Although Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard looks set to make a dramtic return to Anfield during the Major League Soccer off-season, the LA Galaxy midfielder is unlikely to be allowed to feature for his boyhood side with MLS supremo Dan Garber insisting that it would breach the contract the 35-year old signed when he moved to America.
“I don’t think so and I had not heard that was something that was being contemplated.’It doesn’t happen as much as it used to,” said the commissioner of the league when asked about Gerrard possbibly playing against for Liverpool this winter. “David Beckham knows very well that I was really upset with the big hoopla and the massive commitment we made and then David went and played in Milan,” he continued, drawing a comparison between the situations of the former England teammates. “And people in our country said: ‘‘What? He plays for two teams? And you are trying to build a sport.”
Knocked out of the MLS play-offs last week, Gerrard won’t have to report back to LA for pre-season training until January 15th and the media has been abuzz with rumours of talks between Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp and the iconic midfielder. While it’s an near certainty that Gerrard will train with the first team in an effort to keep up his fitness during the off-season, there’s also been suggestions that the German manager will be looking to add the veteran midfielder to his coaching staff in the near future — a claim only bolstered by Gerrard’s own admission that the next season could be his last.
“It could be my last season as a footballer,” he said in a recent interview with the LA Galaxy’s official website. “I certainly don’t want to feel like I’m feeling right now come next year. Going on the road, playing on [artificial] turf, playing at altitude, playing in humidity, those are the hurdles that I’ve had to face over the last three months that I wasn’t aware of,” he continued, before adding, “Every away game has a different challenge.”
