Steven Gerrard admits he 'won't get the welcome he'd like' when he takes Aston Villa to face Manchester United in the FA Cup on Monday night.
The Liverpool legend will make his first trip to Old Trafford as a manager and looks set for a hostile reception, given the time he spent at United's most fierce rivals.
Gerrard, 41, is keen to ensure his own personal story doesn't get in the way of the match, but he acknowledges United fans will be relishing the chance to knock his side out of the FA Cup.
"Anfield and Old Trafford, these are places that history tells you are really tough places to go, to win games of football against top teams and top players," the Villa manager said.
"But these are environments and teams you want to test yourself and compete against, I’m sure the players share those thoughts.
"I’m really looking forward to the game," he added.
"Yes, I won’t get the welcome that I would like, but that’s not important.
"I’ve had it before and I’m still here, I still survived that welcome. It will be a really interesting and fascinating game from a personal point of view, but for me it’s more important about how the team performs rather than myself."
Gerrard also looked back on his own personal duels with United as a player, but played down the enormity of the rivalry ahead of the match.
He added: "My experiences against Manchester United had been very mixed as a player, a lot of highs, and a lot of lows, being on the end of different types of results.
"But emotions run high, with Manchester United there was a big rivalry. But that moment is gone, it’s parked up, it’s very much about Aston Villa now, and it’s about trying to create more memories.
"We have an opportunity on Monday night to go and get through to the next round, that’s the only focus for me really.
"I’m not really tapping into any other previous experiences because there is no need. I’m not going to gain anything from it."
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