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Gerrard returning?

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Steven Gerrard is reportedly in talks with Jürgen Klopp over a surprise return to Liverpool, with the former captain considering ending his spell with LA Galaxy early.

The Independent has claimed that the 35-year-old, who left Anfield at the end of last season to join the MLS side on an 18-month contract, has held several phone conversations with Klopp over a potential role in the German manager’s coaching staff.

The report also claims that “there is a chance of a formal playing agreement being brokered”, although that could be complicated by the likelihood that Galaxy would demand a transfer fee as they are not willing to allow him to go out on loan.

Gerrard's season ended last week when Galaxy were knocked out of the MLS play-offs by Seattle Sounders. He is due back for pre-season training on 15 January and is reported to have discussed his future with the manager Bruce Arena before flying back to the UK on Wednesday morning.
The speculation comes at a time when Gerrard admitted that his time on the field was coming to an end. “It could be my last season as a footballer,” he told LA Galaxy’s website.

“I certainly don’t want to feel like I'm feeling right now come next year. Going on the road, playing on [artificial] turf, playing at altitude, playing in humidity, those are the hurdles that I've had to face over the last three months that I wasn't aware of. Every away game has a different challenge.”
 
He wasn't aware he'd have to travel loads, have to play at altitude, or play on artificial turf when he went to the US?!

Fucking seriously? I've watched maybe three or four mls games in my entire life yet I knew that. Legendary player he may well have been, but he's a fucking idiot.
 
And no, I don't want him back unless it's in some kind of ambassador position or kids coaching position.

Him being involved with the first team I can't see going well long term.
 
Honestly dont think he would have the legs for a high tempo pressing system. If he wants to come back and start working his way up the ranks as a coach that would be fantastic news but the idea that he can just come and go from the first team squad when he feels like it is bullshit
 
He wasn't aware he'd have to travel loads, have to play at altitude, or play on artificial turf when he went to the US?!

Fucking seriously? I've watched maybe three or four mls games in my entire life yet I knew that. Legendary player he may well have been, but he's a fucking idiot.

The vibe I'm getting is that he isn't settled there and is looking for an excuse to leave.
Rodgers is gone and he's seeing us managed by a top class manager. Could be his last ever shot at a title as well.

I'd welcome Gerrard back but at a limited capacity. Keep him away from the DM position and play him behind the striker in a free role, like he had during Benitez time in charge.

Call me a sentimentalist but I want him to make up for that slip.
 
Nah, can't see it working at all, in any position. If he comes back I hope he proves me wrong but I think it would be a big mistake for both him & the club.
 
Nah, can't see it working at all, in any position. If he comes back I hope he proves me wrong but I think it would be a big mistake for both him & the club.
I know what you mean. There's a slight fear that he might disrupt the dressing room especially if he comes in with demands but if Klopp is talking to him it means that he also wants him back in some capacity.
 
lol, I love him but yeah, the idea of Klopp switching from 2 of Coutinho/Lallana/Firmino just to accomodate a 35 year old Gerrard behind the striker is LOLZ
 
He'd only be worth having back as a player when used an impact sub with 15-20 minutes to go but his ego got in the way of that in his last season. Other than that he just hasn't got the legs anymore. But he'd also have to be sensible about his wages and I doubt he would be.
If true though it would be a testament to Klopps self confidence that he wouldn't feel threatened by Gerrards status at the club like i suspect Rodgers was.
 
lol, I love him but yeah, the idea of Klopp switching from 2 of Coutinho/Lallana/Firmino just to accomodate a 35 year old Gerrard behind the striker is LOLZ
Like I said, in a limited capacity. Squad rotation role basically.
 
I'd have no problem with him coming back under Klopp but I can't see him taking a back seat or limited role.

Think it's best he's left alone until after he retires then maybe as a coach
 
The original article doesn't talk about him coming back in a playing capacity - it's just as a coach.

He's finding the game in America tough due to playing conditions.

Can't see the issue, if he wants to move in to coaching - he'd be at an entry level.
 
The original article doesn't talk about him coming back in a playing capacity - it's just as a coach.

He's finding the game in America tough due to playing conditions.

Can't see the issue, if he wants to move in to coaching - he'd be at an entry level.

It's not just the playing conditions according to Simon Hughes, who's a pretty legit journo when it comes to Liverpool. The grueling travel time due to MLS regulations might have been unforeseen.

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/...bed-of-roses-for-former-anfield-a6720316.html

When Los Angeles Galaxy’s jaded players wheeled their well-travelled suitcases through the arrivals hall at LAX for the final time in 2015, they had covered 21,999 miles in the course of the regular Major League Soccer season, a competition that enforces stringent rules which limit the number of charter flights each team can take.
While regulations were relaxed slightly in 2008, squads are still restricted to four private journeys per year: a guideline intended to prevent wealthier clubs such as Galaxy, who can afford to spend more on important details like preparation, from gaining a competitive advantage over the rest.
It also, in theory, stops those with lesser means from trying too hard to catch up before floundering financially like they did in the days of the North America Soccer League, a phenomenon, which contributed to the tournament collapsing entirely in 1984.


READ MORE
Gerrard set for amazing return to Liverpool after holding Klopp talks
For all players, though, no matter their profile, it means weekends are long: often starting on a Thursday evening if going from west coast to east, before returning three, maybe four days later owing to the time differences involved and, occasionally, the number of connections needed.
It has meant then, that Steven Gerrard has been absent from his Bel Air home more than he envisaged when he originally agreed to move to California in January. When his wife, Alex, along with their three daughters were Stateside throughout the summer, he was in transit to another city as much as he was there with them, at his happiest.
The away trips also acted as a reminder that Los Angeles is – in football terms – in a relatively isolated part of a country where teams do not really share rivalries of any kind. Each time he produced a boarding card at the gate, in more ways than just one, it must have felt like a tap on the shoulder, telling him again that he was very far from Anfield.

Steven-Gerrard2.jpg

Steven Gerrard faced former foe Didier Drogba in the MLS

Although these details do not explain entirely why Gerrard is contemplating a return to Liverpool in some capacity, they contribute towards a growing restlessness inside him.
Over the last few weeks, the former captain of the club has been busy ahead of his return to Merseyside for Christmas: speaking with Jürgen Klopp by telephone several times and meeting with Liverpool’s chairman, Tom Werner, who lives a few miles away in Beverly Hills. Werner is the person inside Fenway Sports Group, the Massachusetts-based investment firm that owns Liverpool, whose opinion he supposedly respects the most. Werner, indeed, was the driving force within the group in the decision to sack Brendan Rodgers and replace him with Klopp.
On Monday, Gerrard convened with Bruce Arena, Galaxy’s coach, and the pair discussed the future over lunch: going over what had gone right for Gerrard and the team over the previous four months, what had gone wrong – and the numerous areas where the former Liverpool captain feels improvements are glaringly necessary.
Jurgen Klopp's best quotes



Gerrard later admitted in a revealing interview with Galaxy’s official website that he had underestimated the challenges posed by MLS. “It could be my last season as a footballer. I certainly don’t want to feel like I’m feeling right now come next year,” he said.
“Going on the road, playing on [artificial] turf, playing at altitude, playing in humidity, those are the hurdles that I’ve had to face over the last three months that I wasn’t aware of,” he continued. “Every away game has a different challenge.”
Largely, Gerrard has enjoyed being over on the other side of the world. He has relished the relative anonymity afforded to him in a city where his star is nowhere near as A-list as it is in Liverpool.
It means that when he attends LA Lakers basketball games with Paul McGrattan, his closest friend from Huyton, as he did on Sunday night – despite having courtside seats – he is barely recognised. It is a completely opposite existence for him, knowing that there will be no requests for photographs when he drives his family over the hills and past olive groves to the steaming hot beaches of Malibu, as he did regularly in July and August.
What has changed the most, perhaps, is Liverpool’s desire to have him back. Yet Gerrard appreciates that Los Angeles was not a for ever decision. If he does retire in the next 18 months, as he suggests he might, he must surely be considering what to do next.
Alex-Curran.jpg

Alex Curran, Gerrard's wife
He could end up just training at Melwood again, proving to Liverpool’s youngest players that no matter your age, the quest for self-improvement goes on. He could even play for Liverpool once more if he is determined enough to leave Los Angeles and if someone as influential as Werner is able to broker an agreement that suits everybody with Chris Klein, the Galaxy president.
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What is certain is that the laborious process of stepping off planes has become an all too regular feature of Gerrard’s life recently. When he arrives in London this morning, having travelled through the night, he might wonder whether the theme is about to end.
 
Coaching staff? Hell yeah.
Playing role? Well, as a first team starter, no. But, if he could do what Giggs did for Utd for years as an impact sub then maybe. But I can't see Gerrard wanting that, and I'm not sure if he's got the legs for the attacking role anymore. But then the same could have been said about Giggs in his twilight...
 
Yeah I'm a sucker for a returning legend - Bring him back. He's probably only got 6 months left of playing time at best. He won't get many minutes but I bet he'll work closely with Klopp in some sort of coaching capacity. Can't see the problem.
 
I honestly wouldn't want anything to undermine klopp, and I think Gerrard would. He's too big a character and has too much sway.

If he's gonna be a coach he should work with the youth
 
I honestly wouldn't want anything to undermine klopp, and I think Gerrard would. He's too big a character and has too much sway.

If he's gonna be a coach he should work with the youth
I think that would probably be the plan surely.
 
Get him back but working alongside Heighway. What a draw those two would be for kids debating whether to come to the Academy. He can get some coaching experience with the Under 21s and link in with Klopp to bridge the first team and youth.
 
Dont mind him coming back and training with the players. Dont think he should be coming back as a player. Not sure if that will add anything to the first team.

As for returning in some capacity when he's finished as a player. Absolutely. He should definitely be involved. Let him start as a youth coach.
 
Honestly I wouldn't want him coming back as a coach at all, but it seems like it will happen at some point
 
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