But Gerrard insists that he never had any intention of leaving the Reds.

Jose Mourinho came close to signing Gerrard while the Portuguese coach was in charge at Chelsea. Mourinho has also tried to sign Gerrard after he took over at Real Madrid.

Gerrard told the Daily Mail: "This club [Liverpool] weren't really challenging at the time, so there was something to think about. But I ended up saying no [to Mourinho in 2004] and a year later I said no again.

"But he came back when he arrived at Real Madrid two years ago. I look at some players who get interest from clubs like Real Madrid and Barcelona and they cause absolute wars to get out and get there. But that has never been me and, again, it just wasn't going to happen. I was happy here. I was settled. I thought all that had gone really."

Gerrard admits he was flattered by Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson's interest in signing him.

"It was flattering back then because the two best managers around wanted me to play in their teams," he continued.

"Gary Neville said he [Sir Alex] wanted me. But you understand that playing for Manchester United would have been impossible. I never would have wanted to play for Manchester United. They are a fantastic club but that rivalry is there, and it's why Gary could not have played for us either.

"Don't get me wrong. It was flattering that, after everything he has done in the game, Sir Alex Ferguson wanted me to play in his team. But that was an impossible situation."