Liverpool’s England players were given a potential boost with the news that Gareth Southgate has left his job as manager.
Southgate has done a good job on the whole with England, however he leaves with a legacy of being unable to get the most out of some tremendous players.
Throughout his almost eight years in charge, the former Aston Villa defender certainly had his favourites. Unfortunately, Jordan Henderson aside, no Liverpool player was able to work their way onto that list.
One of those who Southgate should feel he could have got far more out of was Trent Alexander-Arnold. The manager simply did not seem to know what to do with the Liverpool academy graduate.
Alexander-Arnold is one of England’s most gifted footballers. The new manager simply has to be able to get him on the team sheet and performing every game.
Steven Gerrard should be on England shortlist
Perhaps it shouldn’t go so far as being said that getting the most out of Alexander-Arnold is the key to England’s new appointment.
But we’d actually argue that it should in fact be quite a big point of contention. Southgate left some other notable players out of his team at times, but none more consistently than Trent.
On his day, the 25-year-old can be a match-winner. Few possess Alexander-Arnold’s passing ability and if you can harness it, it can be the ultimate weapon in tournament football.
One coach who would certainly know what to do with Trent is Jurgen Klopp. Klopp has surprisingly been linked to England, although it seems unlikely that the German would take the job.
READ MORE: Jamie Carragher shares whether he’d want Jurgen Klopp as new England manager
A better candidate then, should be Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard. Gerrard’s coaching career has fallen by the wayside over recent years, but this is still a title-winning manager.
Gerrard is cut from the same cloth as Alexander-Arnold, and also managed a young Curtis Jones at Liverpool. The 44-year-old would surely have a much better idea of how to get the best out of both players for England.
Away from a Liverpool-centric point of view, Gerrard would also instantly command respect in the dressing room, something which Southgate has, to his credit, done well.
Being an international manager is a different kettle of fish to club management. And with Gerrard having tasted success before losing his way in the day-to-day grind, it could be just what he needs to show that he does in fact have what it takes to coach at the top level.
Is Steven Gerrard in the running for England?
At this stage, it remains to be seen which direction England will look to go in with their appointment.
According to journalist Ben Jacobs, there are currently four contenders under consideration by the Three Lions.
They are: Eddie Howe, Mauricio Pochettino, Graham Potter and current U21 boss Lee Carsley.
Clearly, Gerrard is not on this list. However, we’d argue that in such company the former Liverpool captain could more than hold his own as a coach.
Impassioned and with a big point to prove, we think Gerrard should be a surprise contender to take on the second biggest job in the country.
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