John Barnes insists Steven Gerrard needs to show a longer level of consistency over the next couple of years before he can be considered for the Liverpool job.
The Rangers boss has been continually linked with being Jurgen Klopp's eventual replacement after his successful spell at Ibrox so far.
Gerrard ended Rangers' decade long wait for a league title when he guided them to an invincible campaign this season but Barnes doesn't think that's quite enough for the top job at Liverpool just yet.
He believes that the Anfield outfit would look elsewhere for a top manager until Gerrard does it for another couple of seasons at the Premiership winners.
Gerrard himself has regularly stated he isn't interested in the job just yet and wants to continue learning the trade at a club like Rangers.
But it hasn't stopped the former Celtic boss from questioning whether he would be ready to go to the top end of the English Premier League just yet.
He told Bookingodds.com: “Of course there are other managers that you would think are better suited, such as Steven Gerrard who has had a very good season at Rangers, but is he going to come to Liverpool off the back of one good year? Of course he would be given time because of his relationship with Liverpool.
“If you were to ask me now, if Jurgen Klopp left Liverpool tomorrow would I think Steven was the man for the job? Probably not because you would want a manager with more experience and is proven at the highest level. He would be given time because he’s Steven Gerrard, but would that be the right thing for Liverpool? Maybe not.
“I’m sure Steven will do really well over the course of his career, but he’s going to have to show a longer level of consistency over a longer period of time before we start linking him with the Liverpool job.”
