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We are just a couple of days away from the start of the Premier League 2021-22 campaign. Teams have reinforced their squads and the excitement is palpable.
It's been said that in football, defense wins titles. That's been proven by the fact that three of the last five Premier League title winners have had the best defensive record in the division.
The 2018-19 title, which was won by Manchester City, saw the two best defensive teams in City and Liverpool separated by just one goal. Fittingly enough, the championship was decided by a single point.
The 2021-22 season is shaping up to be one in which defensive talent will be more stouter than ever. With Arsenal signing English defender Ben White for £50m from Brighton Hove & Albion, and the imminent return of 2019 Premier League Player of the Season Virgil van Dijk for Liverpool, we can expect to see all of this talent on display.
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Last season, we saw Premier League debutant Ruben Dias make his mark in the league for Manchester City. He struck up a formidable partnership with John Stones, who led the blue half of Manchester to the Premier League title.
Dias also earned himself some individual accolades, winning the 2021 Premier League Player of the Season and Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year.
There are a lot of talented and experienced combinations to choose from and we look at the five best centre-back pairings from the upcoming Premier League season:
#5 Gabriel Magalhaes and Ben White - Arsenal
Despite finishing in a disappointing eighth place in the Premier League table last season, the Gunners finished with the third best defensive record in the league. Mikel Arteta’s side only conceded 39 goals. It was their best defensive finish since the 2015-16 season, when they finished second in the table with only 36 goals conceded. Gabriel made 22 starts and was involved in six clean sheets.
The acquisition of his new teammate Ben White from Brighton Hove & Albion for £50m was impressive for his side last season. Brighton finished 16th in the Premier League table but were impressive defensively, keeping 12 clean sheets – the same as Arsenal.
The English defender will be crucial to Arteta’s side. Brazilian David Luiz's departure meant that Arsenal needed another defender who fit Arteta’s philosophy of playing from the back. White has a very good eye for a pass, is confident in possession and brings a lot of versatility to Arsenal’s defense.
He's most notable for his incredible technical ability, and his athleticism will fit in well next to Magalhaes.
#4 Joe Gomez and Virgil van Dijk - Liverpool
Liverpool were ravaged by numerous injuries which led to a lackluster title defence from the Reds. The club’s star defender, Virgil van Dijk, made just five appearances last season before suffering a season-ending knee injury. Joe Gomez and Joel Matip also suffered similar setbacks throughout the 2020-21 Premier League season, as they made a combined 17 appearances between them.
Despite those setbacks, Liverpool managed to finish with the fourth best defence last season. The Reds conceded 42 goals on their way to a third-place league finish and Champions League qualification. The return of van Dijk, Gomez and Matip will certainly provide a boost to Liverpool’s hopes of winning silverware this season. To do that, the Reds will need to turn to their centre-back pairing of van Dijk and Gomez, which inspired the club to their first top-flight title in 30 years.
The duo conceded just one top-flight goal from December 7 to mid-February of the 2019-20 season and finished with the best defensive record in the league. Their return to full fitness will need to be taken into consideration in the first couple of games. But at their best, Joe Gomez and Virgil van Dijk are among the finest centre-back pairings in the league.
#3 Harry Maguire and Raphael Varane - Manchester United
When Manchester United secured the services of French international defender Raphael Varane for a fee of £41m, the fan base greeted the deal with a lot of enthusiasm. He joins United on an impressive resume, which includes four UEFA Champions League medals, three La Liga titles and a World Cup medal with France in 2018. Varane's experience will prove invaluable alongside English international Harry Maguire.
United conceded 44 goals last season, eight more than the previous year. That did not prove detrimental to the Red Devils, as they scored 73 league goals on their way to a second-place finish.
To take their title challenge a step further, they needed a player of Varane's caliber. The former Madrid defender was involved in 12 clean sheets in the 31 matches he started in La Liga. Varane helped Madrid to their best defensive record in 32 years in the 2019-20 campaign, when Madrid only conceded 12 goals in the first 19 games on their way to winning the title.
In terms of his partnership with Maguire, you can expect to see the Brit attacking the ball in the defensive third, with Varane assuming the sweeper role. The Frenchman is the more agile of the two and will do a lot of work to defend against any counterattack.
#2 Antonio Rudiger, Thiago Silva and Cesar Azpilicueta - Chelsea
Chelsea finished with the second-best defensive record last season, only conceding 36 goals. A lot of credit for that can be given to head coach Thomas Tuchel, who changed the team’s defensive fortunes around. Since the German took over, the Blues have ranked first in clean sheets, least goals conceded, big chances conceded, and shots in the box conceded.
The crucial change that Tuchel made was to alter Chelsea’s defensive system from a back 4 to a back 3, which meant that the team would now play with three centre-halves. Club captain Cesar Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva and Antonio Rudiger formed the backline for the Blues as they went on to win the UEFA Champions League and finish as runners-up in the FA Cup against Leicester City.
Overall, Chelsea’s new system helped maximize the talent in the team. It gave Reece James and Ben Chilwell the freedom to put more focus on their attacking responsibilities and allow the back 3 to shoulder most of the defensive burden. On their day, and for much of last season, they proved to be a formidable backline.
#1 Ruben Dias and John Stones - Manchester City
The defending champions head into the 2021-22 Premier League season with the best defensive pairing in the Premier League. In their first 17 games together, Ruben Dias and John Stones scored more goals (5) than they conceded (4).
By season's end, the duo had 13 clean sheets in the 19 Premier League games that they played together - the best return from any centre-back pairing in the division. Not only are they solid at the back, but they provide a consistent goal threat.
The pairing was so formidable last season that they both secured a spot in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year alongside fellow teammates Joao Cancelo, Ederson, Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan. Stones has spoken very highly of the impact that Dias made when he joined, and will look no further than the aforementioned accolades that the Portuguese international won in his first campaign for the Cityzens.
City are favorites to retain the Premier League title this season, so you can expect Stones and Dias to continue the form that was instrumental to their team’s success last season.
