Thursday 24 November 2016 21:12, UK
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp says the "door is always open" for Steven Gerrard to return to the club in a coaching role.
The former Reds captain announced his retirement from professional football on Thursday, ending an illustrious 18-year playing career which started at Anfield back in 1998.
Gerrard has been repeatedly linked with a return to his boyhood club and Klopp says he would be happy to help the former England international make the transition into coaching, if it is his preferred career choice.
"The door is always open for him," Klopp told a press conference on Thursday.
"From our side, if he wants to make whichever career change from his former career, then we want to help him.
"There's nothing else to say."
Klopp was keen to stress that nothing concrete is set in place for Gerrard to return to the club and urged the media to give the former midfielder enough time to properly plan his next career choice.
"Steven Gerrard, 186 goals, the first thing what you should all learn is if somebody wants to help Steven Gerrard then stop being so excited about the next step," said the Liverpool boss.
"In life you need space to jump into the next thing that is new.
"He was a young player and now he will be a young whatever. I'm the wrong person to talk about it."
Rather than Gerrard's future career choice, Klopp's immediate concern is Saturday's home game against Sunderland in the Premier League.
The Reds slipped to second in the division last weekend after being held to a goalless draw by Southampton at St Mary's.
That result ended a run of three straight league victories but Klopp refused to blame the stalemate on the recent international break.
"I didn't have the feeling that we suffered during the international break. It's not perfect but it's the same for every team," Klopp admitted.
"We had a few players they couldn't train properly this week, so you always have some problems.
"We had no time to waste in the first few weeks of the season, now it's becoming more and more intense.
"But that's the situation and I don't think too much about it."
Klopp is now preparing his side to face a resurgent Sunderland, who moved off the bottom of the Premier League table with a 3-0 win over Hull last time out.
Sunderland are steadily improving under David Moyes and Klopp believes it would be a mistake to underestimate the Black Cats.
"Everything is prepared for a good football game if we do our job," he said.
"Until now it's been good but the next job is already there. We have to do the good things again.
"We won't underestimate Sunderland," he added. "If one person in the stadium underestimates them that would be a mistake."
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