'I knew Steven was set for greatness'
Former Liverpool captain Jamie Redknapp insists he knew Steven Gerrard was set to become a great player for the club from the moment he saw him train with the first team for the first time.
As the Huyton native was creating his pathway to greatness in front of the Kop, Redknapp was the main man in the centre of midfield and a young Gerrard used to clean his boots.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Redknapp said: "My first memories of Steven Gerrard are of him cleaning my boots as an apprentice. He was this young, skinny kid with a cropped haircut but he was a nice boy.
"One day he joined in with the first team at training and I thought 'Ah, that's good, that's nice for him'. But he ran the game!
"Normally when I'd pass to a young player they'd set it back for me to play the pass, but the first time I gave it to him he turned and hit this fantastic long-range ball himself.
"The first time I saw him I knew he'd be Liverpool captain one day. It was always going to be there for him. Some players carry themselves differently, the way they portray themselves around the training ground - you could see the way he was watching, wanting to learn.
"He loved the game and, being a local lad, he knew what it meant to play for Liverpool. Straight away you knew you had one in your midst who would go right to the top."
Redknapp rates Gerrard as the No.1 in the list of great midfielders from the Premier League era.
He said: "Everybody has their favourite midfield player. Some say Paul Scholes, some Roy Keane or Patrick Vieira or Frank Lampard. But the reason I always say Stevie, having played with him and against him, is because he encapsulated what they all do well rolled into one.
"He's got a little bit of everything. He can score goals like Lampard, tackle like Keane.
"My dad summed it up perfectly when he first saw him play. He said: 'He's like Roy of the Rovers, that kid.' That's what Stevie is and that's why they love him at Liverpool.
"He's such a humble guy. He's not arrogant or big-time, he's the same Stevie Gerrard I knew when he was 16."