The brutal Villa leak which dogged Steven Gerrard challenged by club insiders

Former Aston Villa boss Steven Gerrard WILL return as an English Premier League manager – according to his former goalkeeping coach with the West Midlands club.

Neil Cutler's firm backing comes as striker Ollie Watkins praised the Liverpool icon's belief in him before Unai Emery took the reins. Gerrard endured a torrid 12 months at Villa Park as he was met with widespread derision from punters before the axe fell in the wake of a 3-0 trouncing at the hands of Fulham at Craven Cottage last October. It was the far cry from the adulation Gerrard enjoyed as Rangers boss as he led the club to their 55th league title by masterminding an unbeaten Scottish Premiership campaign during the 2020/21 season.

But recriminations followed his Villa axing with West Ham striker Michail Antonio claiming on his BBC podcast players within the dressing room "didn't like how he was". However, that isn't a view shared by the those who worked closely alongside him during a challenging stint in his professional career. Cutler – speaking to talkSPORT – said: “He’s got so much to offer. As a serial winner, he’s been there and done it. His desire to achieve, his desire to move forward – coupled with his knowledge and experience – will only benefit a team eventually.

"He’ll get back in it [the Premier League]. I’m not sure where that will be. Because of how much desire he’s got, he’ll just continue to move forward. He’s not the kind of person that’s like: ‘I’m Steven Gerrard, I’m just going to make it.’

“He’s got an unbelievable drive. He’ll get back in it [the Premier League] eventually and I’m sure he’ll do really well. I think with Stevie, he’s got so much knowledge and he’s still really young for a manager. While he was manager of the football club [Aston Villa], we were really unlucky with injuries at the time. “I think he was at Villa for around about a year and I really got to know him quite well. He’s a really caring, kind guy that will do anything for you. What he does on the pitch, he does as a manager.

“He wears his heart on his sleeve and is just desperate to win games. [He’s got] a lot of knowledge and a lot of experience of football and so much to give and this next job is going to come round for him when he’s ready and he’ll move forward again. He did so well at Rangers and he’s got so much to offer as a person, as a personality and as a coach.”

And while striker Watkins noted current boss Unai Emery is demanding he freshens up his approach – the England cap was keen to stress he remains an admirer of the 42-year-old.

The 26-year-old said: “I feel like Steven Gerrard wanted me to do well and picked me regularly in the team. I had a really good relationship with him. He had a lot of belief in me. He wanted me to score goals and I felt I did that at the back end of last season. But the start of this season was a little bit different.”