The Top Five Most Underrated Centre Backs Of The Premier League Era

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4 years ago

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Tags: Arsenal, aston villa, Chelsea, Everton, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Sheffield United, Southampton, Spurs, West Ham, Wolves

After going through our list of the most underrated fullbacks of the Premier League era last week, it is now the turn of the centre-backs.

Playing in the centre of defence requires a huge array of different skills. You need strength and a certain level of physicality to deal with opposing strikers, but you also need to have leadership skills as well as the ability to anticipate danger and concentrate at all times.

There are centre-halves that have been overlooked when it comes to their importance at their respective teams over the past three decades.

Press the next page as we go through our five most underrated central defenders in Premier League history.

5) Ricardo Carvalho (Chelsea)

The Portuguese international moved from Porto at the same time as Jose Mourinho and he struck up an almost instantaneous understanding with captain John Terry.

Chelsea conceded just 15 goals as they won their first Premier League title in 2005 and Carvalho was also instrumental as the Blues won their second consecutive Championship a year later. The centre-back won three league titles in total during his time at the club before leaving for Real Madrid.

4) Ledley King (Spurs)

The England defender could have had a stellar career but he was blighted with a chronic knee problem, which meant playing more than one game a week for Spurs was almost impossible.

It got to the stage where King needed round the clock treatment, which meant he didn’t even train between games. Despite that, he still managed to perform at the highest level for over a decade before retiring in 2012.

3) Lucas Radebe (Leeds)

The South African spent eleven years at Elland Road, becoming captain of the Yorkshire club in 1998. He helped guide his team to regular finishes in the top four.

However, knee and ankle injuries meant Radebe struggled to get on the pitch for the final four years of his career before retiring in 2005.

2) Sami Hyypia (Liverpool)

The big Finn was signed for just £2.6m from Willem II in 1999 and spent the next decade at Anfield. During that time he won the Champions League, the UEFA Cup, the UEFA Super Cup twice, the FA Cup twice, the League Cup twice and the Community Shield on two separate occasions.

Hyypia won every major honour in the game, apart from the Premier League, and he certainly deserves to be remembered as one of the greatest centre-backs of the past thirty years.

1) Kolo Toure (Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool)

For someone who played a key role in Arsenal’s “Invincibles” season in 2003/04, the Ivorian international doesn’t really get the credit he deserves.

Toure won two Premier League titles, as well as racking up over 400 appearances for three different clubs, over a 14 year period.