Benitez: Gerrard was better than Ronaldo and Eto'o

Rafael Benitez has named Steven Gerrard as the best player he ever coached, ranking the former Liverpool captain above the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Samuel Eto'o and Karim Benzema.

Benitez's verdict appears in a newly released book, Liverpool's Greatest: A Celebration of 100 Reds Stars, published after Gerrard was voted Liverpool's Greatest player in a club poll of fans, former players and journalists earlier this year.

"When I was in Real Madrid, they were asking me who is the best player I have coached, and I said Steven Gerrard," Benitez states in the book. "He was a complete player that needed to understand a little bit more the game, the tempo of the game."

Benitez described how Gerrard evolved tactically during their time together at Anfield. The Spaniard noted that the signing of Fernando Torres in 2007 proved a turning point, allowing Gerrard to operate as a No.10 and combine his goalscoring with creative play.

"He was playing as a No.10. He didn't like it at the beginning but after, with Torres up front, he was quite good because he could get into the box and score goals, and at the same time he could pass the ball to Fernando," Benitez said.

On Gerrard's leadership qualities, Benitez added: "He's not very vocal; Carra was the one that was always talking. But he was a leader by example. He was the best player I have been coaching. I had Eto'o, Cristiano, Benzema – but he was more complete than all of them."

Gerrard captained Liverpool to Champions League glory in 2005 and scored twice in the 2006 FA Cup final win over West Ham United. He made 710 appearances for the club across a 17-year senior career, scoring 186 goals and winning eight major honours.

Benitez managed Liverpool between 2004 and 2010, also winning trophies with Valencia, Internazionale, Chelsea, Napoli and Newcastle United during his career.