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United treble winner Wes Brown says Rio Ferdinand is the best centre back in Manchester United’s history.
In an exclusive interview with The Peoples Person on behalf of InstantCasino, Brown was first asked who was the best centre back partner he had had at United.
“Oh, there’s probably three. I’d say Jaap [Stam], Rio [Ferdinand] and [Nemanja] Vidic,” he said.
“And by far, Rio and Vidic were the best partnership.
“But different players. I don’t want to say war, but if we’re going into battle, I’m taking Vidic. But every other day, you’d take Rio, because it was so easy for him. And Jaap was just as good. But definitely Rio or Vidic for me.”
Pressed on choosing one player as United’s best centre back of all time, Brown replied:
“Oh wow. It’s tough. Well, if you’re going before the mid eighties, I wouldn’t have seen a lot of the players. Afterward, if you’re putting the whole thing together, I’d probably go Rio.”
Having partnered all three at the heart of United’s defence, there is no-one better positioned than Brown to make a judgement.
Perhaps Four Four Two should revise their rankings on this basis.
The outlet placed Ferdinand as the 22nd best centre back in history, with Stam at 20th and Vidic at 19.
Perplexingly, all three are outranked by Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk at 17th, which is highly debatable, especially when titles are taken into account.
Brown himself, with seven Premier League titles, two Champions League winner’s medals, two FA Cups, three League Cups and one treble stands up very favourably to Van Dijk, with one, one, one, two and zero, respectively.
The Manchester man was once described by Sir Alex Ferguson as “without question the best natural defender this club has had for years.” It was perhaps that natural ability that meant he was deployed 87 times at full back and 229 at centre back. That versatility, in turn, may be the reason why his own greatness in both positions was never truly recognised.
Feature image Alex Livesey via Getty Images
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