Steven Gerrard has named Wayne Rooney as the best England player he ever shared a dressing room with, despite playing alongside a host of elite talents during his 14-year international career.
The former England captain's prime came in the mid-2000s, when the Three Lions were stacked with world-class names including Frank Lampard, Paul Scholes, Ashley Cole, John Terry and Rio Ferdinand. Asked for his top pick, Gerrard did not hesitate.
Rooney praised as 'monster of a footballer'
Speaking on the Open Goal podcast, the TNT Sports pundit said: "Rooney. Rooney is the best player I played with for England. He [had] everything, [a] monster of a footballer."
Both Premier League legends hail from Liverpool and were team-mates for 11 years in the national team, forming part of the core that consistently fell short of major tournament semi-finals under Sven-Göran Eriksson and Fabio Capello.
Gerrard on the midfield debate
Gerrard also addressed the long-running debate over whether he, Scholes and Lampard could effectively play together in the same midfield. He said: "Well, we're all similar. Scholes is fantastic at controlling a game and tempo, knowing when to quicken it up and knowing when to switch the play and [he's] a phenomenal natural footballer.
"Frank's a runner into the box, who can get a lot of goals. I was probably a little bit of an all-rounder type midfielder, but we're all different. We all had different attributes, but I don't think [those] three can play together. I wouldn't pick [those] three in a three-man midfield."
He added: "No, I think that two out of us three need the right person behind us, I would say, to go and do it. I think if any, it [will] probably be Scholes. He could do it in a Pirlo style or a Steven Davis type in a technical way.
"But, in terms of like a specialist number six for how I like to play, I'd probably prefer a different type of midfielder in there, like a Carrick or a Hargreaves, who are nearly natural at doing that."
England's current form
England's current generation have reached two European Championship finals and two World Cup semi-finals, all ending in disappointment. The Nations League fixture against the Czech Republic on Tuesday follows the Three Lions' 7-0 victory over Croatia in their previous outing.
