Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has described Steven Gerrard’s return to the club as an academy coach as ‘wonderful news for football’.

The Reds confirmed that Gerrard would be working within the club’s youth set-up in February, working in the professional development phase of young players at the Kirkby site.

The German manager believes Gerrard’s position will benefit both the club and the club legend as he begins his coaching career.

‘We had a very, very good, very long talk together. Probably everybody in this room knows better than I do that he’s a wonderful guy,’ Klopp told the Liverpool website.

‘For me, it was only important to know what Steven wants, actually, and he said he wants to be a manager in the future. So, that’s cool. I said from my side, everything I can do to help him on this way, to make him the best manager he can be, I’m ready for this and I would like to do it.

‘We spoke about different things, different options and now he’s at the Academy. That’s great for us as a club and I think for him it’s perfect because being a manager is a job you have to learn.’

He added: ‘When a person like Steven Gerrard – the player he was, but more the person he is – is ready to make the steps, that’s wonderful news for football. Combining the playing experience with all the things he’ll learn from now on, that’s a bright future and is brilliant.’

Image: Liverpool website