Former Liverpool star Jamie Carragher believes interest from some of the world's best managers means Steven Gerrard stands out above his one-time England colleagues Frank Lampard and Paul Scholes.
Carragher played with all three England midfielders for the national team, as well as spending a number of years with Gerrard at Anfield. Debate often rages over which member of the 'golden generation' was the best player, and the ex-Reds man has no doubts.
Gerrard, like Carragher, spent his entire Premier League career with Liverpool. However, the identity of those bosses who tried to lure him away from Anfield is what makes the difference for Carragher.
"It's not even close, is it?" Carragher told That Peter Crouch Podcast. "People think I don't like Frank Lampard and I don't like Paul Scholes.
"You know when this debate comes up, and I go 'they were amazing players, but it's not even a debate, it's not close."'
"I'll tell you what kills this debate. Alex Ferguson tried to sign him and so did Jose Mourinho. And they had Scholes and Lampard."
Carragher's comments echo those of Crouch himself. The striker, who had a spell at Liverpool as well as playing with Gerrard at international level, argued the midfielder was the best player he had ever played with.
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Gerrard was a target for Jose Mourinho when the Portuguese was in charge of Chelsea, coming close to a move on more than one occasion. "Of course there was a lot of speculation around 2004/2005," Gerrard said in 2017.
"He tried to sign me probably about five or six times during my career. Twice at Chelsea, he tried to sign me at Inter Milan and for Real Madrid as well.
"I could have gone and played for him at different teams but I never did,” Gerrard added. Instead, he racked up more than 700 appearances in Liverpool colours before ending his career in Major League Soccer with LA Galaxy.
The 42-year-old then moved into management, with spells in charge of Rangers and Aston Villa. His spell at Villa Park came to an early end this season, though, with Carragher arguing Gerrard could have no complaints.
"He will be hurt and disappointed, but when the dust settles he will be the first to acknowledge that he understands why the decision was taken," Carragher told The Telegraph in October. "Dean Smith was sacked after losing five consecutive games and it is difficult to argue against Gerrard being judged in the same way as his predecessor, even if there are mitigating circumstances for recent difficulties.
"When Stevie faced his most difficult period, he had to go back to the players he inherited and he could not get a tune out of them. On top of poor results the team did not excite enough, and once you have lost the fans you are only one more poor performance from the end."
