Rio Ferdinand gives his opinion on the Gerrard vs Lampard vs Scholes debate

Paul Scholes, in the opinion of Rio Ferdinand, was a superior player to both Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard.

The former central defender spent 11 years at Manchester United with Scholes and played with all three players at the international level.

Out of the three, Ferdinand said Scholes was the most pleasurable to play with, complimenting his ability to both command and determine a game.

He told The Obi One Podcast: “It’s hard isn’t it.

“The one I enjoyed playing with the most was Scholesy. I could give the ball to Scholesy and shout a name. He wouldn’t look, but still be able to find them.

“He would do crazy stuff and even opposing players were going to me ‘does he do this every day?’.”

“It was like we were at the cinema watching someone perform. What I loved about him is he could dictate a game, decide a game and he got other people playing better.

“So those elements are where you think wow! He would never be ruffled in any situation. I thought he was a genius.”

Ferdinand is one of the few players to have played with all three players and that is why his opinion holds weight.

Gerrard and Lampard have been great ambassadors of the game and won numerous trophies in their careers too, but the ability of Scholes to dictate and run the speed of the game is something they could not match.

Together, Ferdinand and Scholes had enormous success at Old Trafford, taking home six Premier League medals and a Champions League medal.