Steven Gerrard admits he speaks to Aston Villa sporting director Johan Lange more than he does to his wife Alex as he prepares for a big summer rebuild at Villa Park. Lange, 42, heads up Villa’s recruitment department and looks after transfers and contracts, with the Dane sat alongside Gerrard and CEO Christian Purslow in Marseille last month watching potential summer targets Boubacar Kamara and centre-back teammate Duje Ćaleta-Car. On his six-month relationship with Lange so far,
Steven Gerrard said: “Yeah, it’s been brilliant. I’ve really enjoyed it so far, he’s obviously got a lot of support staff around him as well. He’s a very normal guy, very humble, easy to get on with. Yeah, I must say, the three sporting directors or technical directors – whatever you call them nowadays – I’ve enjoyed all of my relationships with the three I’ve worked with so far. I don’t know whether I’ve been lucky so far but, you know, Mark Allen (Rangers), Ross Wilson (Rangers) and Johan, I’ve had zero problems. They’ve all been open to discussions. They all want to be part of a team. There’s no ego involved and it’s been pretty smooth with them, and it has been here so far with Johan. I’ve really enjoyed working with him. I think we’re very aligned and I think we’re very ambitious. He’s very committed and honest and all in, in terms of the time. I speak to Johan more than my wife nowadays, that’s how my relationship is going! I’ve got nothing to worry about but that’s the way it is, especially when you’re coming to a key part of the season. I think if you check my phone bill in December and if you check it in the next couple of months, Johan Lange will be featured very heavily.”
Villa, meanwhile, are planning ahead for a huge summer transfer window. Gerrard remains keen on Premier League midfielders Yves Bissouma and Kalvin Phillips, while Joe Gomez remains on the club’s centre-back shortlist.
