In recent times, there appears to be a trend of soccer legends facing dismissal from their managerial positions. A prime example is Wayne Rooney, who was recently sacked by EFL Championship team Birmingham City. Now the person whom Rooney once dubbed as his best-ever England teammate, Steven Gerrard is also on the verge of facing a potential termination by Al Ettifaq.

It was in the summer of 2023 when Steven Gerrard assumed the position of manager at the Saudi Club. In addition to his appointment, he made notable signings such as Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum, and Moussa Dembele. However, despite these acquisitions, the team’s performance has been lacking.

Steven Gerrard could soon follow in Wayne Rooney’s path

According to Saudi Media reports, Al Ettifaq is on the verge of terminating the contract of coach Gerrard. The decision comes just six months after the Liverpool legend was appointed to lead the team. The reason behind this decision lies in the disappointing performance of the team with Gerrard at the helm.

In 21 matches under the former midfielder, Al Ettifaq has only won 7 matches and lost 7 too. On top of that, The Knight of Ad-Dahn currently sits in 8th position in the Saudi Pro League points table. This situation mirrors that of his former England teammate Wayne Rooney. The Manchester United legend was recently dismissed from Birmingham City within a mere 13 weeks of taking charge.

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Rooney also failed to meet the expectations of the club and won only 2 out of 15 Championship matches. It seems there may be some truth to the notion circulating in the soccer world that exceptional players often struggle as managers. In light of this, let’s take a look at other instances of legendary players who ultimately struggled as coaches.

From Maradona to Roy Keane- great players who failed as coaches

The most famous name that comes up when talking about legendary players turning out to be bad coaches is of late Diego Maradona. Unfortunately, his coaching tenure with Argentina following their disappointing performance at the 2010 World Cup was not successful.

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Similarly, Irish legend Roy Keane faced challenges as a coach at Ipswich Town, failing to achieve promotion for the club. Another renowned figure, the late Sir Bobby Charlton, had a similar experience when Preston North End suffered relegation under his management. Additional examples of legendary players who struggled as coaches include Lothar Matthaus, Alan Shearer, and Marco van Basten.

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