Although he never managed to win a league title, Steven Gerrard is still widely regarded as one of the Premier League’s greatest ever players - and for good reason.The retired midfielder spent 17 years with Liverpool, scoring 120 goals and providing a further 92 assists in 504 league appearances.He produced countless Man of the Match performances and inspired the Reds to glory in the 2005 Champions League and 2006 FA Cup finals.Gerrard, who went on to win the Scottish Premiership title as Rangers manager and is currently the head coach of Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq, also earned 114 caps for England.Only Peter Shilton, Wayne Rooney and David Beckham have made more appearances for the Three Lions.

What did Sir Alex Ferguson write about Steven Gerrard?

Despite all of Gerrard’s achievements, Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson caused a stir in his controversial 2013 autobiography by writing: “I’m one of the few who felt Gerrard was not a top, top player.”

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It was a surprising admission from Ferguson, whose United sides struggled to deal with Gerrard on occasions.

How did Steven Gerrard response to Ferguson's comments?

Gerrard, who was named in the PFA’s Premier League Team of the Year eight times, was asked what he made of Fergie’s comments during an appearance on The Clare Balding show.

Despite conceding that he was “a bit gutted” to hear Ferguson’s assessment of him, the Anfield hero responded impressively.

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“I went on trial at Manchester United when I was 13 and had a letter off them wanting to sign me on a seven-year deal," he told the BT Sport presenter.

"I’m a huge fan of Alex Ferguson and what he’s done in the game is fantastic, that’s the reason why he’s sold that many copies in the first week.

“I was genuinely a little bit gutted when I read that, the reaction of the papers, when he said I’m not a top, top player. But I won’t lose sleep over it, everyone is entitled to their opinion.

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"He tried to sign me in early 2002/03, he tried to sign me again to play for United, I obviously refused, so I can’t really take it to heart too much. But I’m a bit gutted because I’m a big fan of his."

Watch the clip here...

You have to say, it was the perfect response from Gerrard.

He revealed that Ferguson tried to sign him twice - first when he was a teenager, and the second time in 2002 - but he said no on both occasions.

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This gives the impression that Ferguson’s comment about Gerrard not being a “top, top player” may have been borne out of, dare we say it, a touch of bitterness.

Why would Fergie have tried to sign the midfielder (twice) if he didn’t believe the midfielder was top class?

Where would Gerrard have played at Man Utd in 2002?

If Ferguson's pursuit of Gerrard had been successful back in 2002, Man Utd would have boasted a true embarrassment of riches in the midfield department.

Back then, the Red Devils had their four untouchable midfielders: Roy Keane, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and David Beckham.

They also had the mercurial Juan Sebastian Veron, who joined United for a record-breaking £28.1 million from Lazio in the summer of 2001.

Veron, however, struggled to adapt to the tempo of the Premier League and often reserved his best performances for the Champions League.

Ferguson and Veron

While Ferguson publicly defended Veron on several occasions, the Scot may have privately been tempted by the option of replacing the Argentina international with Gerrard. After all, Veron was eventually offloaded to Chelsea for a cut-price fee in the summer of 2003.

A midfield quartet of Keane, Scholes, Giggs and Beckham with Gerrard playing in the hole behind Ruud van Nistelrooy would have been devastating - domestically and potentially even in Europe, too.

We'll never know for certain but perhaps United would even have successfully fended off Arsenal's Invincibles and Jose Mourinho's Chelsea between 2003-2006 if Gerrard had joined Ferguson's side.

Scholes and Gerrard in action at Old Trafford

That said, there was never any realistic chance of Gerrard leaving Anfield for Old Trafford.

No player has moved directly from Liverpool to Man Utd - or vice-versa - since Phil Chisnall back in 1964.

It would have trumped Sol Campbell's move from Tottenham to Arsenal as the most controversial transfer in Premier League history.

Gary Neville attempted to convince Gerrard to join Man Utd

Speaking years later, United legend Gary Neville revealed how his '30-second' chat with Gerrard went as they briefly discussed a potential shock transfer to the Theatre of Dreams.

"I think there were two or three times it happened with England with me, where I spoke to Alan Shearer during Euro 1996,” Neville explained, per talkSPORT. “I had a conversation with him.

"But I was more junior at that time, so I couldn't have a serious conversation with him.

"Definitely with Wayne Rooney had a little chat, but just again, he's a younger player so you can't put too much pressure on him.

"With Stevie, it was a full on assault. Let's get him out of there. I want him out of there.

Gary Neville with Steven Gerrard

"To be fair, Stevie's answer was, he said: 'My family and me would never be able to go back to Liverpool ever again.'

"It was a very short conversation. He was very loyal to Liverpool fans. Not as loyal I think when [Chelsea’s] John Terry went round to his room.

"I think John Terry got around ten minutes out of him, I got probably around 30 seconds."

Gerrard was close to leaving Liverpool for Chelsea

Indeed, Gerrard was seriously tempted by the idea of joining Mourinho's Chelsea in 2005 after the Blues submitted a then-record £32 million offer.

Gerrard turned down a £100,000-a-week contract offer from Liverpool and told the club he wanted to leave Anfield.

Steven Gerrard in 2005

"This has been the hardest decision I have ever had to make," he told reporters at the time, per BBC Sport. "I fully intended to sign a new contract after the Champions League final, but the events of the past five to six weeks have changed all that.

"I have too much respect for the club and people at it to get involved in a slagging match."

However, Gerrard eventually reversed his decision and ended up staying with the Reds until 2015.