Virgil van Dijk named Rio Ferdinand as the greatest Premier League defender in an interview with the former Manchester United player.
The Liverpool star is among the best defenders to grace England’s top flight over the past 30 years. His arrival at Anfield proved to be the catalyst for their recent success and he’s been key to their domestic and European success.
He was pushed to select his top five players in his position – but did not name himself. He said on Rio Ferdinand’s Between The Lines: “I can’t do it (put myself in), but I hopefully I’ll be in this top five one day.”
Ferdinand came out on top in the eyes of the Dutchman, after his trophy-laden period at Old Trafford. As a youngster he rose to prominence at West Ham United and Leeds, breaking transfer records.
Vincent Kompany, who is a symbol of their success during the past decade, was named in second. The Belgian won the league at the Etihad under three different coaches with his fourth title coming thanks to a long range striker against Leicester City in May 2019.
Van Dijk named his compatriot Jaap Stam in third. The Dutchman was part of United’s 1999 treble winning team having moved to Old Trafford as a relative unknown. He left the club in the early 2000s and went on to enjoy more success in Italy.
John Terry and Sami Hyypia round out the top five. The Chelsea legend is the club’s greatest ever player and remained a top performer for close to two decades. Hyypia meanwhile is the only man not to win the title in Van Dijk’s top five, but he claimed he was “underrated”.
Ferdinand commented on his decision to omit Tony Adams, to which the Liverpool player replied: “I can’t to be honest, I never saw him play. I’ve seen a few goals, when he scored the goal when they became champions. I know how big of a legend he is for Arsenal.”
Van Dijk’s top five Premier League centre-backs
1. Rio Ferdinand
“I think you could play in the modern era, back in the say you were so important for that United team. all the England centre-backs looked up to you. I think you were an icon as a defender. Also, the way you played, the presence is a very important thing. Be good on the ball without the ball, you tackle a little bit more than I do.”
2. Vincent Kompany
“Similar, a fantastic captain, good on the ball, good without the ball. Scored important goals during his City career. Scored a very important one against Leicester when we almost won the league. Great guy and he was outstanding.”
3. Jaap Stam
“I have to put my Dutchman in of course. For me, he was the man at the back. with the national team I always thought he would be 2.5 metres. It was his presence, his career in general has been outstanding. His time at United but also in Italy with Milan.”
4. John Terry
“He achieved so much – I think he has the record for clean sheets. Also one of the centre-backs you look at for where you want to be as a youngster.”
5. Sami Hyypia
“I’m going to put Hyypia, you know why – because he’s a Liverpool legend. He was underrated in my opinion. Very good player, good on the ball. So important for the club and in an important period.”
