'I played against Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo but Liverpool flop was my toughest opponent'

Former Premier League goalkeeper Asmir Begovic, who played more than 250 games in the English top flight, has named Liverpool flop Andy Carroll as a surprise pick for toughest-ever opponent .

In addition to playing for the likes of Chelsea, Stoke, Bournemouth and Everton in the Premier League , Begovic also turned out in the Champions League and Europa League and played for AC Milan and Qarabag. In that time, he faced Lionel Messi , Cristiano Ronaldo , Luis Suarez and many more.

Nevertheless, Begovic says Carroll was the hardest to face. Carroll, who now plays in the second tier in France with Amiens, scored 11 goals in 58 games for Liverpool between 2011 and 2012 having arrived from Newcastle United for a fee of $45m (£35m/€41m).

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"You’ve got the usual suspects," 37-year-old Begovic — who is now a free agent following a spell in the Championship with QPR — told talkSPORT when asked about his most difficult opponent. "I’ve played against some of the best strikers — especially in Premier League history. Fernando Torres , Sergio Aguero, Luis Suarez... those sorts of players that can do everything.

"But actually from a physical point of view, the likes of Andy Carroll . When a high ball comes and you’re challenging with them, no matter if you’ve got your hands there, they are such big guys. A great spring, they were always very difficult and very much a handful. Not just for myself, but also for the defenders."

Liverpool.com says: Carroll was a handful for defenders at his best but he was playing in the wrong era. A modern Liverpool team was not the right environment for him to thrive. He was excellent at his best but his attributes are simply not aligned with what you need at the elite level of the game these days.