While the world of football has been paying tribute to Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard there still are a few who are taking a pop at the former England midfielder. One such player is El Hadji Diouf, the Senegalese star played alongside the Liverpool star for a couple of seasons before he was sold to Bolton and he did have a lot of harsh words to share.

Les doutes d’El-Hadji Diouf sur le #BallonDor : “Si Zidane avait joué pour l’Algérie, aurait-il été Ballon d’Or ?” #LeVestiaire cc @DZfoot pic.twitter.com/jRoLp4tZG3

— SFR Sport (@SFR_Sport) November 25, 2016

Speaking to SFR Sport, he was quoted as saying:

“When I arrived, I showed him that he was nothing.

“I asked him, ‘What great competition have you played and where do people remember you?’ It wasn’t [Zinedine] Zidane.

“The player, I respect him. He’s a great player. But the man and the person not. I let him know.

“For me, he was a player like everyone else. He had to keep up well, and play as he knew how to do, but don’t go to the coach to report what happens in the dressing room.”

A history of problems between Gerrard and Diouf

This is not the first time Diouf has spoken out about the Liverpool star and they had even faced off in an angry confrontation when Diouf was playing for Blackburn Rovers.

The Senegalese star also stated that it was he who was the bigger star at the club when he joined the Reds and Gerrard had actually asked for his jersey.

“He knows that I don’t mince words,” Diouf added.

“He did not look in my eyes because he was afraid. And he was afraid to speak to me.

“And when I arrived at Liverpool, it was he who asked me for my jersey, not the opposite.”

There really was no need for Diouf to rip into Gerrard once again. It doesn’t really gain him a lot of fans but it does keep him in the news, though.

Support for Mario Balotelli from Diouf

The former Bolton and Blackburn player also shared his views on the treatment meted out to Mario Balotelli. The Italian didn’t really perform all that well for Brendan Rodgers and was sold to Nice at the start of this season by Klopp.

While Balo has also stated that moving to Liverpool was a mistake, Diouf had asked the Italian not to move to the Reds.

“I told him not to go to Liverpool. It wasn’t made for him, that things couldn’t go well with Gerrard, who has never had his talent and then said negative things about him,” he told L’Equipe in September.

Diouf also stated that Gerrard wouldn’t feel all that comfortable if Mario moved to the Reds.

“Gerrard is a jealous man who doesn’t like men of character. Mario is a good person that you should listen to. He’s not a guy who’s going to cause problems in the dressing room.

“There are a lot of things that have been made up about him. People tell tales about him, but they’re often a load of rubbish.”

Whatever the comments from Diouf, it will not take away the legendary status Gerrard has within the hearts of millions of football fans and hopefully, the Englishman can get a role in the Liverpool team soon.