Newcastle could have a job on their hands enticing Steven Gerrard to St James’ Park as the Reds icon is “Liverpool’s next manager”, according to Peter Crouch.
Gerrard has impressed as Rangers manager since taking charge at Ibrox in the summer of 2018 and guided the club to the Scottish Premiership title last season.
The former Liverpool midfielder is now one of the names being linked with Newcastle following the club’s takeover amid doubts over Steve Bruce’s feature in the St James’ Park hot-seat.
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Crouch is not surprised to see the name of his former team-mate in the mix but insists Gerrard is made to replace Jurgen Klopp when the German one day leaves Merseyside.
Writing in his Daily Mail column, the retired striker said: “That Newcastle are casting glances in his direction is no surprise at all. Approaching Stevie is a complete no-brainer.
“There is a major rebuild to be done by whoever takes over from Steve Bruce and there are similarities to the job he walked into at Rangers — albeit with slightly different budgets!
“If I'm a Newcastle fan, I'd love somebody like Stevie to come in.
“It is a mouth-watering prospect for any possible new manager. Where can they take Newcastle with significant funding?”
While Gerrard could be the perfect coach for the Magpies, Crouch believes the 41-year-old will be perfect as Klopp’s successor and so might not take another job.
“I'm imagining St James' Park under the lights against Barcelona in the Champions League, but that is potentially a few years down the line. Whether that fits with Stevie's timeline will be key to his decision if an offer arrives.
“Because let's not mess about - here is Liverpool's next manager. He has to be.
“Jurgen Klopp has that job for as long as he wants it, but he is not going to stay around for ever. At some point, his family might want to move back to Germany. When that happens, Gerrard will be ready.
“That is worth waiting for - the move back home. He could manage his club for 10 years and cement his legend even further, if that is possible. He is on that path where he is, so to take Newcastle would be a huge call.”
The new era at St James’ Park started with defeat by Tottenham on Sunday but Newcastle fans are buoyant and full hope for the future.
However, this season, they will first have to navigate themselves out of the bottom three. Bruce’s side who are 19th in the table, with no wins in eight, travel to Liverpool on December 15.
