James Ward-Prowse names his toughest opponent out of Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard… and he only played 30 minutes against his choice

Nottingham Forest midfielder James Ward-Prowse has named the toughest opponent he has faced. 

Ward-Prowse has played in the Premier League throughout the entirety of his career, making 382 appearances in the top flight since 2012. 

The 29-year-old has faced midfielder greats such as Frank lampard, Steven Gerrard, Kevin De Bruyne and Yaya Toure. 

However, on Forest’s TikTok account Ward-Prowse named Manchester United legend Scholes as his toughest opponent. 

But as it turns out the England international came up against Scholes for just 30 minutes while playing for Southampton. 

The encounter happened in September 2012 when the Saints hosted United in their season back in the Premier League. 

Ward-Prowse, 17 at the time, was partnered in midfielder by Morgan Schneiderlin and came up against a midfield duo of Michael Carrick and Tom Cleverley. 

Goals from Rickie Lambert Schneiderlin gave Southampton a 2-1 lead before Scholes, who had just come out of retirement aged 37, came off the bench to replace Cleverley in the 61st minute. 

Robin Van Persie put United level in the 87th minute and struck again in the second minute of injury-time to seal a dramatic 3-2 victory for his side. 

Ward-Prowse joined Forest on a season-long loan on deadline day after falling down the pecking order at West Ha,   

The England international said: ‘It feels amazing. It has been a crazy few days. I’m delighted to be here. When I knew I had the opportunity to come and join the club, and show what I can do, I thought it was a fantastic opportunity.

‘My position changed and I had the opportunity to play football. It’s always a tough decision – there are a lot of things to take into consideration – but, as soon as I knew Nottingham Forest were there for me, it was a chance to come and show people what I’m about.

‘I’m looking forward to just cracking on now and starting my career here.’