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Right-back: Gary Neville
Gary Neville was Manchester United's Mr. Trustworthy. He was also Mr. Consistent - not just over the course of a season - but throughout his decorated career for club and country. He got forward when the situation called for it, but he didn't do anything like the modern-day full-back in attack. He did it because it was part of his job and not with any kind of attempt to impress.
Very rarely did he make mistakes and for that reason, he was one of the first names on the team sheet for Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United. If he wasn't injured, he made the team and you always knew he was never going to let you down. Neville was all about his professionalism - there was no flamboyance to his gameplay and there was just a feeling that he'd deliver what was expected of him.
As an attacker, it was complicated to get past him because he knew where to be and when. He knew his job inside out and was another massive presence in that Manchester United team that won so many medals over the years - that's what separates him from other good players in that position.
Neville burst onto the scene at Manchester United as a kid, stayed all the way through and walked away when it was time to call it quits. He didn't try to soldier on and move to another club to pick up a paycheck - he just decided that the game was moving on and retired without any hesitation whatsoever.
I'd be absolutely thrilled with someone like Gary Neville because as I said before, he never lets you down. That's the kind of strength that comes from within and not from the manager, so it just goes to show what a massive character he was. He wasn't just part of successful sides over the years - he influenced his teams to do well and was a respected figure in the dressing room.
Cesar Azpilicueta and Kyle Walker are obviously fantastic players in their own right and I would have loved to have picked Paul McGrath as well, but Neville beats his competitors due to his longevity and trophy haul.
Center-back: Rio Ferdinand
Rio Ferdinand had the perfect skill set to fit into that position - a lot of boxes were ticked and he was made to play as a central defender. He was always confident and comfortable regardless of who he came up against and could deal with pretty much anything that was thrown at him - very rarely did you see him get bullied.
He had the pace and the composure to step into midfield, which is a lovely asset for a central defender. His recovery pace was quite something - it was absolutely vital in his partnership with Nemanja Vidic, who was another brilliant central defender in the Premier League for Manchester United. I spoke in one of my other earlier columns about these little combinations within a team and Ferdinand x Vidic was another one of those that worked so well for Sir Alex Ferguson.
Ferdinand also had a silkiness about him that many other central defenders didn't have. Manchester United were a hugely footballing side and Vidic was pretty much the out-and-out defender at the back who was rough and ready to get stuck into challenges, while Ferdinand had other qualities to complement the Serbian perfectly.
In my dream Premier League XI, Rio Ferdinand is the cement mix, while John Terry is the concrete!
Center-back: John Terry
I've said it so many times on commentary over the years that John Terry is one of the finest defenders in Premier League history owing to his positioning. He didn't have too much pace and wasn't the quickest on the turn, but he compensated by just reading and anticipating danger much better than the others. He almost owned that near-post position brilliantly and popped up at that spot time and time again to deny teams by just being where he should be and getting in the way.
You look back on his career and he was always in the right place at the right time to make defining contributions to several Chelsea sides over the years. In terms of the playing talent at the club, he was the boss man and pretty much ran the dressing room as the leader of the team.
Terry is also the all-time leading scorer for a defender in the Premier League and his ability in front of goal turned out to be a priceless boost for the Blues. He was confident that he could get his head to anything on both ends of the pitch and his goalscoring exploits were of huge value to Chelsea - to score as many as he did with that bit of extra effort impacted his team quite significantly.
I want to apologize to the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Vincent Kompany, but longevity at the top level played a huge role in my decision. Kompany was a similar character to John Terry in the way he influenced his team - just have a look at how the Manchester City faithful speak about him and that will give you an idea of how highly regarded he is. He is revered for what he did for the club and gave them the foundation to create a dynasty, along with David Silva, Sergio Aguero and a few others. I was there when he scored that goal against Leicester City to give the initiative to Manchester City in the title race in 2019 and it was off the scale. His teammates screamed don't shoot, but he did, and the rest, as they say, is history!
Rio Ferdinand and John Terry make my team for what they achieved over an enormous period of time, but Kompany deserves a mention, at the very least.
Left-back: Ashley Cole
Ashley Cole had the athleticism, stamina and energy to go at it for a long time and enjoyed a hugely successful career for club and country. He may not have been one of the standout leaders at Chelsea, but he let his game do the talking and did his job to an incredibly high level. His performances took him into territory that had many great players - he was regarded as the best left-back in the world during his prime. In the Euro 2004 semi-final against Portugal, he was absolutely sensational. It's almost as if he said "look at me now and see how far I've come."
I can't remember too many attackers terrorizing him and it goes without saying that he came against some incredibly menacing wingers in the Premier League. He had that quickness about him and could get back into the right position to prevent a cross from being delivered into the box, but what I liked about him is the fact that he did it repeatedly at the top level.
Like Gary Neville, he showed incredible levels of consistency and deserves huge praise for what he achieved in his career. Cole won a staggering seven FA Cups - which is more than any player in history - and also won several other titles, so his medal haul is hugely impressive. I played as a left-back, but I remember watching him and being in awe of ability and how well he managed everything that was thrown at him.
This is probably my Irish bias coming into play, but I think Denis Irwin deserves a shout as well. He was a phenomenal player who I had the pleasure of playing with once - he was essentially a right-back but he slotted in at left-back like he played there all his life and could do it all!
In many ways, he's underrated because he was really quiet. It wasn't his nature to be vociferous or talkative - he just wanted to get on with the game and let his feet do the talking on the pitch. He could take a great free-kick and scored the odd goal or two, so overall he was just a class act who is right up there with the best left-backs in Premier League history, for me.
Also Read: Ballon d'Or 2021 - Ranking the top 5 favourites - August 2021
