Steven Gerrard is one of the greatest midfielders of all time.The Liverpool legend played 710 times for the club in all competitions, scoring 186 goals and delivering 143 assists.He really could do it all and it's a shame that his consistently world-class efforts for the Reds were not rewarded with a Premier League title.Nevertheless, the current Rangers manager did win major honours during his career and it was his iconic performance in Istanbul that won Liverpool their fifth European Cup.Shortly after Gerrard's 2005 heroics in the Turkish capital against AC Milan, fellow Englishman Peter Crouch joined Rafa Benitez's side from Southampton.It was huge step up for the lanky striker, something the man himself freely admitted on BT Sport while on punditry duty for Liverpool's 3-1 win away at Tottenham.That admission came during a quite brilliant segment in which Crouch explained what it was like training alongside Gerrard.The 39-year-old's words highlight Gerrard's incredible influence behind-the-scenes and his unique winning mentality.

"For me, the best player pretty much every day was Steven Gerrard," Crouch says.

At another point in the video, the former England international adds: "At times I found myself trying to impress Stevie instead of Rafa!"

That's how much of a role model he was to his teammates, a leader of men that always demanded the best from everybody in training.

If they weren't up to the standards set by Gerrard, players would receive what Crouch describes as a "death stare" from the all-action midfielder, which sounds pretty terrifying.

However, he also admits those trademark stares from his former teammate improved his game "tenfold".

It really is a fantastic insight into the mentality of one of the finest footballers the sport has ever seen and after hearing Crouch wax lyrical on live TV, it's perhaps no surprise that Gerrard is thriving as a manager.

Rangers' training sessions are probably pretty darn brutal under his leadership, but that's likely the reason why the blue half of Glasgow are 23 points clear of Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership table.