Ahead of the 2001 FA Cup final between Liverpool and Arsenal, Steven Gerrard described it as an honour to be on the same pitch as the Gunners’ powerful midfielder Patrick Vieira. The Frenchman was the gold standard for other midfielders to aspire, reckoned Gerrard.
So there is a neat symmetry about Vieira now telling skysports.com that he regards Gerrard as the best midfielder in the world today.
Ironically, Gerrard has recently been criticised for failing to reproduce his outstanding club form in an England shirt, and the Scouse idol could even be demoted to the substitutes' bench tomorrow night when England take on Belarus in their World Cup qualifier in Minsk.
But as far as Vieira, now at Internazionale in Milan, is concerned, 28-year-old Gerrard is one of the world’s greatest.
"The best midfielder I would say is Steven Gerrard. I really rate him as a player and as a man. I think he is still one of the best," Vieira said at an event run by Ford's Feel Football debate website www.feelfootball.com.
And asked who would one day rival Gerrard as one of the best midfielders, Vieira cited his former Arsenal team-mate, Cesc Fabregas.
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