Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard wasn't offered a coaching role to tempt him to stay at Anfield because he isn't ready for it, according to manager Brendan Rodgers.
Gerrard will move to the United States this summer after announcing on Friday that he is leaving the Reds at the end of the season.
The midfielder has been on the club's books since he was eight years old, making his senior debut at 18 and going on to make 695 first-team appearances.
Gerrard said in a September 2013 interview with the football magazine Tewntyfour7 that he had ambitions to move into management when he finished playing, and one day wanted to take charge at Anfield.
However, in confirming on Friday that this would be his final season with Liverpool, he said that, for now, he wanted to continue playing.
Jamie Carragher, Gerrard's former Liverpool and England team-mate, wrote in the Daily Mail on Saturday that the club should have given their captain a coaching role to go with his playing responsibilities.
Rodgers, though, made clear that, even though the midfielder has embarked on studying for his UEFA coaching badges, it is not the right time to bring him on to the Anfield backroom staff.
The manager said: "I believe Steven has an ambassadorial role here within his contract. But there wasn't a coaching role for him. He's just started taking his badges, and Steven's the type who's not going to go into it blind.
"He's very thoughtful. He thinks about the game. His focus is on the present in terms of playing, because he still believes he can play beyond this season, and also on his family.
"He knows that when that's finished, there are plenty of years left ahead for him to move into coaching, if that's something he wants to do. If I was here as the manager by that time, he'd be someone who'd be great on my staff.
"I do genuinely believe he can offer great advice, if something he wants to do.
"But when a player retires, they've been in this cauldron for so many years, especially at a club like this, where there are so many eyes on you.
"You move away, and you might find that after a year or two years out of it, it's actually not something they want to do.
"With the experiences he has of Liverpool as a club, there are those little bits of gold dust he can give players. That will be invaluable to young players.
"But coaching and management isn't something you can click your fingers and move into. There's a lot of work, there are a lot of hours, there's a lot of time and commitment that has to go into that.
"I always say to players who are getting towards the end of their careers, that if you want to move into coaching or management, take two or three years to really get your eye in on it.
"It's a pressure situation. If you haven't been accustomed to that, it's difficult."
Gerrard and Carragher are both examples of home-produced players who have gone on to great things at Anfield.
But Rodgers has also warned that the club have to be prepared to buy in big-name talent if they want to compete at the top end of the Premier League.
American owners Fenway Sports Group have a policy of bringing in and developing young players -- but the manager says that is not enough on its own.
He said: "The model at the club is clear. Our owners want to bring in young players and develop them into world-class talent, which is a longer and more difficult process.
"But they know that not every player that comes in can be a young and developing talent. If you're going to keep progressing, then sometimes you have to get those ready-made ones."