1992 - 2024: 15 Greatest Centrebacks of the PL era? (numerical order please)

Fortitude

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The active all-time greats thread has a Van Dijk discussion in it which made me wonder what the update of this thread would look like. I did this once before, in 2016, but a lot of time has passed since then, and I feel rather than bump that thread, it's best to start anew. There are a number of CB's who hadn't even featured in the PL then who have performed to a standard that will have shifted the natural order of things.

I feel the perception of defending has changed a lot - what used to carry merit is not looked at with as much fondness through the lens of the modern game. Perhaps your list will only consider the centrebacks in respect to what they did in their own era, but I'm sure some will look at it in a rounded way, which considers effectiveness in the contemporary era.

The #1 slot is, I think assured, but even that mightn't be so.

How does your list look? Who are your most highly rated CB's of the PL era, and are you looking at them through the lens of what they did in their own time, or how you perceive their attributes overall?

Original thread here: @Invictus @Gio @paulscholes18 @#07 you guys all had lists in that thread. Revisions? :angel:
 
For me, it is between Rio Ferdinand, Sol Campbell & JT, but I am edging towards Rio, and I would not mind if the other 2 are considered best ever CB.

Next tier is Stam, Vidic & VVD.
 
Tier 1 : Ferdinand, Terry, Vidic, Stam

Tier 2 : Van Dijk, Carvalho, Kompany, Campbell, Toure, Adams

Tier 3 : Stones, Dias, Cahill, Bruce
 
Probably Terry then Campbell
Let’s see. VVD then Adams or Kompany?
Oh forgot then Ferdinand , Pallister, Vidic, and I guess Stam.
Toure, Carvalho, Hyypia, Carragher, King, Bruce
 
1. Rio
2. Terry
3. Adams
4. VVD
5. Kompany
6. Vidic
7. Campbell
8. Carvalho
9. Stam
10. Desailly
11. Bruce
12. Toure
13. Pallister
14. Stones
15. Carragher
 
1 - Adams
2 - Rio
3 - Stam
4 - Campbell
5 - Terry
6 - Vidic
7 - Kompany
8 - VVD
9 - Carvalho
10 - Desailly
11 - Bruce
12 - Hypia
13 - Pallister
14 - Carragher
15 - Radebe

Honourable mentions to Woodgate and King and could have been top 10 if but for injuries.
 
1. Kompany
2. Sakho
3. Agger
4. Caragher
Etc.
 
1. Virgil Van Dijk
2. Some other people
 
1. Rio Ferdinand
2. John Terry
3. Jaap Stam
4. Vincent Kompany
5. Sol Campbell
6. Nemanja Vidic
7. Virgil Van Dijk
8. Tony Adams
9. Ricardo Carvalho
10. Marcel Desailly
11. Ruben Dias
12. Ledley King
13. Gary Pallister
14. Sami Hyypia
15. John Stones

Shutout to Kolo Toure, Sylvian Distan, Lebouf and Matip.

Also Saliba will be in the top 3-5 within 3 years.
 
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Kompany is a bit overrated tbh.

10/11 was probably his best individual season and Vidic was still the best CB in the league then.
 
Skills said:
Kompany is a bit overrated tbh.

10/11 was probably his best individual season and Vidic was still the best CB in the league then.
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I don’t know about best individual seasons but I think his PL career has been outstanding.
Won the title under 3 different managers, the header in the title decider at the Etihad in 2012, the goal against Leicester, his longevity, leadership, all those things count for a lot imo, on top of being a top class defender.

Otherwise I would have Van Dijk in the top 2 based on his two or three exceptional years.
 
LankyHoggie said:
I don’t know about best individual seasons but I think his PL career has been outstanding.
Won the title under 3 different managers, the header in the title decider at the Etihad in 2012, the goal against Leicester, his longevity, leadership, all those things count for a lot imo, on top of being a top class defender.

Otherwise I would have Van Dijk in the top 2 based on his two or three exceptional years.
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He was barely ever world class though, he was a tier below some of the other players mentioned. It was a weak era of the PL and a lack of other CB candidates.
 
1. Vidic
2. Van Dijk
3. Terry
4. Ferdinand
5. Stam
6. Adams
7. Campbell
8. Kompany
9. Carvalho
10. Dias
11. Desailly
12. McGrath
13. Stones
14. Carragher
15. Vertonghen
 
Cant we make threads like this more fun like, 'excluding center backs who played for one of the top 6'..

Havent we had enough of the RIO vs Terry vs VVD like discussions?
 
1. Rio
2. Terry
3. Adams
4. Carvalho
5. Desailly
6. Stam
7. Van Dijk
8. Campbell
9. Vidic
10. McGrath
11. Kompany
12. Dias
13. Stones
14. King
15. Pallister
 
1. Stam
2. Vidic
3. Rio
4.Adams
5. VVD
6. Carvalho
7. Terry
8. Campbell
9. Hyypia
10. Bruce
11. Pallister
12. Kompany
13. Radebe
14. Dias
15. King
 
Fortitude said:
The active all-time greats thread has a Van Dijk discussion in it which made me wonder what the update of this thread would look like. I did this once before, in 2016, but a lot of time has passed since then, and I feel rather than bump that thread, it's best to start anew. There are a number of CB's who hadn't even featured in the PL then who have performed to a standard that will have shifted the natural order of things.

I feel the perception of defending has changed a lot - what used to carry merit is not looked at with as much fondness through the lens of the modern game. Perhaps your list will only consider the centrebacks in respect to what they did in their own era, but I'm sure some will look at it in a rounded way, which considers effectiveness in the contemporary era.

The #1 slot is, I think assured, but even that mightn't be so.

How does your list look? Who are your most highly rated CB's of the PL era, and are you looking at them through the lens of what they did in their own time, or how you perceive their attributes overall?

Original thread here: @Invictus @Gio @paulscholes18 @#07 you guys all had lists in that thread. Revisions? :angel:
Click to expand...

I find it hard to want to fundamentally re-evaluate my original list. The reason for that is because the requirements of central defenders have shifted a lot since my original post. I don't think we are comparing apples and apples any longer.

For example, Van Dijk is massively talked up today. With good reason. In the current game he stands out. However, in the current game centre-backs very rarely come up against one, nevermind two, central strikers of absolute top quality in a game.

Players like Sol Campbell and Rio Ferdinand would regularly be lining up against lethal strikers. Forwards like Alan Shearer, Ruud Van Nistlerooy, Thierry Henry and Didier Drogba simply do not exist in today's Premier League. There are very few #9's, nevermind ones who run the channel, get really physical with defenders, have great in the box movement and force defenders to contest every ball.

I have seen very few defenders emerge over the last 10 years that I think should be considered all time greats. Their challenge is much, much different. Its more about ensuring that the inside forwards, who for the most part get the goals, aren't able to drift into space. The much mocked Van Dijk bluetooth defending. As out and out defenders there are not many that I would take over the men in my original list.

To illustrate, Everton are quoting £75m for Branthwaite. Besides having two feet, in what way is he better than Wes Brown? Wes was quicker, stronger, better in the air, read the game better, could equally play forward (as he demonstrated by being our main full back when we won the 2008 Champions League). And, to be clear, I wouldn't be putting Wes Brown on my top 10 list of Premier League centre backs.
 
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  1. Van Dijk
  2. Ferdinand
  3. Terry
  4. Stam
  5. Vidic
  6. Desailly
  7. McGrath
  8. Campbell
  9. Kompany
  10. Carvalho
  11. Stones
  12. Adams
  13. King
  14. T. Silva
  15. Keown
It's three tiers for me: the top two (not precious about the order); the middle group from 3-8; and the rest. How you balance peak and longevity is obviously critical to where players stand. It's also worth highlighting Desailly and McGrath where we only have the 30+ portion of their careers in the PL. I do think it becomes harder as you progress down the list when you compare some of the stalwarts from the 90s to the modern high-line defenders with superior ball-playing skills. The difference in style and contribution is significant.
 
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Stam would be top but he played to few seasons for me to get awarded the top spot.

Rio
Terry
Vidic
Stam
VVD
Campbell

Vinny Jones doesn't get enough love.
 
arthurka said:
Stam would be top but he played to few seasons for me to get awarded the top spot.

Rio
Terry
Vidic
Stam
VVD
Campbell

Vinny Jones doesn't get enough love.
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Vinny Jones? His best attribute was the above knee challenge. You may as well throw 'Razor' Ruddock in there if you're talking up Vinny Jones.

Never on the level of someone like Colin Hendry or Steve Bould. Nevermind top defenders like Pallister or Adams. I'm taking David May over Vinny Jones without even thinking about it.
 
#07 said:
Vinny Jones? His best attribute was the above knee challenge. You may as well throw 'Razor' Ruddock in there if you're talking up Vinny Jones.

Never on the level of someone like Colin Hendry or Steve Bould. Nevermind top defenders like Pallister or Adams. I'm taking David May over Vinny Jones without even thinking about it.
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I was joking.
 
arthurka said:
Vinny Jones doesn't get enough love.
Click to expand...

#07 said:
Vinny Jones? His best attribute was the above knee challenge. You may as well throw 'Razor' Ruddock in there if you're talking up Vinny Jones.

Never on the level of someone like Colin Hendry or Steve Bould. Nevermind top defenders like Pallister or Adams. I'm taking David May over Vinny Jones without even thinking about it.
Click to expand...

Vinny Jones was a midfielder unless my memory is going.
 
BrilliantOrange said:
True but you have to set some rules somewhere haha
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McGrath would be up there for Villa, winning Player of the Year as a CB. But then Villa were 2nd that year and last season were 4th haha. Richard Dunne was also very good for Villa and Man City before Man City were 'top 6' but now would be considered top 6? Gets confusing. Then you have the likes of Van Dijk who were very good for a non-top 6 club but then moved to one.
 
KeanoMagicHat said:
McGrath would be up there for Villa, winning Player of the Year as a CB. But then Villa were 2nd that year and last season were 4th haha. Richard Dunne was also very good for Villa and Man City before Man City were 'top 6' but now would be considered top 6? Gets confusing. Then you have the likes of Van Dijk who were very good for a non-top 6 club but then moved to one.
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Maybe make it easier and more comparable over time by saying: who never won a title...
 
BrilliantOrange said:
Maybe make it easier and more comparable over time by saying: who never won a title...
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Some of the best ones not to win a title for me would be Rudiger, McGrath, Carragher, Vertonghen, Alderweireld, Saliba (although probably needs another season or two), Thiago Silva, Desailly.
 
Gio said:
  1. Van Dijk
  2. Ferdinand
  3. Terry
  4. Stam
  5. Vidic
  6. Desailly
  7. McGrath
  8. Campbell
  9. Kompany
  10. Carvalho
  11. Stones
  12. Adams
  13. King
  14. T. Silva
  15. Keown
It's three tiers for me: the top two (not precious about the order); the middle group from 3-8; and the rest. How you balance peak and longevity is obviously critical to where players stand. It's also worth highlighting Desailly and McGrath where we only have the 30+ portion of their careers in the PL. I do think it becomes harder as you progress down the list when you compare some of the stalwarts from the 90s to the modern high-line defenders with superior ball-playing skills. The difference in style and contribution is significant.
Click to expand...
Silva but no Dias?
 
Murder on Zidanes Floor said:
Silva but no Dias?
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Fair point. Ideally both. Maybe ahead of Stones then.

It is quite tricky to assess the current crop of City defenders. Each of them are individually excellent but City’s depth tends to mean they are not relied upon to the same extent as everyone else on the list. So we end up with weird scenarios where they are rotated in and out of the team or into different positions (eg Gvardiol and Stones) which affects their legacy to some degree. They’ve had a crop of guys who are individually in that middle 3-10 tier in terms of ability but haven’t had the singular influence of some of the other club legends on the list. There are also a few of them who are still writing their stories and it’s hard to judge a player mid-peak.
 
Chris Fairclough
Phillipe Albert
Colin Henrdry

Would any of the above scrape in or not?
 
The order really depends on how much influence you put on peak level vs longevity. I'll go more with peak level.

1. Rio
2. VVD
3. Vidic
4. Stam
5. Campbell
6. Terry
7. Kompany
8. Adams
9. Carvalho
10. Desailly
11. Dias
12. Bruce
13. King
14. Pallister
15. Stones

The last few are quite difficult to pick. I feel like there should be others I'd pick ahead of them, but can't think of who off the top of my head.

If I were to focus more on longevity then Terry and Adams would be #1 and #2 respectively.
 
Rooney in Paris said:
You're not very good at this wumming thing are you?
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That’s because the thread has been done 100 times before. It’s just another way of confirming Rio and Vidic and Stam as great. We know it. Just Mixing it up a bit
 
njred said:
That’s because the thread has been done 100 times before. It’s just another way of confirming Rio and Vidic and Stam as great. We know it. Just Mixing it up a bit
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You should probably spend a little less time on a Utd forum if this is your go-to reaction.
 
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