Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard has credited Dietmar Hamann for many of his own brilliant displays during their time at Anfield.
The England international and the German midfielder spent seven years together in the Liverpool midfield, with the Hamann doing the lion's share of defensive duties.
Gerrard, 31, spoke on Thursday at the launch of Hamann's new book: The Didi Man: My Love Affair with Liverpool.
"He was my safety net. The reason people speak about me and how I played with Didi was because he was there," Gerrard said.
"He allowed me to go forward, score and set up goals, and he did all my defensive work and tackling for me."
"At the time we had him, he was in his prime and he was up there with the best holding midfielders in the world."
"There's no Liverpool fan, player or coach at Anfield who wouldn't love him to be 26 or 27 now and still doing his stuff because that's how good he was."
Hamann, 38, made 283 competitive appearances for the Merseyside club, scoring 11 goals, before leaving Anfield in 2006 for Manchester City.