Rio Ferdinand explains why Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard never worked together for England and slams ex-managers
RIO FERDINAND has hit out at England’s tactically naive former managers for failing to get the best out of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard.
Both of the midfielders are members of the elite Three Lions 100 Club and scored 50 international goals between them in a total of 220 appearances.
They, along with former defender Ferdinand, were part of England’s ‘Golden Generation’ that promised much but failed to deliver at a major tournament.
Despite Stevie G and Lamps both enjoying long and distinguished careers, many critics still hold a grudge that they never clicked together for their country when paired in midfield together.
In fact, for years many people claimed that, despite their legendary exploits for Liverpool and Chelsea respectively, they just simply could not play together.
But Ferdinand, who was capped 81 times for his country, is adamant that was not the case.
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And instead he believes it was a succession of managers – such as Sven-Goran Eriksson, Steve McClaren and Fabio Capello – to blame rather than the two players.
Speaking on his latest episode of Vibe with Five, he said: “There was never that person in their teams. Stevie always had like [Xabi) Alonso or someone like that with him, [Gary] McAllister before that.
“Frank had a [Claude] Makele, the short passer and knitting things together, and [Jon Obi] Mikel and that.
“It was never about them not being able to play together. Every game they played together they were a two in midfield.
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“We played two in midfield against another team that had three, four, five players in there to create overloads.
“Three midfielders with a No10 dropping in or a wide man playing narrow, whatever.”
Ferdinand, who also revealed the England eleven he would play at the World Cup in Qatar, added: “I never had an easy game for England. I never came off and thought ‘that was a piece of p***!’
“We were winning sometimes like two, three or 4-0 but for the first half hour it was graft, even like against Albania.
“I remember playing against [Alex] Hleb’s team, Belarus away, graft. Carnage, because we were getting overrun in midfield.
“And it wasn’t about Steve Gerrard and Frank Lampard, Scholes or Beckham or whoever, it was tactically we were way off and playing a rigid 4-4-2 most of the time.
“It don’t matter who you have got in there. On paper, that midfield of [Paul] Scholes, Gerrard, Lampard, [David] Beckham, Owen Hargreaves, [Michael] Carrick – that’s six and I could name more.
“That six, on paper, is with anyone else in the world at the time. Top three or four midfields on paper.
“But when you throw them together like we did then you are at a loss and you are probably tenth or 12th.”