MIDFIELD MAESTROS: Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard in days gone by. AFP/VNA Photo

Paul Kennedy

It’s a debate that seemed to rage on for as long as Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard played professional football. Which of the two English midfielders was the best?

It will come as no surprise that I’m going to opt for the Liverpool captain, and sure my judgement is tainted because of my loyalties to Liverpool, but I think I can argue my case.

First things first, Lampard was sheer class. Proven by the fact he remains fifth in the list of all-time leading Premier League scorers, above Thierry Henry and Robbie Fowler.

Not bad for a midfielder.

And although his medal haul far outshines Gerrard’s, I’m still picking the former Liverpool captain if I had to choose between the two.

Lampard played with an immense Chelsea side. They were a machine, steamrolling all that came before them.

But while Lampard could line up alongside the likes of John Terry, Didier Drogba and Arjen Robben, Gerrard had to make do a lot of the time with Djimi Traore, Jay Spearing and David N'Gog.

Gerrard was also a man for the moment. When the chips were down and all those around him losing their heads, it was the Liverpool number 8 who would often steady the ship or grab the game by the scruff of the neck and lead his side to glory.

Evidence of this can clearly be seen in the Champions League final in 2005 and the FA Cup final the following year. Both matches you could argue were won single-handedly by Gerrard.

And while, again for the record, I’m not in the slightest putting down Frank’s ability, I just think Gerrard would edge it in a race for who was the best midfielder of that generation.

The legend himself Zinedine Zidane once said: “There was a point when Gerrard was the best midfield player in the world. It is unusual to get complete midfield players who can do everything, but that is what he was.”

So why am I bothering bringing all this up again today I hear you ask?

This week Frank was fired, brutally, by Chelsea, while Gerrard’s Rangers won by a goal to nil away at Hibernian to move 23 points clear of Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premier League.

The careers of the two Englishmen have gone in very opposite directions since hanging up their boots.

Some saw Frank’s sacking as unfair, and yes, maybe the way the Chelsea legend was treated was a little below the belt, there’s no denying the fact the job was way too big for him.

Maybe blinded by fairy dust, Frank chose to return to the club he served so well to manage them last year, and after spending big, the results just didn’t stack up.

Gerrard, on the other hand, has publicly stated that while yes, he would love one day the opportunity to manage his boyhood team, he is nowhere near ready in his managerial journey to take the reins at Anfield just yet.

I think he will become Liverpool manager, but not for at least five years, and only if he continues to develop as a boss.

So what's next for Frank?

Harry Redknapp has suggested his next move could be to take the job of Celtic manager, and once again go head to head with his old foe Frank, but this time in Scotland.

Possibly, but I think that move should have been made a long time ago. Lampard’s managerial career is far from over. He will manage again but it won’t be at a club as big as Chelsea.

The next job he takes he needs to decide with his head, rather than his heart. — VNS