Steven Gerrard accepts he is taking a risk by swapping Rangers for Aston Villa but says a new challenge in the Premier League was too big an opportunity to turn down.
The 41-year-old was confirmed as Dean Smith's successor as Villa head coach last Thursday on a reported three-and-a-half-year contract.
Gerrard guided Rangers to a couple of second-place finishes before ending the Glasgow club's 10-year wait for Scottish Premiership title success last season.
He departed Ibrox with the Gers four points clear of Celtic in top spot and with their Europa League knockout-stage hopes still in their own hands with two group games to play.
The Liverpool midfield great is taking on a different challenge in his second senior coaching role, tasked first and foremost with guiding Villa away from the relegation zone.
While fully aware of the task on his hands, Gerrard is relishing the opportunity to manage in a league he spent 17 seasons playing in with Liverpool.
"Aston Villa sells itself – an iconic football club," he told VillaTV. "I know it well from the outside and I'm very much excited to get involved inside and start building relationships.
"I like a challenge. I like a risk. It's something I'm really looking forward to getting into.
"This club will suit me because I know the fans are very passionate and there's a demand and pressure to win. That's something I've lived with since I was 17.
"I was first aware of Aston Villa's interest last Wednesday. I had a call from my representation, and when the phone call sunk in, I wanted this to happen very quickly, because first and foremost the opportunity was too big."
Gerrard won 125 of his 193 games in charge of Rangers for a win rate of 64.8 per cent, with his longest winning run being a nine-game streak that ended in November 2020.
That compares to a 39.6 per cent win rate for Smith across his 139 Villa matches, but Gerrard admits managing in the English top flight will provide a sterner test.
"I have to respect that the leagues are very different in terms of level, but I've learned a lot over the past three-and-a-half years," he said.
"I've lived under that pressure and demand to win. There was a big building job to be done, and I can walk away with my head held high.
"Going into another league, that's something we'll adapt to. I've played many years in the league, and I've got an experienced group of coaches who are a real rock to me.
"We'll also use existing staff, so I look forward to building relationships."
Gerrard, whose first Villa game is at home to Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday, faces an emotional return to Anfield on December 11.
The former England international is third on the list of all-time appearance makers (710) for Liverpool and he has been tipped as the likely man to replace Jurgen Klopp one day.
However, Gerrard's sole focus for now is on new club Villa, who are two points above the relegation zone following a run of five defeats in a row.
"I don't think me or anyone else will be able to control the noise [regarding Liverpool]," Gerrard said.
"For me that's not important. What's important is the chance to go to Anfield and win. That's the attitude we'll have going into every game.
"It is what it is. I want to win every game that I play in, now my priority and focus – and everything I will give on a daily basis – will be for Aston Villa.
"One thing I can guarantee the supporters, the players and the staff here: when I commit to something, I'm all in."
Steve Clarke keen for Scotland to have ‘top level’ facility for training
Steve Clarke wants a top-end Scotland training complex as he prepares for Euro 2024 in Germany.
The men’s national team moved from their base in Oriam, Scotland’s Sports Performance Centre, to Glasgow earlier in the year, with coach John Carver criticising the pitches at the Heriot-Watt University Edinburgh Campus.
Clarke spoke about the move to Lesser Hampden and a city centre hotel as part of the re-setting of Scotland following the defeat by Ukraine in the World Cup play-off in June 2022 and, although he is focused on a second successive Euros, he is looking to the longer-term, albeit he may not be the beneficiary.
Scotland were drawn against host country Germany, Switzerland and Hungary in Group A for next summer’s Euros, with the Scots set to face the Netherlands in the first of a friendly double-header in March with an as-yet unnamed opponent coming to Hampden Park days later.
Clarke said: “Oriam was the venue that I was asked to use. It was fine.
“Initially it was perfect, it served its purpose. We had some really good camps at the Oriam, some great results, some great moments.
“We made the best of those facilities and we made them work.
“But after a period of time you think, ‘OK, this is a little bit tired, we are a bit tired of this place and we need to change’.
“To be fair to the (SFA) board, as soon as I began to ask for change, they were on it. They understood what I was trying to say to them.
“Just to freshen it up, to try to improve the facilities a little bit and move close to the top level of facility.
“Unfortunately we don’t have our own base in Scotland so we have to find something and at the moment the Blythswood hotel and Lesser Hampden is a fantastic option but I won’t stop looking and I won’t stop pushing for something else because I want to keep moving and moving.
“I say it to the board all the time, never stop trying to improve and never stop trying to look for something eventually, hopefully, can become a Scottish FA facility.
“It would be nice but being realistic, two tournament qualifications in 25 years is not going to help us (pay for it), you would need to look at another two or three, or three out of the next four, or three out of the next five, a constant extra revenue coming into the association and maybe then they can think about it.
“If you are asking me if I would I rather have a training ground than a refurbished Hampden – Hampden will get refurbished for the 2028 Euros.
“If that refurbish is adequate then I would be saying look to put your money into a training facility that belongs to the Scottish FA and then you can look to move the game forward, you can use it as a facility for the men’s A, the women’s A and then hopefully all the under-age groups moving down the way and that is something we should look at.”
“I can start the process,” continued Clarke. “I never think too much about myself. Maybe you see that sometimes.
“But if I’m in the fortunate position to be head coach with a really talented group of players – which I am – then this is the time to start trying to build something for the future.
“Hopefully it could be for just one head coach down the line – or maybe two or three head coaches down the line before we actually get there.
“But, either way, that will mean we’ve been consistently successful and then hopefully we can end up with a nice product.”
Sunderland make ‘difficult decision’ to sack head coach Tony Mowbray
Sunderland have sacked head coach Tony Mowbray, the Sky Bet Championship club have announced.
Mowbray’s departure comes two days after his side’s 1-1 draw at Millwall that extended their poor recent run to one win from their last five games.
Sunderland, who have also parted company with Mowbray’s assistant Mark Venus, confirmed that coach Mike Dodds will take over pending the appointment of a new head coach, starting with Saturday’s clash with West Brom at the Stadium of Light.
Sporting Director Kristjaan Speakman said: “All at SAFC have thoroughly enjoyed working with Tony and he is quite rightly held in high regard by our players and staff, and our supporters.
“After arriving at an uncertain time, he helped guide us to the Sky Bet Championship play-offs and played an important role in developing our team
“This was a difficult decision to make, but we remain loyal to our ambition and our strategy, and felt that now was the right moment to take this step.
“We are now focused on identifying the right candidate and we will continue to support our coaching team and players throughout the interim period.”
Mowbray replaced Alex Neil, who abruptly departed in August last year, and led the Black Cats into the play-offs, where they lost in the semi-finals to Luton.
Despite a bright start to the current campaign, his side appeared increasingly unsettled and have slipped out of the play-off places to ninth, three points adrift of the top six.
West Ham offer reward for information after burglars raided Kurt Zouma’s house
West Ham have offered a £25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of burglars who raided Kurt Zouma’s home on the eve of Sunday’s Premier League clash with Crystal Palace.
Zouma and his young family were in the house during the break-in, and he missed the following day’s match against Palace, with his club saying at the time that he was absent for “personal reasons”.
West Ham said the burglars took items of “significant value and of huge personal and sentimental importance to the family.”
Hammers joint chairman David Sullivan said: “First and foremost, the thoughts of everyone connected to West Ham United are with Kurt and his family.
“To have someone break into your home is a terrifying experience and I hope this reward will help bring the individuals to justice and prevent others from going through a similar ordeal.”
Last year Zouma was ordered to carry out 180 hours’ community service and banned from keeping cats for five years after kicking and slapping his pet in a disturbing home video posted on Snapchat.
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