Speaking to the Mirror, the former England midfielder said, "Coaches are control freaks, they want to do everything. If you were Ruud watching that, he is maybe thinking, 'I will take a back seat, I don’t want to get involved in that.' He also has to be involved in the recruitment side of it, signing a centre forward. Or two centre forwards. 'Ruud, who do you think?' I am not sure he would have picked Zirkzee. I am not sure he would have picked Hojlund. Look, there is probably not a plethora of centre forwards out there but you would go consult him, wouldn't you?"