Liverpool icon Phil Thompson has opened up about the toughest players he's played alongside in his career.
The ex-Reds defender earned 42 caps for England, including appearances at the 1982 World Cup and Euro 1980. And he has reminisced about his glory days with Liverpool in the 70s and 80s on Jeff Stelling's Football's Greatest podcast.
During the chat with his former Sky Sports' Soccer Saturday mate, Thompson was quizzed on the players he held in the highest regard from his playing era, reports the Daily Star. "There was loads of big players when I started and came into the team because at 18, I'm looking around and these are still the guys I was watching from the terraces," revealed the Anfield legend.
"Tommy Smith's there, oh my god, I always believed Tommy Smith was the greatest leader and captain Liverpool's ever had and I've seen lots, even modern day. This fella drove our team on, pushed our team on.
"He could be having a nightmare and this is where leadership comes in, he could be having a rotten game but he didn't shrink. He made sure to keep us on our toes, he'd be hitting 50-yard balls out to Steve Heighway, never reach him and going into the Kemlyn Road Stand and you'd go 'unlucky Tom'."
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Thompson opened up about another Liverpool legend, Emlyn Hughes, who succeeded Smith as captain after voicing his concerns to Bill Shankly about being omitted from the squad for a match. "Emlyn took over and he was a great leader, demanding by the way he played and with his passion," Thompson said.
The Liverpool legend opened up about the hardest players he played alongside (Football's Greatest With Jeff Stelling/Youtube)He then addressed the backlash he received after calling Smith 'Liverpool's greatest ever captain'. "When Tommy passed, I put something on Liverpool's greatest ever captain, people were berating me saying 'what about Emlyn' I wasn't decrying Emlyn but I was asked as my greatest ever captain because of those great memories, Tommy was a proper leader."
Stelling brought up Terry Butcher as one of the toughest players from Thompson's era, a sentiment with which the Anfield hero wholeheartedly concurred.
He added: "Absolutely, he had it in him [being a leader] and I could see this young player who was developing with this young Ipswich side, him and Russell Osman playing sort of centre-backs. But you had this guy who was like 6'4 who was a colossus and who quite quickly came into the team."
Reflecting on past conversations, Thompson recalled advising Ron Greenwood on his ideal defensive partner for the World Cup. "As I said to you before, Ron Greenwood asked me who would be your best partner to go the World Cup and it had to be Terry who was this up-and-coming leader if you want. I don't think he was captain then of Ipswich because you probably had Mickey Mills there.
"But you could see it in him and he could play, he could cover the ground but he was hard as nails, and it's not just cause of blood pouring down his face, that doesn't make you hard, it's how committed you are and it's not just one game, it's game after game."
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