Jim White hit back at Danny Murphy’s claim on talkSPORT that ‘the easier option’ for Steven Gerrard would have been to stay at Rangers.
The talkSPORT host made it clear to Murphy that Gerrard was under serious pressure last season to stop the ten-in-a-row.
It was Gerrard’s third campaign as Rangers boss and the most important given what was coming his way.
If Celtic won the ten, then they would have been the first team to do so in history.
And in truth, that would have ended Gerrard’s tenure as boss.
Of course, it all ended a lot differently for the Englishman, who is now going to don the colours of Aston Villa in their dugout.
But when Murphy spoke about Gerrard moving to Villa, White didn’t take too kindly to one thing he said.
“Danny, sorry to interrupt you,” said White. “You see when you say ‘the easier option to stay with Rangers’.
“That’s what drives people north of Hadrian’s wall mad, especially Rangers fans and I will tell you why.
“The pressure he was under to wrestle that title off Celtic last season is like pressure that none of us could imagine.
“I am sure Steven Gerrard will tell you, it was a simple ‘you must win this and stop them from doing ten’. That’s pressure and he answered it.”
Regardless of how you feel about Gerrard leaving Rangers for Villa.
One thing is for sure, he has moved to a much tougher league and one that could break him.
He faced serious pressures in Glasgow, but he dealt with it by producing an unbeaten season for the supporters and, of course, the most important title of them all.
That will be remembered by those at Ibrox for a very long time, but given that he has left midway through the campaign, it does leave a bitter taste in their mouths.
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