He helped Liverpool win their fifth European Cup at Istanbul in 2005 and Steven Gerrard would comfortably claim a starting position for five-time world champions Brazil according to Lucas Leiva.

Kopites will honour the Huyton native at his testimonial match against Olympiacos on Saturday, a fixture you can watch live on this website with an LFC TV Online subscription.

Lucas has shared a midfield with superstars of the calibre of Ronaldinho for the Brazilian national side, but no teammate matches the ability of the Reds' No.8 in the 26-year-old's eyes.

Asked if the Liverpool skipper would fit in with the samba style, Lucas told LFC TV: "Definitely - he would be one of the starters, of course.

"He has been a world-class player for many years. Everyone that speaks about him, and players from Brazil, rate him very highly.

"He's probably the best, I would say the most complete player. I had the chance to play with Ronaldinho and other magic players but Stevie has everything.

"He is able to score goals but he can still defend very well. I think he is the best midfielder I have played with. When I came here very young, I was lucky to be able to watch him a lot and learn.

"It's a different style of play but you can still learn a lot from him, and I'm still learning to be honest."

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Gerrard has now worn the captain's armband for the Reds for a decade, becoming the longest-serving skipper in club history in the process.

Fellow midfielder Lucas has enjoyed the opportunity to study his illustrious colleague at close quarters for six years - and there is a deep level of respect between the two men.

The No.21 continued: "It doesn't matter what you need to do to be able to perform and to win - that's his message every day.

"He has been in difficult moments with injuries, and low points, but he always gets his head down and works really hard to get back. That's what I take from him.

"He does everything he can to be in the right shape and able to perform well - we can see when he doesn't think that he has performed well, he really shows us.

"That means that he is a winner and he wants to win every single time.

"We can see what he has achieved. I was lucky to get the best years of Stevie at the club probably. He has been brilliant during his whole career for Liverpool and it is a well-deserved testimonial.

"But he still has the hunger to train and that's what players should look at. He is what Liverpool is about; a winner with the right mentality.

"That's what the club always tries to look for, players with a winning mentality and a lot of passion for the club."

To mark the Liverpool captain's testimonial this weekend, the Steven Gerrard Foundation is auctioning 630 commemorative LFC shirts to raise money for charity. Click here to find out more.