Steven Gerrard suggests defender Arsenal sold for just £5m was better than Rio Ferdinand

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Arsenal have been lucky enough to have some of the greatest players in Premier League history over the years.

Indeed, Thierry Henry is an all-time great, while Dennis Bergkamp is a legend too.

On top of that, Patrick Vieira is another iconic figure in Premier League history.

Arsenal fans aren’t necessarily too fond of Ashley Cole these days, but it mustn’t be forgotten that he was also one of the Premier League’s best during his time at Arsenal.

Cole is a bona fide legend, and when taking part in a TikTok challenge for Shoot For Love, Steven Gerrard has made an interesting claim about the left-back.

Steven Gerrard compares Ashley Cole to great defenders

Gerrard was asked to take part in a challenge where he pitted numerous defensive legends against one another.

The pundit was asked to choose between some absolute greats of the game such as Alessandro Nesta, Rio Ferdinand, Sol Campbell, and, Ashley Cole.

Interestingly, despite so much competition, Gerrard picked Cole ahead of numerous legends of the game.

Of course, Gerrard knows Cole very well having played against him on umpteen occasions during his career as well as being his teammate for England.

Cole would leave Arsenal for Chelsea in a deal worth £5m in 2006, and while his Arsenal legacy was tarnished at that point, he’s still one of the Gunners’ great defenders.

Steven Gerrard’s record alongside Ashley Cole

Gerrard knows first-hand just how good Cole was having played with him for England for over a decade.

Indeed, these two were stalwarts of the so-called Golden Generation for the Three Lions, and while they failed to win any major trophies for England, they had a great record together.

Recently, left-back is something of a problem position for England, but with Myles Lewis-Skelly emerging as a star at Arsenal in that role, Thomas Tuchel may well have the best English left-back since Cole on his hands.