All Whites striker Chris Wood has named the best-ever player he’s played alongside — and it’s not a high profile England star such as Harry Kane or James Vardy.
Instead, Wood has named New Zealand teammate Ryan Nelsen as his number one, in an exclusive interview with the Eurosport television channel.
“A catalyst of a defender, an amazing centre-half. Strong, solid leader. He is always the one that springs to mind straight away because he is an absolute beast.
“He will always stick in my mind as the best player I’ve probably played with,” Wood said.
Wood played alongside England’s Harry Kane when the pair were at Leicester City in 2013, with Kane on loan from Tottenham Hotspur.
“He had all the ability in the world. Left foot, right foot, finishing was a joke. He was class like that. It was then putting it into game situations for him,” he told Eurosport.
Wood believes Kane’s return to Tottenham Hotspur was the key to him becoming “the beast of a scoring machine he is today.”
Wood said he liked working with Kane, a “fantastic player. Great man. Nice humble guy. (He) was a brilliant guy when I knew him at Leicester and he continues to be so.
“It wasn’t clear that he was going to be as good as he is. If not probably the best striker the Premier League has ever seen potentially in the future.”
Other top players to play alongside Wood include former England star James Vardy, Ashley Barnes and current Newcastle United teammates Allan Saint-Maximin and Bruno Guimaraes.
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