John Terry (right) is the best defender in the Premier League, ahead of Rio Ferdinand (left) and Tony Adams (Getty)
Since its launch in 1992, the English Premier League has witnessed the passage of the best defenders in the history of football, who made the difference in defense and even attack, and these defenders were impregnable fortresses that prevented their teams from losing.
Recognizing the importance of defense and defenders, Premier League coaching legend Sir Alex Ferguson says, “Attack gives you wins in matches, and defense gives you titles.”
It seems difficult to argue with one of the best coaches in the history of football, especially since there are many examples of teams that relied on a strong defense to help them achieve success.
A strong defensive organization is the most important factor for top coaches, including Ferguson and Portuguese Jose Mourinho.
The Chelsea team led by Jose Mourinho in the 2004-2005 season is still the best in the history of the English Premier League so far, as the Blues conceded only 15 goals on their way to breaking the dominance of Manchester United and Arsenal in the Premier League.
Without the presence of the four defenders, John Terry, Ashley Cole, Marcel Desailly and Ricardo Carvalho in the defense line, this achievement would not have been achieved.
Several criteria were adopted to select the list of the best defenders in the history of the English Premier League, which are:
Play period
Major titles
Window cleaning
Passes
Goal rate
The list is:
10- English Steve Bruce (Manchester United):
He played 148 matches between 1992 and 1996 and kept clean sheets in 61 matches.
STEVE BRUCE, MANCHESTER UNITED LEGEND 😍😍😍#LIVNEW pic.twitter.com/zBYiyjJuQl
- Matty (@matt60621) December 30, 2020
9- Englishman Sol Campbell (Tottenham, Arsenal, Portsmouth, and Newcastle):
He played 503 matches and kept a clean sheet in 154 matches.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Sol Campbell (@solmanofficial)
8- Englishman Gary Neville (Manchester United):
He played 400 matches between 1992 and 2011 and kept a clean sheet in 148 matches.
Gary NEVILLE mufc.2008 pic.twitter.com/q21sI0LfXY
— YingyaiSan@gmail.com (@YingyaiSaen) June 15, 2016
7- Serbian Nemanja Matic (Manchester United):
He played 211 matches between 2009 and 2011, then 2014 and 2022, and kept clean sheets in 95 matches.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Premier League (@premierleague)
6- Belgian Vincent Kompany (Manchester City):
He played 265 matches between 2008 and 2019 and kept a clean sheet in 94 matches.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Vincent Kompany (@vincentkompany)
5- Dutchman Virgil van Dijk (Southampton, Liverpool):
He played 241 matches since 2015 and kept a clean sheet in 97 matches.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Virgil van Dijk (@virgilvandijk)
4- Englishman Ashley Cole (Arsenal and Chelsea):
He played 385 matches between 1999 and 2014 and kept a clean sheet in 148 matches.
I promise you Ashley Cole would still pick Chelsea over Arsenal too easy.
📍 pic.twitter.com/ATnlkJqjIA
— Spinky CFC (@Spinkyszn) March 7, 2024
3- Englishman Tony Adams (Arsenal):
He played 255 matches between 1983 and 2002 and kept a clean sheet in 115 matches.
Tony Adams will be one of my CBs.
🏴
Spent his entire domestic career at @ArsenalFC from 1983 to 2002.
Lead #Arsenal to 4 English championships.
2 in #Old1stDivision, 2 in #EPL.
Plus captained @England during #Euro96.#ThreeLions @robertmdaws @80s90sfootball @fussballgeekz pic.twitter.com/VTtjVX1laB
— KKP (@kpportnew1987) March 7, 2024
2- Englishman Rio Ferdinand (West Ham, Leeds United, Manchester United, and Queens Park Rangers):
He played 504 matches between 1995 and 2015 and kept a clean sheet in 189 matches.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Manchester United (@manchesterunited)
1- Englishman John Terry (Chelsea):
He played 492 games between 1998 and 2017 and kept a clean sheet in 214 matches.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Chelsea FC (@chelseafc)
Source: British press