HONEST TO GOODNESS

U-turn showed why Jack regards Gerrard so highly

- By Scott McDermott

RYAN JACK reckons Steven Gerrard's man-management skills make him the ideal fit to return to the Rangers hotseat.

Midfielder Jack was blown away by the Liverpool legend's honesty, empathy and willingness to compromise during their time together at Ibrox from 2018 to 2021.

In Gerrard's first few weeks in charge, the former Scotland international had a couple of conversations with his new gaffer that made him realise just how adept the Englishman was at handling players and showing leadership.

Jack, 33, said: "I'll never forget that pre-season when Steven came in.

"I'd been injured and he and Gary McAllister pulled me in to say I might not play as much under him.

"They hadn't seen a lot of me because of injuries. They told me they'd be bringing in a lot of players so I might not be involved.

"That was how the conversation went and I thought, 'Right, fair enough'.

"I was going home to my family telling them I didn't know how it was going to go.

"But in my head I thought, 'Nah, I'll show you I can play here'.

"I wanted to be at Rangers. I'd waited a lot of my career to get there so I wasn't prepared to give it up that easy.