Liverpool legend has opened up about taking his time before diving back into management

The ex-Rangers and Aston Villa manager confessed that he yearns for the excitement of playing days, acknowledging that management hasn't quite hit the same heights for him. in January following a run of just five victories in 17 league games.

Gerrard's venture into the Middle East was unexpected, especially on the heels of his departure from his sole Premier League managerial role at Aston Villa, where he spent 11 months.

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He first caught the managerial limelight by leading Rangers to the Scottish Premiership title, breaking Celtic's prolonged dominance. Since leaving Al-Ettifaq, including a potential return to Ibrox and stepping in for John Eustace at Blackburn Rovers.

Yet, the iconic former midfielder has expressed his enjoyment of life away from the relentless demands of managing, . Gerrard attended the Merseyside derby on Wednesday and was pictured with Mohamed Salah after the win at Anfield.

"I don't want to be back in work mate, no. I'm happy with waking up and being free, doing the family stuff, just being free away from stress," Gerrard shared on That Peter Crouch Podcast.

"I will go in at some point but when it's round the clocks, I've doing it 18, 19 months, I want to be free, I want to play a round of golf, go down the boozer and have a couple of beers, do normal things that you can't do when you're coaching.

"The next big draw is to get in the dressing room with the lads, run it back, obviously you can't run as fast and the intensity is not the same but to have a game of footy with your mates is the draw.

"I've just travelled seven hours to do this that's why I come back to play at Anfield, full house, see the lads, have a game of footy, great craic. I love it you know, I miss it everyday and I speak to Carra and he goes, 'I was made up, I hated the last few years' I miss it every day, every single day.

"I would love to go back and run it back. To be honest, 'coaching and management, it'll fill the void, blah blah' it doesn't, it's not the same. It's a great job to be around but in terms of the buzz, I didn't appreciate it enough."