Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Jamie O'Hara has caused a stir by weighing in on the Steven Gerrard versus Frank Lampard debate on Monday morning.Gerrard versus Lampard is one of the fiercest debates in modern football.In the red corner, you've got Gerrard. The Liverpool legend regularly put the team on his back and produced so many virtuoso performances, not least in the 2005 Champions League final.Then in the blue corner there's Lampard. His ability to score goals from midfield was unmatched.O'Hara, though, has no doubt in his mind who the better player was.
'Gerrard was on another level'
Now a presenter on talkSPORT, the 35-year-old declared Gerrard the better player. And in O'Hara's opinion, it's really not close.
O'Hara played against both during his career in the Premier League and on Gerrard, he said: "You couldn't get near the guy. He was a joke!"
"Let's get one thing straight right now," O'Hara said. "Gerrard was on another level as a player.
"Gerrard was unbelievable. You couldn't get near the guy. He was a joke, how good he was.
"He had everything. Pace, could score, tackle, harder than you, fitter than you, more leadership, dragged the team on his own.
"Lampard was brilliant but he was a goalscorer, he was a goalscorer. He'd get in the box. He was almost like a number 10.
"But as an all-round player, Gerrard was the best player by a million miles I ever played against.
"It's not a debate. Not a debate."
talkSPORT's presenters are often accused of overexaggerating their opinions in the interests of engagement, but it's clear that O'Hara fully stands by what he's saying.
Of course, not everyone's going to agree with him. But many fans were taking stock in the fact that he has played against both.
"I think if anyone is fit to comment and give a good account it’s probably someone who played against them both on a number of occasions," wrote Twitter user @AnthBowz.
@gibo2503 added: "I’m not a fan of O’Hara but he’s someone who PLAYED against both.
"Lampard a great goal scorer but Gerrard the better all round player without a doubt."
Nothing like pitting Chelsea and Liverpool fans against each other on a Monday morning.