Yaya Toure is one of the many players who was lucky to play against Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard.
The trident of greats are considered the three greatest midfielders England has ever produced.
Yaya Toure had the chance to test himself against Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard — who all must have posed different challenges for the legendary Ivorian.
Toure might have faced much more of a physical battle with both Gerrard and Lampard while Scholes would have put his positional sense and defensive abilities to the test — as he was perhaps the best deep-lying playmaker out of all.
- READ MORE: Who Pep Guardiola named as his ‘favourite’ out of Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Paul Scholes
Yaya Toure claims Paul Scholes was better than Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard
Considering how dominant Yaya Toure was during his time at Manchester City, his feedback is more than credible.
After all, the three-time Premier League winner has played against some of the greatest midfielders of all time, from Luka Modric to Bastian Schweinsteiger and many more.
When asked which players are the three best midfielders in Premier League history in his eyes, Yaya Toure initially named Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Patrick Vieira.
Toure told Rio Ferdinand Presents: “Top three best midfielders, of course, was Gerrard, Lampard, Vieira. Those three were amazing.”
But when pressed for an answer about which one was the best, Yaya Toure named Paul Scholes and ranked him above Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Patrick Vieira: “Number one…Scholes. This little man, man, if I can say that.”
Yaya Toure added: “I played against him, I faced at him at that age, 34, 35, something like that at United. He was a great player, you know. Because Scholesy, Lampard, Gerrard, Vieira, those four, wow, they were good.”
Yaya Toure’s record against Scholes, Gerrard and Lampard
Even Robin van Persie sang Paul Scholes’ praises as an incredible trainer and it speaks volumes to the legacy he has left behind that such iconic players hold him in such esteem.
Even current players such as Danny Welbeck acknolweged Scholes’ genius when reflecting on playing against him during his time at Manchester United.
Yaya Toure had the chance to compete against Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard and here is his record playing against all three icons.
| YAYA TOURE’S RECORD | PAUL SCHOLES | STEVEN GERRARD | FRANK LAMPARD |
| APPEARANCES | 7 | 5 | 8 |
| WINS | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| DRAWS | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| LOSSES | 2 | 1 | 3 |
Toure won more games against Scholes and Gerrard (three) but his record against Lampard is level as both players ended up on the winning side against each other thrice.
