STEVEN Gerrard’s tenure as Rangers manager appears to be almost at an end as he is all set to be appointed Aston Villa boss.

When Dean Smith was harshly sacked by the Villans on Sunday, attention soon turned to Gerrard as a possible replacement.

Given he’s linked to pretty much every Premier League job going these days, it wasn’t a surprise but given their status in English football and a revolving door of managers it wasn’t a position you felt Gerrard would entertain.

That seems not to be the case, however.

Why would the manager of the Scottish Premiership champions leave midway through a season when his whole career has been built on loyalty?

It’s a difficult one to digest but there may be plausible reasons for deciding to end his stay in Govan prematurely.

Firstly, Gerrard has achieved the holy grail of 55. He delivered the league title every single Rangers fan had been craving in the most spectacular of fashion, going through the campaign unbeaten.

There may be some, mainly opposition supporters, who will belittle his achievement and state that he’s won one trophy in nine. It’s an argument that doesn’t wash given the title he won was, arguably, the most coveted in the history of Scottish football. Also, if you take Jurgen Klopp for example, he’s won one domestic trophy in his time at Liverpool but it’s the one they all craved.

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Gerrard took over Rangers when the club was miles away from Celtic both on and off the pitch and having been dumped out of the Europa League qualifiers by the fourth-best team in Luxembourg the year prior.

He and his coaching staff not only narrowed the gap with their fierce rivals, they steamrollered past them to win the league title by a mammoth 25 points. Coupled with the fact they single-handedly improved the Scottish coefficient in Europe to enable the winners of this season’s Premiership automatic entry into the Champions League.

This season has been a chore in comparison, the early elimination from the Champions League was a massive disappointment and performances and results have not been at the standard set last season. That being said, Rangers are still top of the Premiership table and gearing up for a League Cup semi-final. He has delivered what the supporters wanted, is he hungry enough to deliver more?

Secondly, if he were to take the Aston Villa job or any other Premier League job for that matter, he would have transfer funds he could only dream of at Rangers. In the last two transfer windows, the Govan side haven't been in a position to pay any large transfer fees, something Gerrard alluded to following the Europa League defeat to Sparta Prague where he said:

"We've been short in the two Europa League games, but at this level - which is improving year in, year out - if we want to keep growing and going to the next level we need to spend big money in transfer windows. It's as simple as that.

"To compete against the teams we've got to spend big money. In the last two windows, we haven't spent a penny. So, there has to be some realism there as well.

"To compete with these teams and to beat them on their own patch, we have to spend money to compete at this level. There needs to be a little bit of common sense when looking at this from the outside.”

Now, as much as Gerrard was merely pointing out facts, it didn’t stop a number of supporters from being concerned that he was unhappy at the level of squad he had at his disposal and not being able to strengthen as he would like.

It’s unfair to criticise the Rangers board on the lack of money being spent, they have just posted an annual loss of £23.5m which they are picking up the tab for after all, and clubs aren’t buying Rangers players therefore the player trading model isn’t working currently. It remains to be seen if there will be funds available to spend in January but it appears likely they will have to sell before they can buy.

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Compare this to what he would encounter at Villa where he would have a vast amount of money to spend on players he desired. Instead of raking around the bargain basement looking for a gem, he’d be walking into the transfer market armed and ready.

Gerrard may feel he’s taken Rangers as far as he can given the finances on offer and perhaps feels a failure to strengthen in January may result in the club relinquishing the title.

Thirdly, and this is sometimes forgotten when it comes to those involved in football - the chance to be closer to his family is likely to be a huge pull.

It’s well known Gerrard’s family still reside in Merseyside and given he has been working in Glasgow for three-and-a-half seasons now, he may feel the time is right to move closer to home.

You can’t help but feel it’s an opportunity that would excite those closest to him and perhaps one that they are keen he takes.

Then there is the Christian Purslow factor. The Aston Villa CEO worked with Gerrard at Liverpool between 2009-11. He is someone Gerrard will know and trust which makes the switch all the less daunting.

That being said, he would be joining a club with a track record of hiring and firing managers at will. They are looking for their eighth manager in a decade which doesn’t scream stable football club. Then there is the fact they will have little to no chance of winning any silverware, merely staying in the division is the aim this season and going forward. Could they push into the top four or top six? Highly unlikely.

Now, Villa are a big club in English football, of that there is no doubt, but the demands, chances of success and job security pale into insignificance to what he already has at Rangers.

With all things considered, it’s ultimately a decision that rests with Steven Gerrard himself.

Whatever his judgment, he will always be remembered for delivering the most important league title in modern times.