'The advice I would give' - Steven Gerrard names Liverpool 'regret'

Steven Gerrard has spoken about how he regrets not signing a contract extension at Liverpool and how the situation made him feel like he was between a rock and a hard place.

Gerrard made his Liverpool debut in 1998 as a substitute against Blackburn Rovers, and was part of the side that won the treble in 2001.

The former England international then replaced Sami Hyypia as club captain in October 2003 and led the club to the Champions League title in 2005.

But with his contract expiring in the summer of 2015, Gerrard turned down the offer of a one-year extension and subsequently joined LA Galaxy in the MLS.

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Gerrard then brought the curtain down on his 19-year playing career in November 2016, moving into coaching and then management with Rangers.

The Anfield great is now in charge of Aston Villa and it was ahead of their win over Leicester City that he opened up on the end of his Reds career.

Asked about how long Jamie Vardy should continue to play for, Gerrard urged him to go on for as long as he could and admitted he should have opted to remain at Anfield when offered the chance.

“I don’t see any reason why Jamie will want to call it a day. The evidence suggests he’s in good shape and still producing at this level,” he said.

“For any player, the advice I would give is for them to play as long as they can - as long as they're feeling good and producing.

“I was someone who very much missed it once I decided to stop. I called it a day in Los Angeles and, for me, it was a case of being away from the family.

“But the one small regret I have was not signing the year that was offered to me at Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers. I felt I was between a rock and a hard place.

“I wanted to stay and for the journey to continue and maybe, with hindsight, I should have signed the year’s extension.

“But at the same time I wasn’t starting as many games as I would have liked and Brendan was making it quite clear that my game-time was going to be more limited than I was used to.

“And I wasn’t as excited as I had been, being a squad player as opposed to my previous role.”