Gary McAllister insists Steven Gerrard will make a return to the Premier League as a manager at some point.
The former Scotland international played alongside Gerrard at Liverpool, and in recent years was his assistant manager at both Rangers and Aston Villa.
Gerrard was sacked by the latter 12 months ago after less than a year managing in the Premier League.
The ex-England captain spent some time out of the game following his dismissal but worked as a pundit for Champions League and international matches on TV.
'Gerrard will be 🔙' Gary McAllister "absolutely" expects Steven Gerrard to manage in the Premier League again 👔 pic.twitter.com/vLuM0RvW3Q
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 10, 2023
He had been linked with several jobs while he was unemployed and available for hire, but he made an unexpected move in the summer as he jumped back into management.
Gerrard joined the Saudi football revolution by becoming the new manager of Al Ettifaq in the Middle East. He has them sitting in seventh in the Saudi Pro League after nine games. They are just six points off league leagues Al Hilal.
McAllister is pleased for his old colleague, but he is adamant it won't be long before he is perfecting his skills as a head coach back in the UK.
"Absolutely," he told Sky Sports when asked if Gerrard would return to England's top flight one day. "I think he was close to a couple of clubs here, and he'll maybe be a little bit disappointed.
"But the team in Saudi wanted him and he's gone. He's started well and he's enjoying it. The levels and everything in around football in Saudi are obviously miles behind the Premier League in England where everything is supreme. The training grounds, sports science, diets and food. Everything. That'll be passed on I'm sure.
"But he'll be back here, without a shadow of a doubt. He's meticulous in his preparation. The way he prepared himself for games at Liverpool is no different in how he prepares teams to play at any level.
"We had a fantastic three and a bit years at Glasgow Rangers, another special football club. We managed to win their 55th title, which has got a nice ring to it, and we stopped Celtic doing 10 in a row. That was special.
"He was a wee bit unlucky at Villa, I felt. With the injuries, the three major signings that Steven made all got injured within a few weeks of each other.
"They were all pretty serious injuries. Boubacar Kamara, Diego Carlos and Lucas Digne. Big players, big players that have gone on and done well for the new manager.
"The new manager has done an amazing job, you can't hide from that fact. They've got good players at Villa. It's not a surprise to see them doing well.
"Unai Emery is a quality manager and his CV tells you that. I'm pleased for the Villa but it ended a wee bit too quick for Steven and all of his staff."
