Steven Gerrard Picks MLS After Liverpool For 'Different Lifestyle, Culture'

Steven Gerrard’s newly found appetite for adventure will take him away from home in a few months.

Gerrard shocked the soccer world Friday by announcing that he’ll leave Liverpool when his contract expires this summer and take his talents to Major League Soccer. Gerrard told the Liverpool Echo on Tuesday that he chose America because he and his family want to experience a different lifestyle and culture in the final stages of his storied playing career.

“I had a lot of offers -– domestically, from Europe, Asia and America,” Gerrard said. “When I decided the time was right to leave Liverpool, I knew straightaway I wouldn’t ever sign for another domestic club or anyone in Europe.

“Also, I said to myself that if you want to play for a big team in Europe with a great coach then I may as well stay put because I had all that here already. That wouldn’t have been the change I was looking for.

“The attraction of America was a different lifestyle, a different culture for myself and my family.”

Gerrard, 34, hasn’t specified which MLS team he will join, but multiple reports claim the longtime Liverpool captain will sign with the Los Angeles Galaxy in the coming days.

Gerrard’s exploits with his hometown club over the last 17 years are legendary, and his heroics continued Monday when he delivered a game-winning performance against Wimbledon in the third round of the FA Cup. Gerrard will give his all for Liverpool over the next five months, and no one will blame him for wanting to sample a new way of life — for the first time in 35 years — when he is finished playing at the highest level. Gerrard is only human, after all.