Kris Boyd says Steven Gerrard has “unfinished business” at Rangers amid talks over an Ibrox return.

The Liverpool legend is due to speak to the Gers hierarchy as the Scottish club seek a replacement after Russell Martin was sacked following a disastrous 123-day reign, Sky Sports understands.

Gerrard stopped bitter rivals Celtic from securing a 10th straight Scottish Premiership title when he lifted the title in 2021 – his third year at the club.

The 45-year-old then left for Aston Villa in November 2021 and had a subsequent spell with Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia, where he left in January and has been without a managerial job since.

Speaking on the ‘Rio Meets’ podcast, which appeared to be recorded before Martin’s dismissal, Gerrard admitted he has unfinished business at Ibrox, a sentiment that former Gers striker Boyd, agrees with.

Gerrard’s return will lift the standards

“If there is a deal to be done with Steven Gerrard I think it should get done. You look at what he brought to Rangers the last time – it needs that sort of lift and injection again because it’s been flat now for a period of time.

“Steven will no doubt bring a presence with him. He’ll lift the standards. And I think, first and foremost, he knows what’s required to be a success at Rangers football club.

“It’s not as if he’s going to come into something that’s alien to him. He’s been there. He’s had the pressures of a city in Liverpool on his shoulders for a number of years.

“He came to Glasgow. It took him time, but he eventually got there, and you just felt as if the Rangers board at that time would have backed him, then he would probably have won more. They didn’t. He decided to leave, and I think that’s why he’s saying he’s saying he’s got a lot of unfinished business in football, and there’s no doubt that Rangers football club were one of those.”

What would be the minimum expectation for Gerrard if he was appointed?

“We’ve almost got a semi-final against Celtic in a few weeks; the Scottish Cup hasn’t even started yet. The league, looking at it 11 points behind Hearts, nine points behind Celtic. It’s a big ask to go and catch Celtic, especially when you’re team is not performing well, Celtic, they’ve got their own issues as well. They’re not performing at the level they’ve been at in recent seasons.

“Then obviously, the emergence of Hearts, under Derek McInnes, who’s another manager that has been linked with Rangers.

“So I think for Steven Gerrard, or whoever comes in, it’s a case of winning each game. I know it’s so cliché that every manager will say, you’re under pressure to win every game as a Rangers player, as a Rangers manager.

“And if you can go and start winning games on a regular basis, it can take you to places. And I think that will be the minimum required right now. Start running games on a regular basis, and then see what that takes us.”

Fan discontent would disappear if Gerrard returned

“There’s been a lot of discontent between the fans and the club. But I get the feeling that if Rangers are bold enough to get Steven Gerrard, then that would all disappear.

“Everybody would be happy to look forward to your next match, but listen, when you’re going to get somebody like Steven Gerrard, and you know what he’s going to bring.

“You know the standards and the presence he’s coming that I’ve spoken about there. But the big thing for me would be that he’s a winner.

“Rangers football club needs people in there who understand what it takes to win games with football. Steven Gerrard has definitely got that.

“He’s won at Rangers before, they’ll be hoping that he can come back and kick on from there.”

Gerrard still has ambitions of getting to the top of the game

“The club has changed. It’s under new ownership, and there’s a lot of change behind the scenes as well. So I think that’s why Steven has, and he’s done a podcast he done with Rio Ferdinand, and spoke about getting the right people around him to allow him to be a success.

“He’d done that the last time he was successful in Glasgow, and it’s about making sure that he’s got the right people around him, because he’s not coming back into Rangers to mess around.

“You’re looking at it as another job to get back in as a Steven Gerrard knows the pressures, the demands that’s placed upon every single Rangers manager, if he’s coming back, he will get in here to win games of football, see where that takes him and try and rebuild his career as well, because there is probably, he will have ambitions of still getting to the top in the game.

“He won’t be looking at Rangers as a stepping stone. I think he made that clear when he left. If he had been backed, I think he would have stayed a lot longer in Glasgow.

“It was a Premier League club in Aston Villa, one that he had connections with, with Christian Purslow and people around. And it felt as if it was time to go with him. But I still believe if he was backed at Rangers at the time, he would have stayed.”