Steven Gerrard 'feared becoming a laughing stock' with Rangers return as Liverpool legend avoids 'really tough' situation

Rangers have had a disastrous start to their 2025-26 campaign, winning just one of their opening seven Scottish Premiership matches. It has left the powerhouses in a difficult situation, sitting 11 points off the top spot and already at a huge disadvantage in the title race.

With the club unwilling to give Martin – who had previously been in charge at Southampton – time to rectify his bumpy beginning to life in Scotland, they instead turned to Gerrard. The ex-midfielder was in charge between 2018-2021, halting a formidable Celtic side to claim a league title before departing for Aston Villa.

Reports claim Gerrard was interested in returning to Ibrox, but ultimately opted against risking his immaculate reputation with the hardcore fans in the north.

Former Scotland star Pat Nevin can see the logic behind Gerrard’s decision, and claims it will be incredibly difficult to draft in a top manager after the start Rangers have made.

Speaking to OLBG, he said: “Steven Gerrard's the last one that won a title and it stopped Celtic doing the ten titles in a row. So he's literally as good as anyone else and he's certainly got a tune out of that team that season.

“I feel sorry for the board because when you look elsewhere it's tough. It's really, really tough to get a top manager because when you come into Rangers, it's not just Russell Martin.

“You're behind the eight ball already. When you walk in, they're so far behind the league just now. The expectation is, if you got second this season, even from so far behind, people will still be a bit grumpy with you.

“I understand that, they've got high standards. But the amount of managers that have gone in there and come out and been trashed, absolutely trashed. And there's no win for it. Celtic typically have so much more money.

“Celtic have got a base there. Celtic can go and blow Rangers out of the water with money just now if they want, (but) they're not. They've got plenty in the bank they can use. There's all sorts of stuff that Celtic have got in place.

“Rangers have got this team that's been built by a whole bunch of different managers. And I go to see Celtic-Rangers games a lot and you think, so who's playing for Rangers now? And that's not what you want.“

The 28-cap international also admitted that Rangers could turn any manager into a laughing stock, a likely reason why Gerrard was unwilling to return.

He added: “You want a core that's going through that you believe in and you trust in. They've actually made one or two good signings, Bojan Miovski was a good signing this season.

“But you can go in there and as a manager, a well-respected manager, and come out as a laughing stock. And that's maybe what's happened with Stevie G this time. Because remember, Stevie G needs a job. He needs a profile, again, after what's happened to him.

“So Stevie turned that down, that's not because he doesn't want to be Rangers manager, he'd like to be Rangers manager. He’s looking at them and thinking, ‘ooh, I don't know about that’.

“If he's saying that, some of the other very top ones will say the same. So whoever it is that comes now, it’s really tough.”

Rangers return to action on Saturday when they face Dundee United, one of the four teams below them in the table. With no permanent manager in place, the club continue to run the risk of falling further behind their rivals, a situation the board will want to avoid at all costs. Rangers also remain in the Europa League, having failed to progress from their Champions League play-off. If they are to make any progress in Europe this season, they will need to make the right decision when it comes to replacing Martin.