“It was a disgrace he didn’t win European Footballer of the Year after Istanbul in 2005 and, for me, he will be regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time when he finishes.” - Henry
“What I have always liked of Steven is that on the pitch he was very quiet, but was capable of inspiring all his teammates with great strength, not so much with words. The real example – and that is what I’ve learned from players like Steven and Franco Baresi – is to do rather than talk.
"And he was indeed one who did a lot and since he also had great talent, he was easy to follow. His story is one of those stories to be told, one of those fairytales, to be narrated to your children and grandchildren.” - Maldini
“In my opinion he’s in the top three midfielders in the world, maybe the best right now. I heard what Alex Ferguson said about him being better than me. He’s probably right. Gerrard is England’s best player and he single-handedly got Liverpool into the Champions League.
"He is the complete player. He can score, he has a great final ball, he can tackle and he drives his team forward. He is a winner on the pitch, which is why I really admire him.” - Vieira
“Steven Gerrard would be the captain of my World XI dream team. Gerrard is a complete player because he can play in every position and can do everything with a football at any time in a game. He’s a player who scores goals, who builds the play, he’s a sensational player.” - Totti
"While at Milan he Ancelotti came to me and said, 'I want to sign Steven Gerrard to play next to you in midfield – what do you think?' Without any hesitation I told him, 'Do it – go and sign him.' At this stage he was probably the most complete midfield player in Europe, of course I wanted to partner him.
"I remember asking Carlo a few weeks later how it was going, and he told me Gerrard had given a very firm no, that his bond with Liverpool was unbreakable. At the time Milan were the champions of Europe and probably had the best team in the world – it says a lot about Gerrard’s loyalty." - Pirlo
"For me, and I have always said this, he will be regarded as one of the greatest midfielders ever when he finishes his career. No doubt." - Kaka