Steven Gerrard: I want the Scottish game to be better

[Ace 3,556]

As a new-found advocate for Scottish football, Steven Gerrard is prepared to paint on the blue woad. But the Rangers manager believes that the game up here could do more to paint itself in a better light. The 39-year-old presents a less than ringing endorsement of the sport he has immersed himself in for the past year.

Reared on the glitz and glamour of the English game in a country with ten times the population of its neighbour above, the unavoidably small-time nature of football north of the Border – where the entire budgets of three top flight teams can amount to less than the salary for one player in the English Premier League – has made for a tough watch for him, at times, and resulted in Scottish football being a tough sell for him when speaking to prospective signings. Yet, the reality is that short of Sky and BT Sport investing in CGI, his main gripe that centres on the, sometimes, paltry numbers attending games is impossible to address.

“I think certain games have been good,” he said. “Certain games we’ve played in, or I’ve watched, they’ve been a higher level of quality than I originally thought. But at times I’ve been a bit disappointed watching certain games. I’ve been to certain games too and the stadiums haven’t been full and when it’s come to the standard the ball has been in the air a lot. To be honest, it’s been a little bit worse than I thought. So it’s probably been a bit mixed.

https://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/Rangers/Rangers-boss-steven-gerrard-i-want-the-scottish-game-to-be-better-1-4920901/amp?__twitter_impression=true

[TopCat 4,511]

We need him to talk up Scottish football............ he is a global name and his opinion means more than most.

 

Too many are ready to slate the Scottish game.... including those on here. 

 

 

[slimjim1690 4,534]

2 hours ago, TopCat said:

We need him to talk up Scottish football............ he is a global name and his opinion means more than most.

 

Too many are ready to slate the Scottish game.... including those on here. 

 

 

Probably because it's shite.

[bluenoz 30,820]

3 hours ago, TopCat said:

We need him to talk up Scottish football............ he is a global name and his opinion means more than most.

 

Too many are ready to slate the Scottish game.... including those on here. 

 

 

I agree with you, people are listening because he is a global name but he can't go around telling porkies either.

[RobertN 390]

No denying the league went backwards since we went in to administration

Simple solution win the league next year

no more foregone conclusion equals exciting viewing

equals more money into the game

[Bakbear 3,586]

14 minutes ago, RobertN said:

No denying the league went backwards since we went in to administration

Simple solution win the league next year

no more foregone conclusion equals exciting viewing

equals more money into the game

The rot was set in long before that. 

Scottish football needs to stop hating itself to death. Simple as that 

all the clubs need to work together not against each other. As much as I hate to say it as a Rangers fan, there needs to be something to play for. Clubs outside the old firm need to be able to mount a challenge. 

Scottish football is not as bad technically and physically as some think but as long as they just hate each other and especially just hate the biggest club we will be stuck as a backwater. 

[siddiqi_drinker 14,635]

 

 

 

5 hours ago, TopCat said:

We need him to talk up Scottish football............ he is a global name and his opinion means more than most.

 

Too many are ready to slate the Scottish game.... including those on here. 

 

 

because for decades t has pandered to and encouraged hammer-throwers who put physicality above all else especially skill.  Do not watch a great deal of football other than Rangers but have viewed some EPL and European games recently and was surprised how unphysical and more technical games were.  

Not a new problem in Scotland but not only has there been no improvement t actually seems to be getting worse.   Warburton to his credit attempted to play a more technical game but did not have the players to execute the plan and struggled against the thugs from clubs such a M'well. 

we could talk up Scottish football if we actually improved the game. 

[Thewhitesettler 2,711]

I don't watch Scottish football anymore, unless it's Rangers, so I only know how good teams are when they play us. 

There is so much football on tv that watching a live Scottish game is well below watching other leagues.

[theblueoysterbar 19,582]

I don't want to listen to Steven Gerrard going on about this and that about Scottish football, I want him to win us the league. 

[SeparateEntityMyArse 53,715]

As a new-found advocate for Scottish football, Steven Gerrard is prepared to paint on the blue woad. But the Rangers manager believes that the game up here could do more to paint itself in a better light. The 39-year-old presents a less than ringing endorsement of the sport he has immersed himself in for the past year.

Reared on the glitz and glamour of the English game in a country with ten times the population of its neighbour above, the unavoidably small-time nature of football north of the Border – where the entire budgets of three top flight teams can amount to less than the salary for one player in the English Premier League – has made for a tough watch for him, at times, and resulted in Scottish football being a tough sell for him when speaking to prospective signings. Yet, the reality is that short of Sky and BT Sport investing in CGI, his main gripe that centres on the, sometimes, paltry numbers attending games is impossible to address.

“I think certain games have been good,” he said. “Certain games we’ve played in, or I’ve watched, they’ve been a higher level of quality than I originally thought. But at times I’ve been a bit disappointed watching certain games. I’ve been to certain games too and the stadiums haven’t been full and when it’s come to the standard the ball has been in the air a lot. To be honest, it’s been a little bit worse than I thought. So it’s probably been a bit mixed.

"I think about some of our games against Aberdeen and celtic and they’ve been so enjoyable because they’ve been so fierce and quick and intense. That’s the level you want to see.

“It’s not to criticise Scottish football or any individual teams.Sometimes you see stands that are empty on TV, which doesn’t look great in my opinion. But at times there have been games where the level has really blown me away and the standard of individual players has been top level.

There are a few things [I’d change] , but it’s a debate that’s open to everyone; not just me.

“Of course, try and fill stadiums more but that’s tough. There are a lot of reasons why they aren’t full. I wouldn’t have plastic pitches, but that’s no surprise to anyone. I’d also be more cute and clever with the camera angles. Maybe if they’re putting certain games live on BT or Sky they should change the camera angles so you see a full stand rather than an empty one…I don’t understand it. You go live on BT or Sky Sports around the world and you have a camera on an empty stand. It’s ludicrous, I don’t get it.

“It [empty stadiums] comes up in conversation when you are chatting to players. It is just my opinion, only a small thing, but I want Scottish football to be as good as it can be, I want a Scottish manager going in there [to the national team], I want them playing the right way. I want to back all that. I am employed at a Scottish club, working with Scottish people"

"I want your national team to be as good as it can be, which is weird coming from an Englishman I suppose. But I am part of it now and I have a responsibility to help that. I want the game to be better up here, and I want it to look better on the eye. There are little subtle things that you can maybe do.”

Gerrard’s complaint has echoes of a regular refrain from Gordon Strachan who expressed dismay and bewilderment that more celtic and Rangers home games weren’t shown instead of away fixtures at the smallest grounds in the top flight. That isn’t a potential solution that the former England captain would back.

“No, I think it is important to show the whole league, not just the Old Firm,” he said. “We have played some very good games against the lower teams and they have made it very difficult for us. I like going to all the old traditional stadiums, I love it, in fact.

“But when I am watching Sportscene and so on there is nothing better than to see full stands, supporters enjoying themselves and full stands. But the empty stands are all over Sky and BT.”

[Boyd9her 307]

Silly comment. How would we attract better players if he’s saying the game here is shite and played in the air?

[backup 4,724]

8 hours ago, Ace said:

where the entire budgets of three top flight teams can amount to less than the salary for one player in the English Premier League

What a load of nonsense.

[35 Yard Dangerman 3,475]

26 minutes ago, Boyd9her said:

Silly comment. How would we attract better players if he’s saying the game here is shite and played in the air?

I'm pretty sure he's implying if teams keep the ball on the ground the quality of game will hopefully improve, more people will hopefully watch etc etc.

[backup 4,724]

'If God had wanted us to play football in the clouds, he would have put grass in the sky' ...Brian Clough

[Number5 2,121]

Stevies comments seem about right.

I don't watch the SPL other than our games, but from what little I've seen over the years the standard is poor.

Half empty stadiums is terrible for the game, however I think with the English Premiership being so massive, that it's playing it's part in killing the Scottish game, when I'm up the road visiting family, kids are running about with Chelsea/Liverpool/ Man Utd kits on.

The games fucked in Scotland.

 

[BlueThunder 8,453]

3 hours ago, theblueoysterbar said:

I don't want to listen to Steven Gerrard going on about this and that about Scottish football, I want him to win us the league. 

He was asked a question. It isn’t as if he called an impromptu press conference to slate the Scottish game.

We all want him to win the league. That doesn’t mean he isn’t entitled to an opinion.

[BillyG91 5,512]

can't disagree with him. he's right. it's shite up here. you have players who like to give players a kick just as much as the ball. and yeah a lot of the stadiums sit empty. it's an embarrassment. 

i wish it was better but i can't see it happening. it's good that he's speaking out about it. the money just isn't here. us and them are the two biggest teams and then you have the "big" diddy teams like aberdeen, hibs, hearts. then everything below that is just rubbish teams from wee towns around the country. 

[stfu 596]

I remember in 1986 when Uruguay beat Scotland in the world cup with a team of hammer throwers.

Look at how the players and the football of that country has progressed since then and compare it to Scotland.

Until all clubs in this country agree to try and play decent technical football we have no chance.

My oldest used to play every weekend for a boys club and some of the attitudes from the coaches and parents of the clubs is like something out of the 70's.

Screaming and swearing at young boys to fecking smash him and stuff is frankly embarrassing in this day, but that's Scottish football for you.

 

If we fix it we need need to get every club to agree no more hammer throwers.

[harlands plater 16,974]

It’s not even stadiums that are half empty, it’s half stadiums that are half empty. Half stadiums with plastic pitches in the case of Hamilton, for a supposedly top flight club that’s embarrassing.

[Reformation Bear 6,453]

A world-respected football person who is Manager of a Club whose name and football success is known throughout the football world.    He has earned the right to air his opinions on the state of the game and for those opinions to be respected and given serious consideration.   He is trying to be helpful.

But this is the narrow minded football wilderness of Scotland.   He is a voice of sense in a football wilderness.    Heard, views dismissed and quickly forgotten.

His views may carry a lot more weight if Rangers actually manage to win the league title one of these seasons.    If we don't under Gerrard's charge then his words about Scottish football will simply become a distant muse from a world-respected football person while the wilderbheasts of Scottish football continue to ply their shit-trade in front even emptier stands.

[Blue Avenger 22,567]

11 hours ago, TopCat said:

We need him to talk up Scottish football............ he is a global name and his opinion means more than most.

 

Too many are ready to slate the Scottish game.... including those on here. 

 

 

He did provide balance in his statement, but at the end of the day, our game is utter shte, far less the shambolic empty stadiums and plastic pitches. A shameful fcking embarrassment.

We can blame the SFA an the SPFL all we like, but we are all complicit in it.

We are a backwater of mediocrity and worse, going forever backwards. 

We are a joke footballing nation, with jokers fucking running it.

The truth can be a bitter pill to swallow. Denying it is what kills you.

 

 

[SeparateEntityMyArse 53,715]

4 minutes ago, Blue Avenger said:

He did provide balance in his statement, but at the end of the day, our game is utter shte, far less the shambolic empty stadiums and plastic pitches. A shameful fcking embarrassment.

We can blame the SFA an the SPFL all we like, but we are all complicit in it.

We are a backwater of mediocrity and worse, going forever backwards. 

We are a joke footballing nation, with jokers fucking running it.

The truth can be a bitter pill to swallow. Denying it is what kills you.

 

 

Just another example of the mentality of Scottish football that it would rather die a slow lingering death than do what's right for the greater good.

Reminds me of those who would rather their club died than Rangers be given fair treatment back in the dark days.

[LegendofCoop 17,273]

If he were at any other club in the SPL, his comments would now have kick started a study into how all of the above could be put into practice and an inquest into how the game has deteriorated set up. 

 

Sadly, all the other clubs and authorities will do is point and laugh.

[RFC55 108,801]

12 minutes ago, LegendofCoop said:

If he were at any other club in the SPL, his comments would now have kick started a study into how all of the above could be put into practice and an inquest into how the game has deteriorated set up. 

 

Sadly, all the other clubs and authorities will do is point and laugh.

Warburton slaughtered plastic pitches and the press had a go at him. Rodgers done it and it became a huge talking point

 

[McEwan's Lager 30,519]

I genuinely think it would be better for us and celtic to forego the extra two match revenue for the TV deal and increase the division sizes.

Drop two teams from the SPFL and have two divisions of 20. No plastic pitches in the top tier.

More teams in the divisions means clubs will be able to take chances in promoting youth and playing better football.

Potentially reserve teams/colts introduced into the Highland and Lowland Leagues. If it’s good enough for Spain, Holland, Portugal, Germany etc then its good enough for Scotland.