Umar Sadiq Criticises Steven Gerrard After Failed Rangers Stint, Says Wages Owed

Umar Sadiq has hit out at Rangers manager Steven Gerrard following his failed loan stint at Ibrox and said the Scottish club still owe him unpaid wages after his move was cut short.

The AS Roma striker joined Rangers on a season-long loan in July 2018 but was sent back to the Stadio Olimpico in December. Sadiq—now on loan at Serie B Perugia—told The Sunday Post's Danny Stewart & Massimiliano Vitelli of his disappointment with Gerrard after falling down the team's pecking order:

"Then it was Steven Gerrard himself who convinced me. He phoned me three or four times, complimenting me and saying he'd back me to be a success. It made me feel important and convinced me to agree to the loan switch.

"At that point, I knew the club the same way football fans all over the world know Rangers – for its history and the passion of its fans.

"But when I arrived, I didn't even have any time to settle down before they brought in another striker, Kyle Lafferty. That was when the problems started, and my situation soon degenerated into a real nightmare."

The 22-year-old said it was "absurd" that he received a £20,000 fine for liking a post on Instagram, adding the club had not paid him wages for December, the month he was sent back to Roma.

Lafferty rejoined Rangers in August 2018, one month after Nigeria under-23 international Sadiq moved to Glasgow, and has since scored seven goals in 35 appearances across all competitions. Sadiq made only four appearances in five months at the club for a total of 161 minutes.

Much of Gerrard's decision-making in his first season with Rangers appears to have been positive, with the club currently second in the Scottish Premiership and still challenging Celtic for the title.

Sadiq said Liverpool legend Gerrard was "very different" from how he thought he was going to be, saying he was separated from the rest of the first-team squad:

"All of a sudden, I was told that I could not use the first-team dressing-room any more. Instead I had to go change with the kids. Then, after a few days, I was also forbidden to park my car inside the training centre.

"I felt humiliated and kept asking what was the reason for the change of attitude. But I never received any answers. Gerrard wouldn't give any explanation about it, neither to me nor my representatives."

He continued to say Gerrard "didn't even have the courage to talk to me and tell me what was happening face-to-face" when he was told his loan transfer had been terminated.

Former Bhoys striker Chris Sutton recently appeared on BT Sport Score and said he doubted whether the Merseysider could take the Scottish outfit back to the domestic throne:

Now in Italy's second tier, Sadiq has scored twice in eight appearances for Perugia, his fifth loan move since joining Roma from Spezia in 2016.

Rangers were much stronger contenders to take Celtic's league title earlier in the campaign, but a run of four matches without a win has seen them fall off the pace. A 1-1 draw at home to Kilmarnock in their most recent outing left them eight points behind Celtic:

Sadiq concluded by saying he didn't care how Rangers do and had his own career to think about when asked for his take on Gerrard's long-term potential as a manager, though it's unlikely the pair will ever reunite.