Steven Gerrard, a former player for both Liverpool and England, has been appointed manager of Saudi Arabian team Al Ettifaq.
The 43-year-old had declared in June that he would not be accepting an invitation to visit the nation to “look at a potential offer” despite having received one.
Since being fired as the manager of Aston Villa in October of last year, Steven Gerrard has been unemployed.
Futballnews understands that Steven Gerrard had hoped to land a job with either Leicester or Leeds, but after receiving no offers from the two recently relegated teams, he decided to accept Al Ettifaq’s offer.
Last season, Al Ettifaq came in at seventh place in the Saudi Pro League, nine points above the relegation zone but a stunning 30 points off a spot in the Asian Champions League.
Al Ettifaq, who are not among the top performers in the Saudi Pro League, have been said to be interested in signing Sadio Mane from Bayern Munich.
Karim Benzema joined Cristiano Ronaldo in starting the movement, and recall we reported that the likes of N’Golo Kante, Ruben Neves and Marcelo Brozovic have joined the league.
After Steven Gerrard’s arrival in Saudi, Al Ettifaq announced: “Where legends are found. We’re thrilled to announce Steven Gerrard is our new head coach.”
The Saudi Pro League season will kick off on August 11 but the full fixtures list has not yet been announced.
Steven Gerrard
Steven George Gerrard MBE is an English football manager and former player who was born on 30 May, 1980 and is the current manager of Saudi Pro League club Al-Ettifaq.
Steven Gerrard is described by pundits and fellow professionals as one of his generation’s greatest players as well as one of the greatest midfielders of all time.
The Englishman spent the majority of his career as a central midfielder for Liverpool and the England national team, captaining both.
Gerrard is also recognized as one of the greatest Liverpool footballers of all time, due to his talent and achievements for club and country.
Al-Ettifaq
Al Ettifaq Football Club is a professional football club in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi Pro League side was established after the merging of three clubs in the city of Dammam in 1944.
Al Ettifaq is the first Saudi team to win an international title – the 1984 Arab Club Champions Cup.
The club is also the first team to win the Saudi Premier League unbeaten and Al Ettifaq is also the first side from Saudi Arabia to win the GCC Champions League.
Al Ettifaq have a total of 13 different titles to their name and the club also has its own futsal section.
