Football: The Best Defenders in the League

Fans, pundits and pretty much everyone else involved in football seem to spend 90% of their time raving about forwards with no focus or recognition for the guys at the back. Sir Alex Ferguson always used to say that a team without a backbone of a top-class keeper and a great back four couldn’t win the league and he is probably right. This season has seen a surge of goals and an impressive number of top-class strikers in the Premier League, there are still some defenders who deserve applause.

Toby Alderweireld

He’s as solid as a rock but knows how to use his feet, which is pretty rare these days. You generally either find a defender who is clumsy on the ball but so aggressive that nobody wants to go near him like a Nemanja Vidic or the opposite, someone who is a bit weak but exceptional on the ball like a John Stones.

It’s unusual to find a centre-back with both qualities, especially in England where Rio Ferdinand was a rare exception. Alderweireld is built like a tree but distributes the ball like a holding midfielder capable of slicing open a defence with one pass from the back.

Antonio Valencia

As far as modern-day full-backs go, there aren’t too many more powerful or better at going forward than Valencia.

We sometimes forget that he was naturally a winger until a host of injuries forced him into right-back for Manchester United. Since then he’s become one of the first names on the team sheet.

He’s quick, strong (a bit too strong sometimes) and his final ball isn’t bad either. If you were developing a youngster to play in this position, you’d try to mold his physique and playing style around the big Ecuadorian.

Kyle Walker

Walker shares some similarities with Valencia in the sense that he’s got all the attributes of modern-day defenders in terms of being a powerhouse but also being electric quick.

The ex-Spurs man is the fourth-quickest player in the Premier League and his tenacity to get up and down the right side of the pitch makes him one of the best full-backs in the world right now.

As well as being able to beat an opposing player one-on-one, the Englishman can also deliver a wonderful cross with his right foot.

Joel Matip

Although Matip plays in a defence that is often criticised for the number of goals it lets in, that is often down to individual errors being made around him by the likes of Dejan Lovren.

Matip has been the best of Liverpool’s defenders over the last 18 months, which must be pretty tough considering he’s regularly surrounded by calamitous defending and he somehow manages to keep his cool.

Unfortunately for the Reds, I don’t see him staying too long unless the club signs a centre-back worthy of partnering him.

Cesar Azpilicueta

Let’s start by saying that there are a lot of players who pick up injuries and miss games and the one thing Azpilicueta consistently does is get onto the field to play.

The Spanish defender is often praised for his ability to stay fit regardless of game schedules and tends to play a full 90 minutes whether for club or country.

The right-back turned centre-back in a back three is now one of the most solid defenders in the Premier League and won the most tackles last season while also making the top five for every other defensive stat. That’s hard to beat.

 

by Nubaid Haroon

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