Ex-Liverpool and Arsenal player Jermaine Pennant spoke to Squawka to build his perfect footballer from former teammates.
Squawka gave Pennant eight different attributes that we believe are all key to a footballer, and building a player in general. These are: left foot, right foot, heading, pace, strength, football brain, skills and mentality.
Pennant also spoke about Hugo Ekitike’s start to the season and whether Liverpool need Alexander Isak.
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Left foot
The best left foot I’ve played with? I’m going to have to go with John Arne Riise. Like a rocket, he could shoot from anywhere. When we did shooting [in training], no finesse, just an absolute wallop.
Right foot
The best right foot I’ve played with? I would go Thierry Henry. No, sorry, I’m going to change to Steven Gerrard. You’ve seen his passing range and what he could do with it. And I’ve got so many, I could go with Xabi Alonso. Oh I’ll go Xabi Alonso.
Heading
Heading ability, I would go Tony Adams.
Pace
Who was the quickest? I think Thierry Henry probably pace wise. Him or Fernando Torres. I’m going to go with Thierry.
Strength
Just for pure strength, I’m going to have to go Sol Campbell. I think his thigh was bigger than my body width! It was just huge. Yeah, he was a strong guy.
Footballing brain
Easy. This one’s easy. Dennis Bergkamp. I probably think he did [mean his goal vs Newcastle United]. He may not have meant it to go that way, but he definitely meant to do that trick. I think he probably tried to chip it over his head rather than go round him. He knew before the ball was on its way, what he was going to do.
Skills
Oh this is a good one. Skills, I’m going to go Henry as well. He did some mad stuff.
Mentality
Oh, Gerrard. Boom. Stevie G mate. That mentality was on a different scale.
Hugo Ekitike’s start at Liverpool
Hugo Ekitike has had a pretty strong start at Liverpool, but we saw that with Darwin Nunez and he didn’t quite end up being that guy. Do you think Ekitike will be the man that can lead Liverpool into future success in that striker role?
Yeah I think you can already see the different between the two, him and Darwin Nunez. You can tell he’s a bit more controlled with the ball, he’s not as erratic and chaotic. And he looks like he’s got a little bit more composure in front of goal. Yes, we saw a good start from Darwin but you can already see on the ball he [Ekitike] looks a lot more controlled and better. So I don’t think we’re going to get a repeat of Darwin Nunez.
But, saying that, I think every Liverpool fan loves Darwin for what he gave. He was passionate, played with his heart on his sleeve, never stopped working hard. And that’s all you can ask for. But when you want someone clinical in front of goal, and being a No.9 for Liverpool, he just wasn’t that man. But I think Ekitike can definitely fill those shoes.
Do Liverpool need Isak?
Another very composed player is Alexander Isak, who Liverpool have been linked with a lot. Do you think Liverpool even need him, given how well Ekitike has started? Do you think they will get him?
I think they will get him. I think it’s too much money for Newcastle to turn away. And after all that’s gone on, I don’t think there are any bridges that are going to get built. I don’t think they’re going to fix things to the way they once were.
So you’re ultimately just throwing £130 million, £140m down the drain and having a player who is not going to play for you. What’s the point in that? No one’s going to benefit from that. And even if he were to reintegrate with the team, you’re getting an unhappy Alexander Isak.
So he’s not going to be playing with a smile on his face. He’s not going to be enjoying it. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter how good you are, if you’re not happy, if you’re not comfortable, that will affect your performance. So I do see it happening.
And should they go for him? Absolutely. Because he’s the best striker, probably in the world at the moment. The best No.9 in the world. You can argue that with (Erling) Haaland. So I think any team would love to have him. And it’s always good to have depth in your squad. We’ve seen over the years how, when you’re in the Champions League and playing multiple cups and you’re fighting on all fronts, it’s good to have squad depth.
Jermaine Pennant was talking to Squawka on behalf of 7bet football betting.