Raheem Sterling is 'world class' and England's' 'most effective player' beam Ferdinand and Lampard after Ukraine win

ENGLAND hero Raheem Sterling has been branded 'world class' and described as the team's 'most effective player'.

The 26-year-old put in another tremendous display for Gareth Southgate's side in their 4-0 victory against Ukraine at Euro 2020.

Speaking after England's quarter-final win, BBC Sport pundits Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard were full of praise for Sterling.

Ex-Chelsea manager Lampard said: "He’s excellent, I love him as a player.

"He's had a dip in form, and he’ll admit that, but what we're seeing now is the player we've seen for the last three years.

"If I'm talking to a young, wannabe winger now who wants to play, he's an example on the pitch and off the pitch.

"He's had tough times, but now he's coming through it and he looks like a man.

"He's just a world-class player."

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Sterling has enjoyed an impressive five seasons under Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, scoring 72 goals in 164 Premier League appearances.

During that time he's won three Prem titles at the Etihad and played in a Champions League final.

Sterling's been arguably England's best player at the Euros, scoring three goals and picking up Uefa's Star of the Match award in the win against Croatia.

Former Manchester United skipper Ferdinand added: "He's undoubtedly been our best player at this tournament, our most effective player.

"There's a steeliness about him, he mentioned in that VT [before the game] there that he's had criticism during his career, he's always answered the criticism.

"He's very single-minded, he's focused, he thinks about, not just the pitch, but there’s other things that come into play.

"The mentality, the understanding of what he needs to do off the pitch in terms of preparation and recovery, the detail he goes into to make sure he plays and performs at this level continuously."

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