Paul Scholes gave refreshingly honest response when asked if he was better than Steven Gerrard

Paul Scholes has been asked if he was a better player than Steven Gerrard – and he made the same point as former Manchester United teammate Wayne Rooney.

Earlier this week, Rooney brought Scholes' name into the equation when he was asked to name the best player he'd played alongside during a trophy-laden 19-year career.

Speaking on The Overlap, brought to you by Sky Bet, the former England international said Cristiano Ronaldo was the best based on ability, but Scholes was definitely up there.

Rooney then went on to compare Scholes, Lampard and Gerrard – a debate that has divided many over the years.

"Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard are all different," he began. "As an all-rounder, Stevie is the best; he can defend, pass the ball, run, tackle, score goals, set pieces. As an all-rounder he’s the best from that point of view.

"From a goalscoring point of view, Lamps [Frank Lampard] was the best. The goals he scored were incredible from midfield and technically he wasn’t at Stevie or Scholesy’s level but there was no-one better at scoring goals from midfield.

"Scholesy, the way he adapted [made him amazing]. He was a striker when he was younger so to go to a ten, then midfield then a deeper midfielder dictating the game, I don’t think either of the other two [Gerrard or Lampard] could dictate a game the way he could."

Rooney added: "All were world-class players. Stevie could come to Manchester United and be a top player and do what Scholes could do. But I don’t think Scholes could do what Stevie did at Liverpool."

Since that interview aired on YouTube, the age-old 'Scholes, Lampard or Gerrard' debate has bubbled to the surface.

In fact, Paul Scholes' previous comments about Gerrard – when he was being interviewed on Rio Ferdinand's FIVE podcast – have once again become a talking point online.

When asked who was the better player out of him and Gerrard, he said: “I can answer that. Gerrard. Gerrard’s a great player."

Scholes added: “We’re different, we’re very different… he’s an athlete. I think he’s more of a match winner. But, he was playing in a team where he probably had to be.

"I was more part of a team. He was more individual I think. I wouldn’t be able to do what he did at Liverpool. Whether he could’ve done it at United, I don’t know. I don’t see why not. But I couldn’t have done what he did at Liverpool, no.”

Former Manchester United forward Teddy Sheringham, who played alongside Scholes for four years between 1997 and 2001, has also given his take on the debate.

“I’m going to go for Steven Gerrard. I know he didn’t win the league as a Liverpool player, but I think he was probably the best single player of his era over a 20-year span," Sheringham said.

“I know the Man United boys won’t be happy with that, but I just felt that he could do everything. He could run, he could tackle, he could score goals, he could head the ball, he could defend. He could do everything."