STEVEN GERRARD judged every season of his career by the cups he lifted and the medals that he won.

But former Liverpool team-mate Jason McAteer reckons his tenure as Rangers manager shouldn’t be defined by silverware.

Gerrard was left empty-handed during his first term at Ibrox as the Gers finished second in the Premiership and suffered early exits in both cup competitions.

The aims at the start of this season were clear for Gerrard. The title has to be won and a trophy has to be put back in the cabinet after three years of domestic domination from Celtic.

Gerrard has already had a transformational impact on and off the park at Ibrox and McAteer, who will line up alongside the Reds legend at a charity match later this month, believes there are factors other than silverware with which to judge the 39-year-old in his first job as a boss.

McAteer said: “I don’t know if you would class Steven as being unsuccessful if he didn’t win a trophy. The progress he’s made here already has been great – you can see that the club is moving forward. I accept that you’re judged on what you win but it’s very difficult to get over the line with Celtic in front of you.

“From where Rangers were six or seven years ago to where they are now is fantastic; they’re definitely heading in the right direction. If Steven was to move on at the end of this season, having finished second but without capturing a cup, would that mean he’s been a success here?

“Rangers fans would probably say ‘No, because you haven’t won anything’ but he won’t have done badly, if that’s the case – it’s not as though they’re going backwards.”

The approval rating that Gerrard has amongst supporters is arguably even greater now than it was when he was appointed at Ibrox last term.

But the Gers fans and their boss know the improvements on and off the park must come with something more tangible than pats on the back.

McAteer said: “I imagine, though, that he would personally regard it as a failure if he didn’t succeed in one of the competitions this season because Steven Gerrard is a winner; that’s how he’s lived his life. But you’ve got to be realistic sometimes and look at what’s involved in this challenge.

“The finances of Rangers Football Club are different to Celtic. Are you judging him on what he’s spent or what Celtic have done? Are you judging him on his managerial experience compared to Neil Lennon’s? The depth of each squad, that all comes into it too.

“I also believe that, to win a league title, you also need to have a little bit of luck. Actually, when I watched Celtic win 2-0 at Ibrox on TV earlier in the month, I didn’t think Rangers were too far away from them – at one stage, it could have gone either way.

“But Celtic got there in the end and took the three points, which Steven would have been devastated by.”

The focus for Gerrard is very much on domestic success and European improvement at present as he looks to continue an impressive start to the campaign at Ibrox.

Nothing will distract him from those ambitions at present but talk of a potential return to Anfield will never diminish. Indeed, the current incumbent has talked up such a prospect.

McAteer said: “That’s a tough one to answer because it’s all about being in the right place at the right time. At the minute, Liverpool is in a very healthy position; we’re champions of Europe and we have a fantastic manager in Jurgen Klopp.

“However, we can’t see into the future and we don’t know what Jurgen might want to do five, six, seven years down the line.

“What’s going to happen to Steven Gerrard? We don’t know that either.

“If it all works out and Jurgen wins the Premier League and then stays on for another couple of seasons while Steven is doing well here and wants to move on at the same time as Liverpool are looking for a new manager then that might happen but there are too many imponderables to predict that that will happen.”