I saw him many times - I would describe him as a solid journeyman footballer - but clearly he could hold his own in the PL.
My criticisms would be he made too many unforced errors giving the ball away in dangerous positions - I have a recollection of him giving the ball away needlessly in the first PL match at SMS on 25 August 2001 which then led to a Chelsea goal. Also, i don't think he scored enough goals to be seen as a really good midfield player.
However, he has kept going up here and is well regarded - again as a solid player.