McManaman Hoping to Discover the Next Gerrard or Carragher in Liverpool's Academy

Steve McManaman has revealed just how pleased he is to be back at Liverpool some 14 years after he left the club for a once in a lifetime opportunity to play for Real Madrid.

The former Liverpool winger came through the youth system and would become a firm fan favourite thanks to his wonderful ability on the ball and desire to take on players.

After helping the Reds win the FA Cup in 1992 and the League Cup in 1995, he went on to have a memorable career in Spain as he won the Champions League and La Liga on two occasions.

He scored a spectacular volley in the 3-0 win over Valencia in the Champions League final of 2000 before eventually returning to England and finishing his career playing alongside his good friend Robbie Fowler.

Now the pair have returned to Liverpool to coach players in the academy and McManaman is delighted to have returned to his spiritual home where he hopes to discover players who can become legends at the club.

"It's great to be back involved at Liverpool and it's going really well," McManaman told the Liverpool Echo. "Robbie, Rob [Jones] and myself were all flattered to be asked by Brendan and we're just there to help in any way we can.

"We've all got other commitments as well so it's a flexible arrangement where we're able to go down whenever we want.

"Alex Inglethorpe and Neil Critchley are the main men. They are the coaches and they take the sessions. We're there to contribute if we see anything we think the youngsters could work on to become better players.

"Robbie and myself both joined Liverpool as young kids, we've been through that process of working your way up through the system and then making that jump into the first-team squad.

"If any of the kids want to ask questions or bounce ideas off us we're there. They've got our phone numbers.

"There's some real talent coming through and if we can help in a small way with that extra 2% that can make the difference then it will be worth it.

"Fans love to see youngsters make that breakthrough. You can feel the buzz in the crowd. They all want to see the next Stevie or Carra."

There has always been a rich tradition of players being promoted from the Liverpool academy and the trend has continued in recent seasons with the likes of Raheem Sterling, Jordan Ibe, Andre Wisdom and Adam Morgan all earning first team opportunities under Brendan Rodgers.