The Paul Scholes vs Steven Gerrard vs Frank Lampard debate is one of the most hotly contested in English football.
While it may never take on the global appeal of the Cristiano Ronaldo vs Lionel Messi argument, there's no denying that it continues to captivate football fans years after they hung up their boots.
Besides, it's easy to forget that Gerrard and Lampard essentially closed the book on the debate when they called time on their spells in the MLS with LA Galaxy and New York City FC in 2016.
Gerrard vs Lampard vs Scholes debate
However, just because the data and history books have been finalised on the matter for over half a decade now, it doesn't mean that fans have reached a conclusion regarding which player is best.
It's only natural that the debate would still rage on all these years later when all three midfielders are undoubtedly legends and backed by Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea fans respectively.
So, bearing all that in mind, we would never be so brazen as to claim that we can put the debate to bed after so long, but we can offer you a perspective into the back and forth through a different lens.
Liverpool 0-0 Arsenal Match Reaction (Football Terrace)
EA Sports and FIFA 22
Step forth, FIFA 22. While you might roll your eyes at the prospect of a video game being used, remember that EA Sports' ratings system is one of the biggest objective rankings of players around.
The simple fact of the matter is that EA not only have to award footballers an overall rating out of 100, but they also have to curate the player's overall talents through a series of in-game statistics.
As such, with Gerrard, Lampard and Scholes all featuring in the game as ICON cards, we can study how they compare for each and every aspect of their game, according to the boffins over at EA.
Gerrard vs Lampard vs Scholes on FIFA 22
And using Futhead's comparison tool to contrast Gerrard, Lampard and Scholes' mid-range ICON cards - in the absence of their hitherto unavailable prime versions - allows us to achieve this.
So, without further ado, be sure to check out how FIFA 22 answers the Scholes vs Gerrard vs Lampard by checking out who has the highest rating for each in-game attribute down below:
Acceleration: Steven Gerrard (78)
Sprint Speed: Steven Gerrard (81)
Positioning: Paul Scholes (91)
Finishing: Frank Lampard (88)
Shot Power: Paul Scholes (92)
Long Shots: Paul Scholes (93)
Volleys: Paul Scholes and Steven Gerrard (86)
Penalties: Frank Lampard (89)
Vision: Paul Scholes (92)
Crossing: Paul Scholes (87)
Free-kick accuracy: Frank Lampard (84)
Short passing: Paul Scholes (92)
Long passing: Steven Gerrard (93)
Curve: Steven Gerrard (85)
Agility: Steven Gerrard (75)
Balance: Paul Scholes (88)
Reactions: Paul Scholes (90)
Ball control: Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard (90)
Dribbling: Frank Lampard (84)
Composure: Frank Lampard (90)
Interceptions: Paul Scholes (81)
Heading accuracy: Paul Scholes (80)
Defensive awareness: Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard (73)
Standing tackle: Steven Gerrard (78)
Sliding tackle: Steven Gerrard (75)
Jumping: Paul Scholes (80)
Stamina: Paul Scholes (92)
Strength: Frank Lampard (75)
Aggression: Paul Scholes (89)
Final scores
1. Paul Scholes - 13.5
2. Steven Gerrard - 8.5
3. Frank Lampard - 7
Scholes gets the nod
Well, well, well, it seems as though FIFA 22 considers Scholes' mid-range ICON card to be a more complete player than Gerrard and Lampard's iterations if nothing else.
It's news that will light up the eyes of United fans with many of them believing that Scholes doesn't get the respect he deserves just because his goal and assists statistics are comparatively low.
But make no mistake that Scholes is one of the most talented footballers in history with countless of his contemporaries vouching for the fact regardless of whether or not FIFA 22 feels the same.
That being said, in the interest of balance, it is worth noting that Scholes and Gerrard actually drew 10.5-10.5 when their prime ICON cards were compared on FIFA 21 with Lampard trailing on 7.
So, who knows, perhaps the moral of the story here is that Gerrard had a prime of tantamount quality to Scholes, but that it was the United player who had the edge overall. Interesting stuff.
