Educating teens through football is a great buzz, says Gerrard

Ex-Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has said seeing the progress of his academy students - who might otherwise have dropped out of formal education - is a "great buzz".

The Reds legend, recently voted the top player of all time in a poll carried out by the club, launched his football and education programme for 16-19 year olds in 2011.

Education Secretary Lucy Powell visited the site in Mossley Hill on Friday to learn more about how young people not following conventional academic pathways are engaged through football.

Gerrard said: "I was lucky, I had a career in the game, but if I didn't... I'd have been like a lot of these kids where you're at a crossroads when you come out of education."

Speaking to the BBC, Gerrard said giving the teenagers a "platform and an opportunity to further their education, better themselves and run that alongside the best sport, the best game in the world", was "fantastic".

He said his aim was to, "give these kids the best possible facilities and everything they need to be better versions of themselves".

He added the students were "a credit to the city and themselves and their own families", adding: "Obviously, my name's alongside it, but it's very much about the teachers and the people that work day to day on this - the staff and the teachers do a great job."

Powell, a Manchester City season ticket holder, said she had huge respect for Gerrard and the work he was doing.

She said the government wanted to ensure practical and vocational pathways were open to as many children as possible.

"What we want to see more running through our education and college system is a real focus on destination and getting people ready and thinking about jobs and the world of work," Powell said.

Students at the academy can study a range of subjects from sports media and coaching to a football industry degree.

Powell said sport was an "AI-proof" industry, with practical skills like "playing, coaching and physiotherapy" unlikely to be affected, but she added that AI presented opportunities for young people in the sector too.

Gerrard is not the only former Liverpool FC player to branch out into the education sector.

His team mate Robbie Fowler established the Fowler Academy in 2015, which trains aspiring footballers as well as offering 16-19 training and qualifications.

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