The age-old debate about who the superior midfielder is between Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Paul Scholes will never be answered – but who does Aaron Lennon, formerly of Tottenham Hotspur, Leeds United and England, think was the best?
All three left their mark on English football and, in their own right, secured their status as a certified Premier League legend: Scholes won 11 titles, Gerrard was the lynchpin in a struggling Liverpool side and Lampard’s goals were otherworldly.
Former engine room duo Cesc Fabregas and Bryan Robson are in the Gerrard camp, Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola and Thierry Henry marvels at Scholes’ natural-born talent and none other than Sergio Aguero is a big fan of Chelsea royalty, Lampard.
In truth, your answer to the three-person debate all comes down to personal preference (whether you’d prefer a midfielder to be a box-crashing presence, a box-to-box workhorse or a magician from deep) and, perhaps, a little drizzle of club bias if you are a fan of either Chelsea, Liverpool or Manchester United.
Lennon, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest wingers in Tottenham Hotspur history, once spoke to Rio Ferdinand to give his thoughts on the all-time debate – and he narrowed his selection down to Gerrard, who is fondly remembered by the Anfield faithful for his undying loyalty.
“For me, it was Stevie. Without a question. For me, he had everything and he’s one of the best players I’ve ever played with. I’ve never seen players be able to just pick the game up and just run the whole game from the middle of the field.
Waxing poetic his influence, even during training with England, the former winger insisted that having the imposing Scouser on his side – irrespective of the game mode, whether it was a small-sided game or 11 vs 11 – was an automatic advantage.
“I felt like, even in training, if I’m on Stevie’s team, we’re going to win today,” the 21-cap England international said before adding, “Even if it was possession or a small-sided game, whether it be an 11 vs 11, I felt Stevie had that influence on the session.”
Lennon played alongside Gerrard for the Three Lions on 18 different occasions between 2006 and 2013, which was the length of the former wide man’s international career. They first shared the pitch, at Old Trafford in early February 2006, in a 6-0 victory over Jamaica.
Despite their relationship on the international stage, at club level, Lennon and Gerrard never crossed paths for the same side – but they faced off on eight different occasions: the duad of Englishmen were both victorious three times, while two encounters finished in draws.
Not only was Gerrard, who is one of Liverpool’s greatest-ever players, physically imperious, but his technical, on-the-ball ability was also second to none – and the intangibles of his game, including the ability to dictate the tempo, should not go unnoticed.