During Gerrard’s time in charge, he walked in on a conversation between his players about whether they would prioritise domestic or European success.
Former Rangers striker Kemar Roofe recalled the exchange during an appearance on the Undr The Cosh podcast. He said: “During the season, we were having a good run in the Europa League. For me, the Europa League is so good. It is better than the Scottish, respectfully, because the standard is quite a lot higher.
“We always had this debate with the players, would you rather win the Europa League or win the league? For me, I wanted to win the Europa League because you might not get that chance again, not many teams can do it.
“The gaffer, Gerrard, he comes walking in, so we asked him. And he was saying, ‘No, it’s the league, we need to win the league.’
“I didn’t understand it because I was new to Scottish football and Rangers. His thing was, ‘We have to win this league,’ mainly because of the 55 and to stop them winning 10 [in a row].”
That stance will strike a chord with most Rangers fans, who fear seeing Celtic waltz to a fifth success league crown. After two draws so far, the Light Blues will aim for their first win of the campaign when they visit St Mirren on Sunday. That is followed by the second leg away to Brugge, who are 3-1 up, and the first Old Firm showdown on the season at Ibrox on August 31.
Title-winner Roofe, 32, who left Rangers at the end of the 2023/24 campaign, is currently a free agent. He spent the second half of last season with Derby County and has been training the Rams, who could re-sign the player.
Aberdeen and Doncaster Rovers have also been credited with an interest in the former Leeds United forward. During his four-and-a-half years at Rangers, Roofe gained a full understanding of what it takes to be a Rangers manager.
He said: “With Rangers, to be a manager there, you have to have something about you. You have to have big shoulders. The amount of pressure to be the manager there is huge.”