‘Would be a dream’: Gerrard on Liverpool manager ambition & private message to Salah

Last Updated on 8 April 2026

Steven Gerrard has admitted managing Liverpool remains the ultimate ambition of his coaching career.

Speaking on The Overlap, the Liverpool legend opened up on his connection to the club, his future in the game, and a private conversation he had with Mohamed Salah at the height of the Egyptian’s very public fallout with Arne Slot.

It was a rare moment of candour from one of English football’s most recognisable figures and it will inevitably stoke fresh debate about Gerrard and the manager position at Anfield.

Steven Gerrard on a dream deferred but not abandoned

Speaking on The Overlap, Gerrard confirmed that managing Liverpool remains a dream, but distanced himself from the idea of stepping in on an interim basis. His words were careful but clear.

“I’ve got a brilliant connection with the club, I always have, and probably a stronger connection since I left. They’ve always been unbelievable,” he said. “Of course, that’d be a dream. Would I be ready for it right now, to take it over a period of time? Probably not.”

Nevertheless, Gerrard did not close the door entirely on a return in some capacity. He confirmed he would be open to serving as assistant to an elite manager at Liverpool if asked, saying he would do it “for Liverpool Football Club” if they felt he was the right man.

When Gary Neville playfully suggested the pairing of Xabi and Gerrard could work together, Gerrard joked: “I can just see the headline now, ‘Gerrard wants Slot to get the sack!'” before adding that he genuinely wants Slot to be given the opportunity to fix things at the club.

Gerrard’s private message to Salah: ‘go on your terms, the right way’

Perhaps the most striking moment of Gerrard’s appearance came when he revealed contents of a personal conversation with Mohamed Salah, held in the immediate aftermath of the Egyptian’s explosive interview where he accused Liverpool of throwing him “under the bus.”

“I spoke to him around that interview at the time and sort of said to him, ‘don’t do what you’ve done and go under a cloud,'” Gerrard revealed. “I spoke to him direct. He texts me now and again, or I text him.”

The message Gerrard passed on was one of perspective and legacy. “It gave me the opportunity to say to him, ‘look, you’ve been here eight, nine years, you’ve been king here. You’ve got this legacy, just go on your terms, the right way.’

Gerrard also made clear he was not surprised by Salah’s eventual decision to leave. “I think it’s in everyone’s best interests now,” he said. “I think the timing’s right. He’s obviously done the interview, which I think he’ll regret further down the line.”