Arsenal icon Ray Parlour names Liverpool hero as only Prem star worthy of Invincibles spot

Former Arsenal star Ray Parlour has suggested Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard is the only rival Premier League ace deserving of a spot in the Invincibles team from 2003-04.

Arsene Wenger’s iconic side, which included the likes of Parlour, Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Robert Pires and Patrick Vieira, remains the only Premier League team to have gone a whole season without losing a league match. From 38 games they picked up 26 wins and 12 draws, finishing on 90 points and lifting the title.

The squad was full of top-class stars, and its former members are often asked about which players from different eras or different sides might get into the starting eleven.

Indeed, in November, former defender Kolo Toure named winger Bukayo Saka as the only current Gunners man who would be able to compete with the Invincibles attackers.

And Parlour, who made 453 appearances for Arsenal between 1991 and 2004, has now revealed he thinks Gerrard would have taken the team to another level.

“If I had to pick one player, it’s got to be Steven Gerrard,” he said during an appearance on talkSPORT.

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“Bryan Robson was my idol growing up, he could do everything, and Gerrard is the nearest player I’ve seen to him.

“I loved the way Gerrard played as a midfielder.

Steven Gerrard ‘could do everything’

“He would probably play in front of Gilberto Silva. He did a great job that year, he was like the invisible wall, but he probably wouldn’t get in that team over Gerrard.

“Gerrard was such an amazing player, he could do everything. He could pass, score goals, tackle, he could grab a game by the scruff of the neck – like that FA Cup final – and I love players who can do that.

“I’ll always remember Jamie Redknapp saying, ‘We’ve got this young kid coming through the ranks, he’s going to be some player’, and it was Steven Gerrard.

“Jamie got it spot on, because what a player he was. Liverpool were very lucky to have him for all his career, really.”

Gerrard, of course, helped Liverpool to win illustrious trophies such as the Champions League, FA Cup and UEFA Cup during a glittering career at Anfield.

But the Englishman did not manage to help Liverpool win the Prem title. The closest they came was in the 2013-14 season, when his slip against Chelsea helped Manchester City top the table instead.

Parlour was also asked to give his verdict on the Gerrard and Frank Lampard debate, and he gave the nod to the Reds hero.

“For me, Steven Gerrard was one of the best midfielders,” he added. “I know Frank Lampard was excellent for Chelsea and the number of goals he scored was amazing, but Gerrard was more of a complete midfielder.”

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