Rio Ferdinand stunned as Wayne Rooney hails former Everton player as one of his top teammates

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Rio Ferdinand could not believe the former Everton player who Wayne Rooney has named as one of the best he’s played with.

There have been some real greats to come and go over the years at Everton, and Rooney turned out to become an England legend.

Having come through the ranks at Finch Farm, the academy graduate went on to achieve just about all there is in domestic football.

Rooney has admitted he did not enjoy playing against Everton when he departed Goodison Park for Manchester United.

However, the 39-year-old has plenty of fond memories from his time with the Toffees.

Duncan Ferguson was Rooney’s Everton hero when he was creeping into the senior side as a youngster.

But Rooney has now admitted there is another player who he will never forget from his time at Everton.

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Wayne Rooney stuns Rio Ferdinand with praise for former Everton midfielder

David Moyes has been criticised for his treatment of Rooney during the forward’s first stint at the club.

But it seems as if there were plenty of characters in the Everton dressing room, who were there to keep Rooney in check.

Speaking on Rio Ferdinand’s YouTube channel, Rooney named former Everton midfielder Thomas Gravesen in his ultimate five-a-side team.

“Tommy Gravesen, five a side maybe. Can’t get the ball off him, he scores goals, he can tackle,” Rooney said.

“Wow, I did not see him coming,” Ferdinand replied.

“He was mad, he liked to portray himself as a hard man, but he actually wasn’t,” Rooney added.

Gravesen and Rooney were troublemakers at Everton training. So, it is no wonder the pair got on so well.

However, Gravesen did the business on the pitch and earned himself a stunning move to Real Madrid, albeit for it not to work out in the Spanish capital.

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What Ronaldo once said about Thomas Gravesen

There were certainly some characters back in the early 2000s at Finch Farm, and Gravesen would probably take the prize for the wildest character at the club.

His move to Real Madrid did not work out, with Ronaldo having previously had some brutal words to say about the former Denmark international.

Speaking to former Brazil striker Romario, Ronaldo admitted Gravesen was actually one of the worst players he’d played with.

“There was one at Real Madrid who was a joke… Gravesen,” said the Brazilian legend.

“He was a Danish midfielder. He was a really cool guy, good guy. But in football he was very bad, he scored and he beat the hell out of people.”