Rio Ferdinand has claimed that Steven Gerrard is one of the three best midfielders in Premier League history, overlooking Kevin De Bruyne in the process, in an astonishing outburst that left his co-host visibly stunned
Ex-Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand sparked a fierce debate on his podcast by placing Steven Gerrard above Kevin De Bruyne in a list of the Premier League’s best midfielders. The topic has reared its head again after Manchester City legend De Bruyne announced he would be leaving the club at the end of the season.
De Bruyne’s standing in the English game has since been a regular discussion point, with Jamie Carragher naming him as the second-best foreign player in the league’s history – behind Thierry Henry. But as far as Ferdinand is concerned, it’s Carragher’s former Liverpool team-mate who is the benchmark when it comes to midfielders.
Gerrard’s lack of a Premier League title is something which his rivals often like to use against him, but Ferdinand did no such thing, putting him on a podium along with Red Devils legends Roy Keane and Paul Scholes.
The debate came during an episode of the Vibe with FIVE podcast, with host Joel Beya visibly stunned. Despite Beya’s animated protests, Ferdinand stood firm on his opinion, leaving Beya literally gobsmacked.
Ferdinand didn’t shy away from elaborating on the choices for his Midfield Mount Rushmore : “They’re the names, I’ve got [Patrick] Vieira, De Bruyne, [Frank] Lampard, Keane, Gerrard, Scholes. They’re my Mount Rushmore, my holy grail midfielders in the Premier League era.”
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He went on to suggest Manchester City’s Rodri might join the elite group in the future. However, he did have to make some tough choices, admitting: “I’m going to say Viera, Lampard and De Bruyne just miss (on my top three). They just miss out, yeah, they just miss out for me.”
Ferdinand then declared his top picks for Premier League midfield maestros, placing Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard above the likes of City’s Belgian superstar. “The other one is Gerrard. Yeah (he’s above Kevin De Bruyne).”
Despite recognising De Bruyne’s prowess, Ferdinand believes that Gerrard was in a league of his own. “Just a player, as a player I love watching De Bruyne and he’s done some great things. Gerrard done things that others…it’s like Roy of the Rovers, no-one’s doing that.”
His assessment wasn’t swayed by their respective trophy cabinets either, asserting firmly: “No, I wouldn’t (be saying different if their honours were reversed). We said who would you have as your best midfielders, who are your all-time Premier League players. I’m just saying who I prefer, that’s who I preferred.”
Ferdinand hailed Gerrard as the ultimate ‘Swiss army knife’ of football, praising his versatility by saying: “Stevie was jack of all trades, he could do everything. He could be the holder, he could be right-back, he could be right-midfield, he could be a number 10, and he could be an eight… All the others, Lampard, De Bruyne and Vieira could all get in there.”
The ex-United defender passionately defended Gerrard against comparisons with De Bruyne, asserting: “(De Bruyne) better than Gerrard? No! De Bruyne’s not better than Gerrard on any day of the week. He’s not. I’m sorry, he’s not. He’s not, he’s not.”
Ferdinand threw down the gauntlet to those who rate De Bruyne above Gerrard, challenging them with: “I can’t have it, I’m sorry. Tell me why, why is he better? I’m not saying it’s a big difference… I’m just saying if you go clip for clip, Gerrard does him.”
Acknowledging De Bruyne’s impressive assist record, Ferdinand still argued that this should not eclipse Gerrard’s talent for tearing apart defences, stating: “Forget titles… (De Bruyne) is the top assist man, I get that. But you can’t say that and totally disregard Gerrard’s ability to open teams up. Ask Suarez, ask Torres.”
He added: “Would they have achieved half of what they achieved if Gerrard wasn’t playing? Goals, you’re talking about goals, you’re talking about creating chances.
“You’re talking like Gerrard was a myth… it’s an outrageous rate of winning (De Bruyne’s Premier League title record), but still… I’m sorry. I love KDB, don’t get me wrong, but I’m putting Gerrard in there. I’m sorry.
“He’s a Liverpool player, he’s a Liverpool player! He’s a Liverpool player, we weren’t mates at England… I’m not doing mates, if it was Mates FC, Frank (Lampard) would be in there because I grew up with him..
“I’m not saying it’s big. Like if I picked any of the other three in there, there’s a fair argument for all of them. Lampard’s the best goalscoring midfielder the Premier League’s ever seen. He has to be disappointed not to be in there. But I’m choosing who I would pay to watch and who I’d want in my team.”
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