Fans mock Steven Gerrard's attempt at Arabic after viral video
Fans mock Steven Gerrard’s attempt at Arabic after the Liverpool legend was filmed addressing Al Ettifaq’s supporters in a video following his appointment
- Steven Gerrard has agreed terms with Al Ettifaq to take over as their new boss
- Fans have taken to social media to mock Gerrard for the video Al Ettifaq shared
- The Liverpool legend addressed the club’s fans and introduced himself in Arabic
Fans have taken to social media to mock Steven Gerrard’s attempt at Arabic after Al Ettifaq released a video of him addressing the club’s supporters following his appointment at the Saudi side.
The former Liverpool captain will take the reins at the Saudi club with a view to challenging for the title next season after being sacked as the manager of Aston Villa in October 2022.
Gerrard will become the latest in a growing list of high-profile figures to relocate to Saudi Arabia and join the Saudi Pro League. The likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Ruben Neves have all signed for various teams.
Gerrard’s appointment at Al Ettifaq comes as a surprise given he previously stated he was against moving to Saudi Arabia. He said: ‘I was invited over there to look at a potential offer, I’ve been analysing that but where I stand right now I won’t be taking it on.’
Mail Sport understands Al Ettifaq chiefs, who are currently in London finalising Gerrard’s appointment, have convinced Gerrard of their project to become the dominant force in the Saudi Pro League.
Fans have taken to social media to mock Steven Gerrard’s attempt at Arabic after Al Ettifaq released a video of him addressing the club’s supporters
Therefore, Gerrard agreed terms with the Saudi side and shared a video on their social media account addressing the fans in Arabic. The Liverpool legend appeared to introduce himself and tell the fans he would ‘see them soon’.
Football fans across the world couldn’t help but mock Gerrard for his pronunciation. One fan wrote: ‘OMG what was that Pronunciation Stevie’, while another said: ‘Nah Saudi money pull is different for real!’.
Others joked: ‘Stevie is doing his GCSE Arabic speaking exam’. While one football fan wrote: ‘Joey Barton vibes.’
Some fans mocked Gerrard for previously stating he wouldn’t move to Saudi Arabia. They wrote: ‘Gerrard 2 weeks ago. I won’t be taking up a Saudi offer’.
Jordan Henderson and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang could be two of Gerrard’s first targets as Al-Ettifaq boss after he was appointed at the Saudi Pro League club.
The 33-year-old Liverpool captain has been at Anfield for 12 years and is still under contract until 2025, so it remains to be seen if he could be tempted by the riches on offer in the booming Saudi league even at this stage of his career.
Aubameyang is a year older at 34 and looking for a fresh start following a desperately disappointing season at Chelsea.
The former Arsenal striker moved to Stamford Bridge from Barcelona for £10.3million in September but scored just three goals in 21 appearances.
Aubameyang could become the latest Chelsea player to head to the Saudi league, following in the footsteps of N’Golo Kante, Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy.
Other Premier League stars have also been targeted with Manchester City duo Riyad Mahrez and Bernardo Silva receiving huge offers to quadruple their salaries from Al-Ahli and Al-Hilal respectively.
David de Gea is reported to be attracting interest from Cristiano Ronaldo’s club Al-Nassr given the uncertainty over his future at Manchester United.
There has been speculation that Philippe Coutinho, another of Gerrard’s former Liverpool teammates who also played under the 43-year-old at Aston Villa, could link up with him again at Al-Ettifaq along with ex-Liverpool forward Sadio Mane.
However, it’s understood that Coutinho and Mane, now at Bayern Munich, are unlikely to move to Saudi this summer.
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